Ocean City resident June Sculthorpe is a seasoned quilt maker who co-runs M&J's Quiltaways, a weekend retreat for quilters.

"What I love most about quilting is picking out the fabric," she says. “There is a fabric called minky (or minkee) that is super soft and seems to be popular for baby quilts right now."

Sculthorpe has designed quilts for many family members, including her niece and nephew.

Making a blanket formed a bond (literally and figuratively!) between Philadelphia native Rosemary Fasolo and her adult daughter, Mary Kate. Using Mary Kate's favorite old T-shirts, mother and daughter created a T-shirt quilt. Mary Kate cut and pinned; Rosemary sewed. "She was thrilled at the outcome, and when I think of her curling up with it, soft and worn and cuddly, it makes me happy to know we created it together," says Fasolo, who recommends sites campusquilt.com  and spoonflower.com for those interested in learning more about quiltmaking.

Plainfield native Kate Conroy, founder of Quilts by Kate, says her grandmother taught her how to sew. She later teamed up with “Crazy Quilters” in Montclair, where she found herself in good company. “They taught me the basics of quilting and I discovered that while I enjoyed regular quilting, I loved taking old clothes and turning them into quilts,” she explains.

For newborns, Conroy spends “a lot of time choosing the softest fabrics, usually receiving blankets, to create a quilt. I also embroider the child's name, birthdate, and a few lines of hope and goodness.” Conroy adds: “It's also not unusual for a mom to send me the baby's 0-3 months sized clothes when they grow out of them. I cut those up and turn them into ‘crazy (very colorful) quilts.’”

All of Conroy’s work is done by hand. “A regular quilt can take two months or so, a crazy can take up to six months,” she explains. The detail-oriented Conroy always asks clients “what the nursery looks like and whether the mom has any specific colors she wants to use. I work really hard to make sure the quilt will be something the family, and the child, cherishes for years to come,” she says.

Hoboken mom Marylee Carroll wanted a monogrammed blanket for her newborn son. “I personally love monogrammed things," says the new mom, who purchased her personalized quilt from NY-based Rarebits. 
"I think it will be wonderful for my son to see this blanket when he's older and know that it was his and made especially for him," she says.

Want to sew for a good cause?

Blankie Depot , based in Keyport, is a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide handmade blankets to New Jersey children suffering serious illness and trauma. Hillary Roberts, President of Blankie Depot, began sewing with her now-adult son Nick, when he was a young boy. “Nick still sews and knits; he's majoring in Textile Engineering Technology at college," she says. "Sewing helped shape my boy into the young man he is now."

Blankie Depot sends blankets to hospitals, medical offices, schools, and more. “When doctors bring a handmade blanket to a child's hospital room it comforts the child and the family to know others care,” says Roberts. “These gifts mean something special to doctors and nurses as well as the children in their care." The handmade blankets can also be used as ice-breakers when a doctor first meets a child.

Currently, Blankie Depot is accepting handmade blankets that are knitted, crocheted, hand-sewn and quilted, that are machine-washable, soft to the skin and “created with a child in mind.” Roberts believes that a well-crafted blanket not only provides comfort for a child, but for some children living in poverty, “it can be difficult for them to even ask for something handmade and all their own. A handmade quilt spreads love and compassion.”

“We can all relate to the comfort; we snuggle up with a blanket when we're not feeling well, or relaxing with a movie or good book,” adds Roberts. “A blanket is universal.”
 

Image: "Crazy Baby Face" by Quilts by Kate