the allure of a quilt

If you sew or quilt you have probably had someone ask you to make them something. They are half-joking, but they are also half-serious. When people find out that I make quilts, they joke "when you gonna make me one?" It happens a lot. So much so that I nearly wish I could make one for everybody who asks. "I love ya, man, but, seriously. Really?"

My sister saw the raggy quilt our sewing class made for a friend with cancer and it was just what pushed her over the edge from

non-creative-type-who-doesn't-sew

to

person-who-drives-5-hours-in-a-car-full-of-her-own-children-to-visit-her-sister-who-has-agreed-to-teach-her-how-to-sew-and-then-drives-back-home-and-buys-an-old-machine-off-of-craigslist-and-sews-up-a-storm-type.

It's the allure of a quilt.

What is it about a quilt that nearly everyone loves? Do you think it is the fact that we all crave something handmade? Or does it tap into something left over from childhood? A fever which gave the chills and a loving mother wrapped up her sick child? A picnic memory sitting on grandma's quilt? A cozy fort made with chairs and an old blanket shared by siblings on a particularly memorable rainy day?

What is it that you love about a quilt?