I also think quilts ought to be used. I grew up with handmade quilts from both of my grandmothers, and I surely used them for all sorts of things quilts aren't really made for. They were capes and forts and tents and all sorts of things. I took them outside and laid them on the grass and hooked them over fences and tree limbs...and grandma would just smile and patch over the tears and stains and send the quilt back sturdier than ever.
I still have some of those quilts! Each patch is part of my story. I love looking at them, so many memories are trapped inside of them. They're falling apart now, the fabric is old and shattering, but I would rather have those beat up worn-out quilt remnants that are chock full of memories, than a pristine baby blanket kept "safe", and left unloved.
So that's what I want for the quilts that I make, too. I'm sad if they are put up somewhere "safe". I
want the kids playing with them, getting them stained and stretched-out and torn....so I can smile and patch them up and add to
their story, for them to look at someday and remember. To me, that's the absolute best possible use for a quilt.
