Darren,
You are so sweet to care so much for your granny & her handiwork for your family. Does your wife have any idea what a DEAR husband she has? It is really a gift from the heart & for the heart. I hope you will both find pleasure in quilting from your treasured box of memories.
You definitely triggered many similar memories to my mind of my own grandparents. My grandpa smoked a pipe & always had sen-sen in his tobacco drawer. Whenever I smell either, I think of him.
I inherited one of my grandmothers quilts at about age 40, when my mother was going to give it to charity. I had never asked her for anything before, but I couldn't believe she would just donate it without a second thought. My mother is not sentimental at all; it skipped a generation! She told me I probably wouldn't want it as it was stained from being in the trunk...I though she meant the "car trunk" & was horrified that my mother would be so careless. I then learned she meant the old cedar chest, so not as bad. I did take that quilt home with me & keep it carefully in a bedroom with no bright sunlight, or sharp folds. I will remember not to think of a cedar chest as a good place for heirloom fabrics though.