Today I am going to share something a little different. I try to make this space a happy and uplifting space, with lots of fabric! But today I want to share something that is near and dear to my heart.
I was on a girls weekend trip a few years ago. I had spent the previous few weeks sick with morning sickness. I went on this trip to celebrate the end of being ill and before I got too big with the baby. The weekend ended with me in the hospital where I heard the worst words ever, “you have lost the baby.” I honestly don’t think I had ever cried that much in my life. I cried so much I didn’t have any tears left. Needless to say, I was devastated.
I then entered the worst mom’s club out there, the miscarriage club. A club I never wanted to be a part of. A club that is never talked about. A club that we are members of and suffer in silence. I recovered physically from the miscarriage and then became OBSESSED with having a baby. And suddenly the whole world was pregnant. Those months were hard. Those months were dark.
Finally, finally, we were able to get pregnant again. I was placed on bedrest for more than half the pregnancy because I was threatening to miscarry again. But the darkness soon passed and we were blessed with a Rainbow Baby. A Rainbow Baby is a baby born after a loss of a child, whether that is via miscarriage or stillborn. A Rainbow Baby symbolizes renewal and hope.
During this difficult pregnancy is when I really got into quilting. There was something so therapeutic about cutting up the fabric and sewing it back together again. As corny as it sounds, I felt like I was stitching myself back together. This sweet little baby has been pure sunshine and rainbows! She is the sweetest thing and has blessed out life so much!
I have always wanted to create a pattern to celebrate the Rainbow Babies in our lives. October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. It seemed fitting to release this pattern this month.
I chose two different rainbows to create these baby quilts. I first picked a traditional rainbow. Riley Blake Designs has so many beautiful colors in their Confetti Cottons. For my traditional rainbow, I picked Blueberry, Sea Glass, Beehive, Salmon and Riley Raspberry. I also wanted to make a more muted rainbow. These colors are: Stargazer, Lodgepole, Curry, Canyon Rose and Frosting. And I pieced the whole thing with my favorite Aurifil thread.
I designed a quilt last February called Alma. Alma in Spanish means ‘heart and soul.’ I needed to make it into a baby quilt for these sweet Rainbow Babies who have so much of our heart and soul. I resized the pattern and Baby Alma is what I came up with. I LOVE it!! It is a beginner friendly quilt and will make the best baby gift, especially for those mamas who may be grieving their angel baby. You can find this pattern in my Etsy shop!
For the quilting, I chose little rainbow hearts. I thought that was fitting for the Rainbow Baby! I also love a stripe binding and used Riley Blake Designs 1/8″ black and white stripe for this quilt. I love the bright colors in this traditional rainbow!
I absolutely love this muted rainbow! These are new colors in the Confetti Cotton family and I am thrilled they have been added. I did use Vintage White as the background for this quilt. The usual Riley White that I love didn’t quite match the look I was going for in this quilt. I used Stargazer to bind the quilt as well.
Thanks for stopping by and letting me share a part of my heart with you today. If you have gone through or are going through infant loss, you are not alone! And I hope that you too can have your Rainbow Baby. They are truly the beauty after the storm.
If you would like to see more of what I am up to, you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and subscribe to my new YouTube Channel.
Chirp Out!
Jen
The Smitten Chicken 
2 thoughts on “Rainbow Baby”