Christmas in Missouri with the LeGrand Family

This Christmas Christopher LeGrand will be making the drive to his family home in Missouri by himself. Normally, his brother Bradley would go with him. But Bradley passed away August 30. Because Chris lives in the Chicago area where Bradley lived, Chris has had to deal with many of the details of Bradley's death. As painful as attending to all these details has been, this means that Chris has had a headstart with his grief. This first Christmas without Bradley is going to be difficult. Grief will be strong, and emotions will be on display. These quilts and pillow made from Bradley's clothing commissioned by Christopher will be a part of the family's Christmas celebration.

This quilt is for Bradley's mom, Mary Francis.  Notice the pockets in the upper right corner - there are three of them.  In the center of the quilt there's lovely Fleur de Lis button that was at the neck of one of the shirts.
67" x 76"

Bradley's sister Linda is getting this quilt.  While similar to the one above, it is overall a bit lighter.  It does have that same fancy button right in the middle block.
67" x 76"

Both quilts were quilted in a similar fashion, creating an almost plaid effect on the back.  While we all know these quilts were made from Bradley's shirts, Chris wanted words on the back of the quilt.  I'm sorry my date stamp interferes. They simply say "Always with you.  Bradley C. LeGrand."

This pillow is for Bradley's Aunt Jane.  They shared a special bond, including one involving the grief over the loss of their life partners.  It is made from all the cuffs of the shirts used in the above quilts.

Christopher may have a head start on his grief by organizing this project from Bradley's clothing, but his pain is just as acute as everyone else's in the LeGrand family.   However, he has identified an important path for his and his family's grief. They will mourn Bradley's death. And then they can begin to celebrate his life.

Deconstructing Men's Shirts - Part 2

After looking at a tentative layout of the 9" blocks from Bradley's shirts, Christopher came over this morning and worked on the layout of his mother's and sister's quilts.  These quilts will be Christmas presents and a way for the LaGrand family to mourn Bradley's death and still celebrate Christmas. Christopher is good with layouts.  In less than two hours and using one additional shirt, he created two distinct layouts.  The one to the left is for his mother.  The second one is for his sister. Both quilts will have a narrow navy border and will be backed with a dark blue fabric. 

It's always easier to work on commissioned quilts when I know I'm doing exactly what is wanted.  From a design viewpoint, the morning with Christopher was invaluable.  From a grief viewpoint, I think Chris did some important work for his mother and his sister.  As for me, I like working with Christopher because he's nice and he smells good!

These projects will be the focus of my work this week.  And I'm eager to get both these quilts together!

Good Grief - for Joyce Rainbolt

The quilted wall hangings for Joyce Rainbolt's family are complete.  Joyce died in March after a 10-month struggle with thymic cancer.  Her enthusiasm for life is evident through her clothes and caps.  She was a golfer and a sports enthusiastic.  She was Bill's wife for almost 40 years.  This one is Bill's.

Joyce was a daughter.  This wall hanging is for her mother.

Joyce was the mom of Jeri and Jill.  This quilt is Jeri's.  Both Jeri and Jill have small children.  Above all, Joyce was a grandmother and passionate about her grandchildren.

This last wall hanging is Jill's.  She was the one who contacted me about using her mom's clothes for wall hangings.  Jill's birthday is this week.  It touched me immensely to hear her say getting this wall hanging is like getting a birthday present from her mother.

This family knows how important it is, especially with small children, to keep talking about Grandma Joyce.  This way,  she can continue to be present in their lives.

For Kevin's Family

Kevin died in his sleep 6 months ago when he was 31. His family - his mother, his father, his brothers, his niece, his nephew - is grieving. This first year of missing Kevin is painful. The family has gone through a Thanksgiving without him as well as what would have been Kevin's 32nd birthday. Now this anguished family faces their first Christmas without him.

Kevin's mother Lynita is a woman I did a quilt for over 5 years ago. Before I did her wall quilt, she had just seen a t-shirt quilt that I completed. So now, years later, our paths are crossed, under the saddest of circumstances. She gave me Kevin's clothes and suggested wall hangings for her family. Her son Adam and Lynita spent an hour with me in the studio, articulating which shirts/pieces should go in which quilt and what colors/fabrics I could use as sashing and borders.

Adam and his brother David both have wall hangings that are 35" x 60."








Kevin's father, his niece, and his nephew all have hangings that are 24" x 24."










Lynita's is 24" x 48".

Grieving is a process that lasts a lifetime. And there are so many paths to grief recovery. I admire Lynita for helping her family identify a way that they can not only grieve for Kevin's death but also for helping her family - and herself - find a way to commemorate Kevin's life. Kevin will be present Christmas Day.

Well Under Way

The current project of 6 wall hangings is coming together nicely. 3 of the pieces are horizontal wall hangings about 3' x 5'. And 3 of the pieces are 2' x 2' wall hangings. The quilting has begun, and I think I'll complete them by early next week. Then I'm shutting the studio down for a month while I have a total knee replacement. I'll miss the sewing, but I'm thrilled with the thought of a new body part!

One More Path to Grief

Trish Schulz lost her daughter Lisa to ALS. Lisa was a vibrant, responsible, and beautiful woman whose life was too short. Trish is keeping Lisa's memory alive in several ways. She participates in the yearly Les Turner ALS Walk for Life, she holds chat sessions at her daughter's website , and now she has had this quilt made from Lisa's clothes. Grieving doesn't ever end - we just find different ways to do it. Trish wrote something from Lisa, and these words are on the back on the quilt. Trish and her grandchildren will always remember Lisa the Daughter and Lisa the Mother. Touching this quilt will remind them all that Lisa was once a part of their physical lives just as she is now a part of their spiritual lives.

This quilt features a variety of Lisa's clothes, including sweatpants, sweaters, blouses, and t-shirts. Also included are the ALS Walk For Life t-shirts that Trish has earned. The patchwork of the clothing only hints at the complexity of Lisa's life and death.

Just Plugging Away

Quilt design and the actual quilting are what I find most fun to do. The past 10 days have included neither one of these steps. What I have been working on are three death quilts - er, I mean life celebration quilts. I'm pleased with how these pieces are turning out. In addition to the quilt for her aunt, Bridgett Toma requested a boy quilt and a girl quilt from the leftovers. I'm glad to be a contributor to keeping the memory of Sheila and Bridgett's mother in the present, but it's sad knowing that these little grandkids will not know their maternal grandmother. I want to get these quilts completed so that I can return to the hockey jersey quilt, which truly is a joyous celebration of a young man's life.
What I'm really looking forward to working on is niece Jen Thompson's wedding quilt. She and Tim have chosen colors and a design. I'm beginning to put together Jen's palette. Soon I'll make a little design board to send to Jen to make sure I'm getting her colors right - a necessary part of the process. I'm looking forwared to this happy project!

T-shirt Quilts and Model Blocks

It's so hard to get back into the swing of things after being out of town. One project that's ready to sew together is a quilt of big half-square triangles, and there's a second one in the making. Both of these are from the shirts of Corinne's mother, and these quilts are for Corinne and her sister. I'll get this off the design floor today and then begin laying out the hockey jerseys.






Another quilt from shirts is for Bridgett Toma - she wants this for her aunt as well as two baby quilts out of the leftovers. Here's a tentative layout of the shirts.












Niece Molly has chosen fabrics for her bed quilt. I'm struggling with the design. Here's something very tentative.

Ok, get busy, Quilter Girl! No more delay tactics.

Hi Ho Hi Ho, It's...

off to Turkey we go! John and I have done some remarkable things in the past three years - our Central Europe trip, the cruise around the Horn of South America, the week in Beijing. Now we're flying to Istanbul and touring the western half of the country, including Ankara, Konya, Izmir, Ephesus, and Canakkale. I've already outlined the work to be done once I return home. The Hockey Jersey Quilt for Michelle's son and 2 memorial quilts for Corinne from some of her mom's shirts are at the top of the list. Niece Molly's quilt is also ready to start - I have all the fabrics but haven't decided upon a design. And today Bridgett Toma dropped off some shirts of her mother's - she wants a quilt for her aunt.

Bridgett and her sister Sheila were the first ones I ever did memorial quilts for. Pictured here is Sheila's quilt. Sheila is a teacher at Kennedy, and her mother who was younger than me died quite suddenly in the fall of 2004. Sheila gave me their mother's t-shirts and sweatshirts to be made into quilts. Along with all the shirts was a bag of flannel pj bottoms. At the time Bridgett was pregnant with her first child, so I made two baby quilts from the shirts and flannel bottoms.

Sheila had no idea the path her quilt request would lead me on. Since then I have done over a dozen "memorial" quilts . I think the deaths of my cousin Jim White, Joe Keeley, Fred Snively, my uncle Leonard White, Dodie Wallace. And I marvel at how therapeutic quilting has been for me.

So we're off to Turkey. Perhaps I'll find some inspiration for future projects! Be back March 20, just in time for the World Figure Skating telecasts! What a geek - quilting and skating...

Will's Grandma Dodie Quilt

Dodie had so much to say about her first grandson Will. He was her heart -until little brother Charlie was born. My first grandson is several years older than Will, and I freely confided my love for Ryan to Dodie. When Will was born, Dodie reminded me of how much listening time I owed her. No one can understand the intensity of the "crush" or the love for a grandchild except another grandparent. So I listened patiently and willingly as Dodie went on and on and on and on about Will. Various greens surround each of the 42 squares from his Grandma Dodie's nightgown. These greens are all "boy" - not a sissy green in the bunch. The back is a grey-green fabric that looks like weird little soccer balls. I hope each time Will uses it that he feels a connection to his Grandma Dodie.

I thought that I had finished my grief quilting for Dodie after making quilts for her daughers Virginia and Mani. But working on these past three quilts has given me some additonal comfort. I thought that when Dodie died, our friendship was over. But the mother of Will, Charlie, and Meritt - Mani - thanked me for continuing to be a friend to Dodie. And Mani's right. The friendship continues.

Meritt's Grandma Dodie Quilt

Little Miss Ann Meritt Reed is almost 2 years old. Dodie had the joy of knowing her granddaughter and had hoped to live long enough to see Meritt's first steps. But that didn't happen. Mani will make sure that her daughter remembers her Grandma Dodie, and this quilt from Dodie's nightgown will help.

The pinks in this quilt are from various projects over the years, including one scrap from a quilt that my neighbor hs junior Cristina did (look at the bottom right corner, and there are 3 more like it). It's appropriate that Cristina be represented in this Dodie quilt for Meritt. In the months leading to Dodie's death, Cristina was accumulating her behind-the-wheel hours in my car. I used Cris as a sounding board and shared some very serious life thoughts with her. Ah, the circle of life...

Charlie's Grandma Dodie Quilt

One of the hardest tasks after someone dies is for the family to get rid of the clothes. Dodie knew her time was limited and really did a great job of tidying up her closet before she died. Her daughters Mani and Virginia did have to do some cleaning up, and one of the things they came across were two of her trademark flannel nightgowns. Mani and Gin asked if I could make quilts from these gowns for her children Will, Charlie, and Meritt.

A year ago I was quilting my way through my grief for Dodie, and here I am again. Grief is a process. I've begun Meritt's quilt, and I have the fabrics set out for Will's. I love using scraps of Dodie's nightgowns, and I love using scraps of my quilting cottons. In this quilt for Charlie Reed (60" x 70") are several blues that my sister Paula bought years ago for a quilt she wanted.

In the year prior to her death, Dodie and I shared many smiles and tears about grandchildren and memories. It's comforting to know that Mani's children will have yet another visible reminder of a grandmother who loved them deeply and delighted in their every breath.