As far as I know, I am the one and only quilter in my family and have no recollection of any quilt as I grew up. However, my mom purchased a sewing machine for herself in the 50s and I was used to seeing and using an old Wheeler-White treadle that she used to sew on on my grandmother's porch. One day, my mom was cutting out squares from various fabrics with a cardboard "template" when I asked her what she was doing. She told me she wanted to make a quilt some day. I didn't think much of it until after she passed away at 56 and I came across the template and bunch of squares. I had no use for them and tossed them. But the memory came back to me years later and I decided that I would make the quilt she wanted to do when I retired. I have been self-taught and quilting now for 10 years. (These are for you, Mom.)

I am sure she is looking down and smiling.

My gramma lived in an 8 foot wide house trailer next to my aunt's house so she could still be independent and my aunt was close..well before assisted living came about! Gram didn't get around very well, but sat at her machine at the kitchen table..the living room was on one end, the bathroom on the other...so we often played games on her living room floor while our mom was at my aunt's and kept her company. She always had a yard stick on the table for measuring. If one of us acted up, she'd wait til we were headed to the bathroom and "whack" :lol: She'd get you with that yardstick when you least expected it!! I can still remember "there, that's for you being a little snot" :lol: :lol: I'll tell you what..that little 80 year old frail woman had one heck of a swing!!! But I still have my dresden plate quilt tucked away 45 years later..

At 5 I remember sleeping under one made by my grandmother. It was dark colors of wool squares and tied. I slept upstairs and it was mightly cold up there at night (no heat upstairs) so that wool quilt felt very good. Surely wish I had it now. All the quilts made by my mother and grandmother are gone, but no one seems to know where they went. Thank goodness I found out that one of my sisters had my mother's 1954 featherweight. It has been promised to me.

The quilt my grandmother made me when I was 5. So many prints.......it was security blanket and I loved it to pieces.......repaired it the best I could, and display it on my quilt rack.

I love the Grandma stories they are all adorable. My mother always sewed and hand embroideried. So that meant me and my sisters had no choice in the matter. So sometime between the age of eleven and thirteen we learn to sew, embroidery, knit, and hand-piece quilting. I started my first nine-patched. I never finished it. I do have the last quilt that my mother made on my bed right now. She finished it in the 60's. I found one of her UFP (top), two years ago when I moved from my house into the apartment. I was clean out my garage and found it stored there, I was so happy that day.

My grandmother used to keep her quilting frame covered with a blanket, we weren't allowed to see it. I also remember that she wrote my mother that Lucille (the general store owner) had received fabrics for the quiltmakers,

I remember my mom's aunt would have us girls (about 15 cousins and our moms) come to her house (only 600 sq ft home). There was two large dining tables put together in what should have been the living room and dining area. She was teaching my much older sister and older cousins to crazy quilt with velvet tidbits (crumbs now) and I was about 4 years old under the table learning how to construct barbie clothes and barbie quilts.

I learned a lot of sewing from my mom and her Aunt.

When I was pregnant with my first son (1990), I would go to her same house (600 sq ft) and sew with her (age 92 and still sewing) and her daughter (in her seventies) and on of my mom's sisters (late 60's) for a real life (old fashion)quilting bee.

I miss that.

We always had quilts on our beds. Never gave it much thought they were just scraps. Grandma had pieced many tops, my mom finished them and we used them.

When I got married, I didn't want my quilts from my bed, after all I got lots of blankets as gifts. So I gave mine to my sister for her children's beds.

I was an 18 year old bride that did not know the value of what I had. Now I am married 50 years and know much better. (It didn't take me all 50 years to know that, LOL)

When my mom passed, I did get several of my grandmother's tops so all was not lost.

Jean