What Is a Grandma Quilt?

Have you ever heard of a Grandma Quilt?

I hadn't. At least, I hadn't heard one called that until a customer named Diane Miller happened to introduce me to the idea. And the minute she explained what she was making, I thought, Oh, I love this.

A Grandma Quilt isn't a baby quilt that goes home with the new baby.

It stays at Grandma's house.

It's a quilt made especially for all those visits that are yet to come - the naps at Grandma's, cuddles on the couch, stories before bedtime, sleepovers, forts built over furniture, and all those ordinary little moments that have a way of becoming some of our most treasured memories.

And what I especially love about the idea is that the quilt is there waiting before those memories have even happened.

How I Learned About Grandma Quilts

Diane Miller first contacted me about hers before it was even finished. She was in a hurry because her niece was expecting her first baby, the shower was coming up, and Diane was waiting for our Bubbles stencil to arrive so she could get quilting.

But it wasn't the deadline that caught my attention. It was what she called the quilt.

A Grandma Quilt.

Diane wasn't making it for the new baby to take home. She was making it for her sister, the soon-to-be grandma, to keep at her house for when the grandchildren came to visit.

I had made and seen plenty of baby quilts, but somehow I had never thought of this.

Diane's Grandma Quilt

For the quilting, Diane chose our Bubbles All Over Stencil #40088 because the whimsical circles worked so well with the dots and spots in many of her fabrics.

She had quite a bit of Kona Snow in the quilt and was concerned about which chalk to use, so she emailed me for advice. I suggested our  Barely Blue Pounce Pad, which was developed especially for very light fabrics.

A little while later, I heard from her again:

"Every bit of it washed off. I was ecstatic!"

Diane combined the Bubbles design with some ruler work, finished the quilt in time, and sent it off to her sister.

And that's when this went from being a clever quilt idea to something much more.

Diane told me her sister cried when she opened the quilt and read the label. She said that seeing the quilt "finally made the baby's coming seem real to her."

Isn't that wonderful?

What Would You Put in a Grandma Quilt?

That's the part of Diane's story that got me thinking.

There really aren't any rules for a Grandma Quilt. It could be made specifically for the first grandbaby, as Diane's was, or perhaps it could be a quilt intended for all the grandchildren who will eventually curl up beneath it.

It could use children's fabrics, scraps from family quilts, favorite colors, novelty prints, or fabrics that simply make Grandma smile. You could even make one from scraps left over from quilts you've already made for your children and grandchildren - a little family history stitched together into one quilt.

And don't forget the label.

After hearing how Diane's sister reacted when she read hers, I think the label might be one of the most important parts. You could include who made the quilt, why you made it, the date, or even a little message for the grandchildren who will someday sleep beneath it.

A Quilt Waiting for Memories

That's what I keep coming back to about this idea.

When a baby is coming, we naturally think about making something for the baby. But becoming a grandmother is a pretty big event, too.

A Grandma Quilt marks that beginning.

At first, it's simply a beautiful quilt folded at Grandma's house. But eventually it may become the quilt we always used at Grandma's.

Imagine what it could mean twenty years from now.

Maybe this isn't a new idea to some of you, but it was new to me. I'm going to make one. And I hope Diane's quilt inspires some of you to make one too - for yourself, for a grandmother-to-be, or for someone else in your life who's about to begin that wonderful new chapter.

Thank you, Diane, for sharing your beautiful quilt with us, and especially for sharing the idea behind it.

I think this is one worth passing along.

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This story first appeared in our Full Line Stencil newsletter, where I share customer quilts, quilting ideas and tips, new discoveries, and whatever else happens to cross my quilting path that week. If that sounds like something you'd enjoy, I'd love to have you join us. Subscribe to our newsletter and come along!