The Tradition


The Bai Jia Bei or 100 Good Wishes Quilt is a tradition in northern China that welcomes and celebrates a new life.  The quilt represents the thoughts, prayers, and good wishes of loved ones, each of whom contributed a patch of fabric.  The quilt is often passed down for generations. 


We have decided to build a quilt for our daughter, Nora, as a way to honor her heritage and to give her an heirloom representing the love and prayers of her new family.  This quilt will be a reminder to her that even before she was born, there were people who loved her, prayed for her, and were anxiously awaiting her arrival.

Send a Square for Nora!

As many of you know, we are in the midst of a long wait for our adoption from China.  Two years ago we started the process thinking it would take about 12 months.  Due to a number of factors, the wait has increased dramatically and we think it may take another year or more before we finally have Nora.  Although it can be hard, we have remained positive with the support of our friends and family.  This quilt project has been a great way for us to keep busy while looking forward to Nora’s arrival.  We’ve received many great squares and Julie has been working hard.  However, there’s still plenty of time if you’d like to contribute! 

Thank you to everyone who has given a square

We still need many more squares!

Because you are important to us and to honor the role you will play in her life, we invite you to contribute a patch of fabric for Nora’s quilt.  Here’s how you can help:

1.Find a good quality, 100% cotton piece of cloth.  It can have special meaning or simply be a pattern that you like.

2.Pre-wash the fabric in the washer with cold water.

3.Cut into a square, at least 8x8 inches.  This is the square that will go on the quilt.

4.On stationary or card stock, write a blessing, wish, prayer, note, or verse for Nora.  Don’t forget to include your name!

5.Cut a piece of your fabric and attach it to the wish so that Nora will someday be able to match the wish with the fabric on her quilt.

6.Send it to us!  If you need our address or more info, email us at pete.julie@comcast.net.

Here are some more great examples of squares we’ve received.

How the Quilt is Made

1.  Julie started by cutting out 100 squares from the muslin she selected as the background material. 

2.  She then cuts four fan shapes from each of the donated squares. 

3.  The fan shapes are then sewn on to the muslin background squares.

4.  After the fans have been sewn onto the background, Julie embroiders the donors name in the middle.

5.  The individual squares will then be sewn together.

6.  You can start to see why this pattern is called a daisy fan.  When joined with other squares, the fans form daisies made of four different fabrics.

7.  When all 100 squares have been sewn together, Julie will apply the batting and the back of the quilt.  She will then be ready to do the quilting.

A True Heirloom

This quilt is truly a labor of love and will surely be cherished for generations.  Julie (Nora’s mom-to-be) worked hard on the quilt and all of the women in our family have helped in it’s construction.  Her mom, aunts, and grandmothers will be wonderful roll models and the love they will show her for the rest of her life is already evident. 

Thank you so much to everyone who has contributed to this special project.  We truly appreciate your love and support!!