My dictionary defines "Heirloom" as, #1 A valued possession passed down in a family through succeeding generations. #2 (law) An article of personal property included in an inherited estate.
I had a quilt made by my grandmother and gifted to my mother, then gifted to me. I then gifted it to my daughter who is childless, and asked that it one day be gifted to my granddaughter, (her niece) I'm fairly certain that will happen, and I do consider this an Heirloom Quilt, even though my grandmother made many quilts for others that were not passed to the next generation and I personally would not consider them Heirloom Quilts. Perhaps the recipients of those quilts do.