It never ceases to amaze me how emotionally invested I become in projects without even knowing the people I am creating them for.  This has never been more true than it was for my most recent project.

​My client contacted me looking to have small wall hangings made for her niece and nephew of their mother's clothing.  Their mother had recently died of lymphoma (see foundation info below).  We based the design for each hanging off of one of the items listed in my Etsy shop but elaborated in order to incorporate as much clothing as possible. In addition, she sent me fabric photographs of the children with their mother to include and also requested  a hand embroidered quote that her sister would say to her children at bedtime each night.  

I sorted the clothing and decided which items to use in each hanging for the child's first initial, background, and border.  It's amazing how many articles of clothing and memories are packed into each mini quilt.  I truly hope that seeing these hanging on their walls each day will fill them with memories of happy times with their mother.  

To honor the memory of this special woman, her family has created a foundation to raise money for causes that were close to her heart.  I value many of these causes myself (education, arts, community) so I'm happy to share the link for any of you who are interested in supporting the Lisa Rego Horne Memorial Foundation.  Or follow along on the Facebook page 

This is a truly unique newborn baby gift because it's made for baby from mom and dad's meaningful clothing!  In this case, the birds are made from wedding and bar mitzvah yarmulkes and the wings are textiles with shared importance to the couple like fabric from their first apartment together.  The clothing bordering the birds is a combination of baby clothes, events, college and travel memories.  The baby's gender is a surprise so I worked hard to keep it as gender neutral as possible.

WARNING: POST WILLL BE LOADED WITH PHOTOS.  I CAN'T HELP MYSELF THIS TIME...

This was one of those projects that just spoke to me from the start.  I was given a box of clothing that belonged to a very loved and missed grandma and grandpa.  After carefully taking apart the clothes I divided them as equally as possible in order to make three separate quilts; one for each granddaughter.  The designs were intricate and it took a long time but I'm so happy with the results.  I hope these blankets will be cherished for a long time and will keep these families feeling even more connected to their past, especially since each one will be shared with the couple's great-grandchildren! 

My creative juices always get going when there is a new baby on the way.  Our friends recently had a little boy and since they are huge fans of the band, Phish, I incorporated that into the baby gift.  

Combining the classic baby book lyrics by Dr. Seuss made it kid friendly and meaningful.  This family had "one fish" who was about to become their "old fish" and the "new phish" makes "two fish."  Okay, okay, maybe thats a bit too cutesy, but the sophisticated font and sharp color contrasts make these flags stylish for years to come.