Last fall, We had the beginnings of a wonderful new chapter in our family. . . the first of the great-grandchildren. I started out making a new quilt. . . for a very special little guy - my new grand-nephew, Gavin. I also knew that I would be making another little quilt for my then soon-to-be-born little grand-niece, Aubrielle.
I knew that I wanted to use my first fabric line for them . . . so that was decided, & then as I thought about it - I knew that I wanted to be able to make the same design - so that there would be no favorites. . . & then I remembered my Mom.
As we were growing up - my Mom collected owls. She truly loved them. Mom even made adorable little owls from yarn & driftwood - (one of which is a very special treasure of mine!)
(these little owls that Mom made - keep watch over my studio. . .)
Another thing that Mom loved, were babies. . . (oh my. . . did she ever love babies!), & when she became a Grandma to her five grand-daughters. . . she loved every minute she had to hold & snuggle with them, & to sing to them. (My Mom had a beautiful singing voice!)
So, when in this past year - two of those grand-daughters became mommies. . . & since Mom is no longer with us. . . I just knew that these precious little ones (& all the ones to follow) somehow deserved to be held & loved by their Great-Grandma Georgia. And, when it came time to make each one their first quilt - the idea of this little owl design fit perfectly. Even though Mom couldn’t snuggle them in person - they will always know that - even so - she loves them still.
Here are the two quilts made from my fabric line 'Celebration'. . . the blue/green for Gavin, & the pink/green for Aubrielle. I also embroidered, "Remember 'Whooo' Loves You" just below the little owl - so they would be reminded of how much love - even from a Great-Grandma they will never know here on earth - surrounds them.
Then, at Fall Quilt Market, when I went to say "hi" to Joanna (Fig Tree & Co.) on set up day, I saw her new line, 'Whimsy' & knew it would be perfect for it. . . (as well as Joanna's & Moda's wonderful 'Snuggle' - for the backing!
(I wish you could feel the back of this quilt!. . . so soft!)
To be honest, at first I was just going to make this little quilt for the 'great-grands'. I wasn't going to make it a pattern. . . but after giving a few peeks, it became clear that several others wanted to make it too. . . so. . . just to also let you know, we picked these up from the printer yesterday. . . & so the patterns are now available on the website!
Thanks for letting me tell the little story behind this little design, & I hope that you will always remember who loves you too!
♥ Bren