Trip Around the Mountain Baby Quilt

• She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands.
• She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff.
• She is not afraid of the snow for her household: for all her household are clothed with scarlet.
• She maketh herself coverings of tapestry; her clothing is silk and purple.
• She maketh fine linen, and selleth it; and delivereth girdles unto the merchant.
• Give her of the fruit of her hands...

Have you ever noticed how many of the verses in the Virtuous Woman series of Proverbs 31 are about working with her hands? Handcrafts and needlework of various sorts have been part of women's lives since time immemorial. Sometimes out of necessity and economics, sometimes just for beauty and pleasure. To me, a quilt embodies all of it--economy, necessity, and beauty--into one piece.

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My grandmother used to love to do what she called "piecing scraps"---using remnants and leftover fabrics to make something out of almost nothing. I can look at many of her quilts today and identify some of the scraps--this one from the pink dress I wore in sixth grade, that one from a skirt my mother made for my sister, still another from a church dress my Nanny wore. Each piece was a trip down memory lane.

The quilt I'm sharing today is one that's especially near to my heart--a baby quilt with a special history.

In the late 1950's when my mother was expecting her first child (yes, it was me!) my grandmother made this quilt top--a "trip around the mountain" pattern. Before it was finished, she fell and suffered a serious compound fracture that required surgery, and a lengthy recovery. The quilt was never finished, but folded away among her bags of scraps.

Many years later when my husband and I were expecting our first baby, my Nanny (that's my grandmother) pulled out the original quilt top, added some fabric to the ends to make it bit larger, and had it quilted for us. Sadly, by the time it was finished I had suffered a miscarriage, and the finished quilt was once again wrapped up and put away for safekeeping. It stayed there until the birth of our son two and a half years later, when it was finally put to it's intended use.

If it looks a bit faded and worn, that's because it was well used. Some of those old fabrics aren't as "color fast" as new fabrics, and the edges of some squares have bled a little into the next ones. But can you see the hearts quilted into the solid blue fabric at the ends? And sense the love and care that went into each and every stitch?

Now that it's served it's purpose, it has a place in the blanket chest in my bedroom--but it will always have a special place in my heart and in my memory. Started for one baby, finished for a second, and finally used with the third--I think that qualifies as quite a "trip around the mountain" all by itself.

To see other vintage finds and collections, join me at Vintage Thingie Thursday at Coloradolady.

Until next time...