Sunday 27 November 2011

Guest Crafts 2: Bandana Quilt (Hankie Blankie)

Retro Scarves quilt or Hankie Blankie

Retro scarves quilt rumpled from sleep

William Least Heat-Moon, in his book, 'Roads to Quoz', wrote of the "Wandering Foot" quilt that he had as a child, "Mothers, fathers, give forethought to what you allow your children to sleep under. I don't mean roofs and rafters. I mean something closer to their skins, their heartbeats, their souls if you will. My parents early put me under a quilt hand-stitched by a paternal great grandmother, a woman who saw Abraham Lincoln at Gettysburg...."

My second 'guest quilt', coming hot on the heels of Sunshine's beautiful Kaleidoscope quilt, reminded me of that paragraph. This was made by a relation (what a crafty family!) for her daughter who was leaving for University. With a selection of retro scarves, she produced this wonderfully cosy Bohemian quilt. It makes me feel quite nostalgic for my student days (especially for my beautiful Indian skirt which lost a battle with a bicycle chain in my first year). There is something so comforting, when starting Uni, in having a tactile reminder of home, sewn with love. These things usually become fond heirlooms, and get even better with time.

My sister-in-law has a similar 'bandana quilt' made by her own mother (or grandma) when she started university in the 1980s, and following the tradition my mother-in-law made similar quilts for her grandchildren a few years ago (she calls them 'hanky blankies').

I think the thing that appeals to me the most (after my mandala marathon quilt escapade) is that the patches are REALLY BIG - how satisfying to sew!








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