I have a very old baby quilt that my GGM made for me when I was born. We used it all the time and some of the fabric has split. I took it to a guild meeting to ask for ideas to repair it. The majority of the suggestions were not to try to hide the repairs, just stop further damage. We don't use the quilt anymore (don't want any more damage). The fabric she used was the kind of cotton fabric you could buy in the dime store and is very thin and fragile looking. Some is print and some is solid color. I haven't done anything with it just refolding once in awhile. I think I would make your friend another quilt with cotton and not the flannel. Flannel is hard to work with and doesn't wear well. Good luck.
Sue