a gu ide to s irncha hs

Creating Keepsakes

A quilter creates a lifetime memory
for her granddaughter.

Suzanne Chessler

Special to celebrate!

Lydia Cutler wishes she always could keep her granddaughter,
Emily Cutler, wrapped in love.
In a way, she can.
Cutler, a retired occupational therapist, designed and
made an autograph quilt to celebrate Emily's bat mitzvah last
autumn. The coverlet — with a pattern of Jewish stars, appli-
ques of a sukkah at the top and a burning bush along the bot-
tom — was planned as a lifelong reminder of ties to Judaism,
family and friends.
"As I was sewing the quilt, I thought it would be very special
on days that might not turn out exactly the way Emily had
wanted," explains Cutler, 74, a West Bloomfield resident. "She
could come home, take time to relax, wrap herself in the quilt
and read caring messages from people happy to share her
13th birthday celebration."
The quilt, started almost a year ago, was made in stages,
with Emily's preferences and approval in mind. Emily, who lives
in Alabama, kept close to the project by phone and e-mail.

B 3 0 celebrate!

March

2008

"I asked Emily to choose the colors, the appliques and
a favorite poem for the back," says Cutler, whose interest in
needle arts started as a youngster, learning the skills from her
mother, the late Helen Bachrach.
"I looked through quilting books, asked friends for ideas
and shopped for supplies. Once the final plan was decided, I
figured out the template and cut the fabric."
The material, cotton dominated by shades of purple and
pink, was divided into 13 horizontal strips. The Jewish stars
were begun with the center hexagons, which now hold hand-
written messages. As triangles were added to complete the star
forms, Cutler worked from the middle of the quilt to the ends,
planning how one star would be joined to another.
The top and the bottom appliques came last. Emily chose
the sukkah because she knew a sukkah would be on the
bimah for her bat mitzvah service. The burning bush was cho-
sen because it is a memorable Torah portion.
"The poem I Saw a Child by John Anthony Davies represents

my granddaughters faith in God and love of horses and horse-
back riding," Cutler says.
The quilt was taken to the bat mitzvah in Alabama before
the cotton polyester batting was added. Without the insulating
material, party guests had an easier time writing in their mes-
sages with textile pens.
"I appreciate all the time my grandmother put into making
the quilt," says Emily, whose mitzvah project was helping spe-
cial needs children learn horseback riding.
"The quilt looked beautiful and different from the way I
expected it to be when we first started talking about it. I think
I'm going to display it along the wall of my bedroom."
Cutler has finished 15 quilts since she and her husband,
Allan, retired 10 years ago. As a second career, she had been
office manager for his accounting firm and recently managed
to give him some math tasks related to the quilt — measuring
the seams for proportions and drawing lines with chalk.
"I think Lydia used great imagination and creativity for this