Remembering Your Grandmother's Afghan

Do you remember the Afghan?  It wasn't until I was searching for my winter comforter that I came across mine..  That special knitted blanket that my grandmother knitted for me in  1982.  How do I remember the date?  Because my Yiayia (Greek word for grandmother) had always hand-sewn  a special tag on the corner of her afghans with a little To and From note and the date of the special event she was creating for. What was funny was on the tag  she spelled my name with an " i " .  Yup that was Yiayia!

I also remember when I was a little girl that my parents also had one of Yiayia's afghans hanging on the back of the recliner in the den.  It was more autumn-like colors of oranges, olive greens and golds with long yarn fringe.  I never liked it so much until now that I can appreciate the hard and long work taken to create these beautiful blankets.

My grandmother always had a way with giving her hand-made afghans.  You always knew if there was a special occasion or life milestone such as a marriage or new baby on the way, you were going to get a new afghan and a little message sewn to the corner.

Mine is three shades of blue and white, the colors of the Greek flag.and was made for me for a wedding shower day of May 16, 1982.  After being tucked away for years, I am happy to pull it back out of storage and proudly use it as my bed blanket.

Yiayia has been gone now for 13 years but her special afghan blankets are proudly displayed in my home, my siblings and cousins home.

If you have an heirloom afghan share your story..  Remembering passed family members that have made an impact on your life is so very important. Recognizing them and the heirlooms and memories they've created is truly a blessing.