The Many Faces of Plaid

Over the last year or so, my grandfather, who has Alzheimer's has been rapidly declining and following some health scares, the difficult decision was made this spring to put him in a nursing home.  At the beginning of the summer, my grandmother asked if I would make four quilts from his shirts- one for each of their four sons as a keepsake of their father.

To know my grandfather (we call him PaPa) is to know that his clothing of choice for years has been a plaid western shirt, dark jeans, and boots.  So, when I went to pick out shirts, I had several closets from which to choose.

The challenge for me with these quilts was for each quilt to take on a little bit of the personality of each of the recipients.  I wanted the quilts to each have its own flair, but still look unified as a set.  Plaids are really cool that way.  They can take on so many different moods, and are used in so many different environments.

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I made the quilts in birth order, so as the oldest, my Dad's quilt was the first.  It's called Western Kaleidoscope, and I think the Kona Parchment and Kona Coal really help add to the western flair.  Although my Dad is really an All-American kind of guy, he does enjoy his jeans and boots from time to time.

The second quilt is for my Uncle Bryan and is called Bricks and Mortar.  The Kona Iron, chambray and red gives this quilt a blue-collar, auto mechanic feel, which suits him very well since he enjoys working on cars.

The third quilt is for my Uncle Bruce.  Going Camping has Kona Biscuit sashing which gives it a very outdoorsy look.  I could see this quilt being used around a campfire or by a lake.  My Uncle Bruce isn't super outdoorsy, but I remember as a kid, our families would go out riding four wheelers in the woods. And since I'm not outdoorsy myself, that's as close to campy as I get!

My Uncle Mike is the youngest brother, and he likes to be a sharp dresser and a jet setter.  Preppy Plaid Chevrons is for him.  I just knew that he needed a quilt with a preppy flair, and I thought that a chevron pattern with Kona Navy and Kona White would be perfect.  I think it's a great way to show off the plaids in keeping with that look.

As much as I wanted each quilt to have a different personality, I also wanted the four of them to be unified as a set.  So, I kept a few things consistent-

*Size- are all roughly 60 x 60

*Backing- all are backed with Kona Coal with a chambray stripe through the middle

*Binding- all are bound in Kona Rich Red

*Quilting- all are stippled with dark gray thread that blends into the backing

*Labels- the labels on each quilt have the same wording, with slight changes to my Dad's

Of course, keep in mind that assigning quilts with such distinct looks to each person is a bit like a caricature.  Their individual personalities and styles could never be summed up with the style of a single quilt, but I do hope they each like the one I've made for them and treasure them as a keepsake of the Daddy they knew.