Processing grief with busy hands and community collaboration.

A memory quilt for a lost life.

A family member passed away suddenly and far too young last September. It was a shock and I think we all feel like he’s still here, quietly joking and jibing, adding warmth to gatherings. But then, we feel the gap he left and can’t really comprehend the loss.

I didn’t really know how to help out in the immediate time after his death - but having just started to learn how to make quilts and knowing he had a penchant for bright shirts, I thought making a quilt in memory of his life for his mum would keep my hands busy during that tough time. The result would hopefully be something the family could wrap themselves in and remember him fondly.

The details

Size: 190cm x 138cm

Top: I suppose you could call this a 9 Patch Quilt Block pattern. It’s a simple pattern of squares. I tried to make sure no two of the same fabric were touching, but a couple slipped through my quality control. The whole top is machine stitched and made from a collection of colourful cotton shirts.

Batting: I used organic wool batting from Victoria.

Back: The back is made partly from some salvaged grey linen fabric I had leftover from another project, along with a few large panels made up of his flannelette shirts, to make it extra cosy to snuggle up in.

Quilting + contributors: Because he had a cracking sense of humour and a love of colour I used lots of different coloured embroidery floss for the quilting stitches. It’s all hand stitched, but I had some help. We organised a couple of gatherings of friends and family who all had a go at putting a few stitches into it. Overall 14 people’s hands helped bring this quilt together.

Embroidery: Along the left side I embroidered the words ‘Always look on the bright side of life’. A line from a Monty Python song which is a family favourite and played at his funeral.

Info panel: On the back, at the bottom right I embroidered a message with variegated cotton thread onto calico. It says who the quilt is made for, by whom, and some washing instructions because I was a little worried about the wool batting inside.

Extra details: On the back, I left in a few of the pockets on the flannelette shirts, and collected a few personal notes from friends and family who couldn’t be here to put some stitches in or wanted to say something in words.

Final destination: We recently got together to hand it over to his mum. She was really appreciative of all of our effort and later sent me a photo of her and some of the grandkids snuggled up in it on the couch, just as I imagined.

I hope it lives on as a loving reminder of his life and personality.

Thanks so much for reading. Go gently.

Life lately…

1. I entered my wall-hanging quilt that wrote about here into the Resource Work Cooperative Art From Trash Exhibition. Very cool to be involved.

2. Some dramatic geology, spotted on a recent coastal walk.

3. Tiny pencil doodle.

4. A seed-stitched sun to cover up a logo.

5. A small acrylic on canvas abstract I made that has quilty vibes.

6. And the beginnings of a whole-cloth quilt made from 2 fantastic 70s sheets I found at an op shop recently. Instead of batting, I’m using an old blanket that was a little worse for wear. We’ll see how it goes.

Damn good links

Here are a couple of damn good links for you on the theme of quilting. You can find an ongoing list of great things to listen to, read, and watch here.

NETWORK / The Quilty Nook created by Zak Foster. An online network of diverse feral quilters just like me. If you’re quilt-inclined you might like to join in. My favourite parts are the sewing circles, workshops, and the super supportive community who don’t care how beginner you are.

WEBINARS / Soft Bulk by Zak Foster, Heidi Parkes, and Luke Haynes. A collection of talks “investigating and celebrating the unique qualities of quilts, including: flexibility, sculpture, softness, and cultural context.”