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This is a very personal story, but I think many of you can relate. I also switched up the graphics a bit to make it a little easier to maintain for me. If you truly miss the Black & White drawing of all the blocks, leave me a comment.. It’s an added step for me and not sure there is value to it.
In the pattern below, I tell you the full story of my Peppermint Swirls and why they are such an important Grandma Memory.
I could have called it the ‘Candy Dish’. I think many of us had a grandma, or great grandma with candy dish somewhere in the house. Heck I have one now! When you work on this block think of a candy memory … did Grandma have to hide certain ones on the top shelf? Did she put out the ‘good stuff’ just when visitors came?
I actually have a quilt that I started many years to create my Grandma’s peppermint memory. About a year ago I found that top. and I know exactly why I stopped working on it. There was something I wanted to add and I didn’t have the skills. I do now.. I have for about 15 yrs.. but the top.. is still a top.
When writing this post I went and got it out. I’ll take some photos and do a separate article on it… I think it might be time to quilt that one.
MY TRICK for Light fabric over dark fabric – On this project I use TWO layers of white circles fused on top of each other. I do my ‘cut away’ for the fusible which is in my book. And I use heat n bond lite for my fusible. I do not cut away the background. The 2 layers of white covers the background fine with these fabrics.
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- Download Pat Sloan Block 11 directions Grandmas Kitchen
- ***Download PRIOR Blocks at the project page***
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In my Applique book I teach you step by step how to do beautiful fusible machine applique. Loads of photos and I make it easy & fun to do!
he one super important tool for applique are decent scissors.
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32 Responses
The last quilt I made was for hurricane relief. I made a quilt as you go It was the first time I made one and I enjoyed it a lot. I pray it keeps someone comforted. Our quilt group of 10 made 15 quilts for hurricane relief.
Thank you for all you do.
Ida Mae
I made my last quilt for my husband to have on his chair to cover his cold feet on chilly nights while watching sports.
Thanks for this block. I remember those peppermint candies. My Grandma Lucy worked as a supervisor in a candy factory here in California many years ago.
I blanketed stitched with one color of thread, pink!
I’ve enjoyed this trip down memory lane! The grandmother I’m remembering fondly while making this quilt always had lemon drops in her candy dish and purse. I remember sitting with her at church and waiting for her to give me a lemon drop just as the preacher started his sermon. My other grandmother always had the ribbon candy. It was pretty but I always preferred the lemon drops.
Hi Pat. I love these weekly Quilt blocks. I have many memories of my grandmothers and their kitchens. My 1 grandmother always had ribbon candy at Christmas in a candy dish shaped like a tree. It was so lovely.
Not necessarily. Her Winter Solstice Quilt had 5 different sizes in it. It was so much fun to make.
My grandmother always had peppermints in her candy dish. I now have her candy dish.
Guernsey jelly roll is my favorite. I am catching you on my grandma squares. Been down with the crud, and need some inspiration.
I love working with jelly rolls. I am currently seeing a quilt for my husband’s bed.
Not all of them – this is the third 10 1/2″ block. The others are Wash Day – 6, Grandma’s Apron – 8, and now this one. I’m guessing there will be 3 more to make one row the same length as 5 larger ones.
My Dad’s mother “Mama” always had sugar cookies made for us. My Mom’s mother “Grandmother” always had a candy dish just inside the parlor door. She kept it filled with butterscotch mints. I now have the candy dish and the table that it always stood on.
My MIL always had a candy dish full of candy shaped like circus peanuts. My kids remember it to this day because they didn’t like them at all. LOL
I actually have a great grandpa story that took place in my grandmother’s kitchen. My Great grandfather spoke mostly Ukrainian and broken English so I didn’t understand him much. He would tap on my shoulder when I wasn’t looking, I would look back and he’d pretend nothing happened, then he’d do it again, but on the third round of tapping on my shoulder I would turn around with a big smile on my face and say “Hey!”. Out from his shirt pocket a Lolly pop magically appeared. 🍬 became our language barrier breaker. He did this with all my cousins that were born before he passed away gosh about 32 years ago. I think I’ll make a Lolly pop stick out from a shirt pocket for this block, my grandmother would love the sentiments remembering her father.
My Grandma ALWAYS had those jellied orange slices and those green leaf shaped spearmints. She, also, always had Juicy fruit chewing gum in her purse….it always had that smell to it. To this day whenever I smell that gum it takes me back 60+ years to when I was a little girl….how I miss her!
Hi Pat I’m loving the Grandma quilt. My Grandfather always had a white paper bag of black and white striped blackballs in his pocket. Peppermint taste but roundlike aniseed balls. Thanks for the memory! Noel.
I remember as a young girl we gave my Grandpa a large candy cane stick for Christmas. When Grandpa passed away the tradition passed down to my Dad. When my Dad passed away it was then passed down to my husband. It has changed from the big stick of candy to the big pillow shaped candy cane candy. My husband figured that he could change things up a bit. This was one of my favorite traditions as a young girl and also as a much older woman.
My grandma always had a candy dish filled with the solid pink and white mints. We could have ONE if we asked first. Now we have a candy dish at home all the time, but filled with Hershey’s Kisses instead. So far the grandkids don’t know it exists!
My grandfather always kept a jar of old-fashioned peppermints in the kitchen cupboard. I think the jar had originally had coffee in it, before coffee came in cans. When my husband and I moved into our first home, I discovered a jar that was just like Grandpa’s. We used to get the peppermints in bulk.
Hi Pat,
not sure where I should put this question. First – my grandma always had toffee in a candy bowl; she also had a hairy cat who had the run of the house – the candy always had cat hair on it (but it didn’t seem to stop us from eating it – lol).My question is – when I look closely at your appliqued swirls, it seems you used white thread on the white areas and a pink tone on the colored areas. Am I seeing this (and being really weird about it) or did you actually change thread colors on each section of the swirls. Love your block.
My mom always have a beautiful cut glass candy dish with peppermint candies in it and she also had the same candies in her purse. I got the dish when she passed and now I keep candy in it for the grandkids. They all know where it is and even the 2 yr old knows where the candy dish is. I usually always keep suckers in it and of course a variety of hard candy.
Directions say to square this block to 10.5 X 10.5. Is this correct? All the other blocks have been squared to 12.5.
We knew it was a special occasion when my mother put out chocolate covered “thin mints” for Sunday dinner guests. Although my grandparents had passed on before I knew them, I remember my mother vividly. Her warm and loving traditions are the stuff of family stories.
She has been gone for twenty years, started her family later in her life and taught my two sisters, my brother and me how to “make do” and “finish what you start” in her words. We did not have much, but she left us memories that will populate my “Grandma’s Kitchen” quilt. Mom, I miss you. Love, JoAnn
Great block. Yes the kids grandma my MIL had peppermint candies all the time. I like the color format too.
my grandmother always had cinnamon disks instead of the peppermint swirls~ I still love them to this day! What fun reading other’s memories!
I remember the peppermint candy wreath that hung on the door at Christmas. It even had scissors to cut a piece of candy off.
I my goodness – this candy is such a flashback memory. Not to my grandmothers who I never knew but to my mom who would be 106 if she were alive. She always had these candies on hand. Always. I can hardly wait to make this block. ~smile~ Roseanne
I love the stories. My Mom had a special candy dish for Christmas. It was a Santa face and she uses the ribbon candy. We loved it. Wha t a great memory. The block is great.
My grandma always had a candy dish and a variety
Of candy too. Remember a raspberry filled hard candy or the special treat of Sanders chocolates. My favorite as a kids was the ribbon candy at Christmas time. It was so pretty and such an amazing shape what a treat!
This is such a cute block. I am planning on adding it to my Christmas Solstice Blocks. Thanks Pat.
Pat – I like this format. My intentions are to make the block as part of the overall Grandma’s Kitchen quilt, not a quilt with a single block. While the extra pages are nice, I don’t always print them as the block instructions come out. I do save the pdf file on the computer for “later”. But honestly don’t need that part. Save yourself some trouble I say! CANDY – Grandma Bessie ALWAYS had lifesavers in her purse. ALWAYS. Now I am thinking on how to include them in this block. Brain is whirring! Mary / http://www.stitchinggrandma.wordpress.com
Love the Wednesday memories Pat! For me it was my Great Uncle James, my Grandma’s brother. He always had a pocket full of “dog candies” (Kraft caramels), he did in fact feed them to the dog thus the name but would gladly feed them to us kids as well. To this day caramels are still “dog candies” to me.