My Grandma Essie did not know about the modern “recycle” programs, and yet she was great at recycling! As a kid, growing out of clothes is a regular occurrence. But our clothes were “repurposed”, as they call it today, not thrown away. Mom packed up our clothes in Crest Foods grocery sacks and took them to Grandma in Muskogee. She then lovingly cut up those outgrown clothes into uniform squares of fabric to be made into a beautiful, warm quilt.

You never knew exactly when it might appear; but some months or maybe a few years down the road, Grandma and Grandpa would come for one of their visits and she would have in hand, a “pieced quilt” (as she called it) made from our old clothes. It was always so much fun to identify each square and remember which child had worn the fabric. Hey, that was your shirt! Oh look!, that’s my dress!

I never remember covering up with anything other than one of my Grandma’s quilts. Each stitch made with love for her family. Her quilts were on every bed in our home. My Dad still sleeps under one of his Momma’s quilts!

Grandma Essie had a strong sense of saving and reusing. She did not believe in wasting anything. She passed that fine virtue on to her boys and grandkids and we are passing it to ours! I am so grateful for those lessons and remember them every time I unfold one of her beautiful quilts.