To celebrate a new life, there is a tradition in
the northern part of China to make a Bai Jia Bei, or 100 Good Wishes Quilt.
So while we await the arrival of our daughter, we have decided to create a Bai
Jia Bei, or "100 Good Wishes Quilt" for her. It is a custom to invite 100 people
to contribute a patch of cloth with a wish for her. The patches sewn together
into a quilt that contains the luck, energy and good wishes from all the
families and friends who contributed a piece of fabric. The quilt is then passed
down from generation to generation.
A memory book will also be made from the notes and good wishes each person sends
with their patch of cloth. So that when she is old enough she will be able to
look at the book and quilt to see who all sent her good wishes.
We look forward to everyone's participation in this project, and love the idea
of everyone contributing to a quilt that represents the love, energy and good
wishes of all our family and friends.
If you'd like to contribute a quilt
square and wish please follow the directions listed below.
1. The fabric should be 100% cotton and should
be quilting fabric thickness - 100% cotton is best as it washes and wears
better. (In other words you shouldn't select a heavy decorator fabric, flannel
or chenille.) It can be from a piece of clothing or from a fabric store. It just
needs to have a design and color that you like.
2. We ask that the fabric is pre-washed to
prevent shrinkage.
3. Cut one 8" x 8" square from the fabric - or
a 7-inch square if you cut it with a rotary fabric cutter. Please err on the
side of sending more fabric than less if you're unsure about your cutting
skills.
4. On a piece of paper (no larger than 8" x 8")
please attach an additional, small piece of the fabric and include your good
wish note – make sure to sign your name. On the back of the wish please also
include your name & address. The wish design can be as simple or elaborate as
you would like - let your creative juices flow. Please remember it is important
to attach a piece of fabric to the wish so that we can then match your wish with
the fabric square on the quilt when it is completed.
5. Mail the fabric square & wish to us so that
we can add it to our daughter's quilt. (Please leave us a comment or email me
directly for our address –
Ideas For Selecting Fabric Squares:
Select a fabric that is meaningful to you:100% cotton is best as it washes and
wears better. If there are several members in your family, please feel free to
send more than one good wish note and piece of fabric. In China, these quilts
were originally made from the garments of family and friends surrounding the
child with luck and good wishes.
Ideas For A Good Wishes Note:
What would you wish for an infant to have in her life? Some ideas are good
health, perseverance, compassion, love, and a sense of humor. Often times people
send a favorite quote, poem, song lyric or even recipe. Other times it is a wish
that comes directly from your heart. Hopefully those ideas will serve as a guide
for your good wish note.
All wishes will be kept in a scrapbook until our daughter is at an age where
she can read them. Eventually, the book of wishes and quilt will be given to our
daughter as a treasured keepsake that she can then hand down to her children.
Being that this is a work in progress, and may take awhile to complete it
would be wonderful to receive all of the quilt squares and wishes from everyone
by __________
We would really appreciate you taking a few minutes from your busy schedules
to help us create this very special keepsake. The miracle of this adoption has
been helped and nurtured by so many and this quilt will be incredibly meaningful
for us as well as our daughter.
Here are some examples of finished quilts:
http://www.originalquilts.com/