A gift of love

Gifts to the girls this year from us consisted of books, scooters and Lego in the largest part, nothing much handmade - just one small thing from me.

Nothing I would ever have done could compare to the amazing gift my Mum gave them, their own hand-stitched quilt with matching pillowcase, each adorned with fairies and in their favourite colours.

Each appliqued panel has hundreds of tiny hand stitches on it.

To say these quilts are a gift of love would be an understatement.

They have taken mum, literally, hours and hours.

She has worked on them at various stages for almost a full year.

Worked into the more than 300 tiny two inch squares that surround each panel, are remnants from dresses, hats, rompers, pants and skirts the girls wore as they have been growing up.

There are fairies hovering over little flagged tents, elephants and butterflies...

There are hand-stitched frogs, dogs and bees and a cute snail!

The top left corner square is an old dress belonging to Miss L

Making a quilt is a tradition Mum started for the oldest of her eight grandchildren - and now she has only one left to make - on which she has already well and truly started.

Each flower is sewn on with blanket stitch then had the stem added!!

These photos in no way do them justice, they are really incredible.

And, importantly, the girls adore them...

They each got a matching pillowcase with an embroidered centre panel that features the same imagery as the eight panels on the quilt.

Strictly just for looking at - not sleeping on!!

The fairy on the right has a dress made of one of Miss L's favourite fabrics - it's in her Feliz party dress which she wears all the time.

They like these two cheeky fairies jumping on the beds, must remind them of someone!!

And to top it off, each quilt has a hot air balloon embroidered with their name (I've removed it here of course!!), and on the back a hand-stitched label telling them from whom and when they got them.

The night they got them, Miss A was poring over it examining the details and said to her dad; 

"Grandma must love me more than anyone to make this quilt for me."

He said "I love you twice as much as Grandma".

Her response; "Well  you can't - you haven't made me a quilt."

As my Mum said - they were made with love; each and every stitch.

They really are the most precious gift.

Thanks Mum.