Supporting injured Canadian Armed Forces members past and present, with quilts of comfort.
Offrant un soutien à nos membres blessés, passés et actuels, des Forces armées canadiennes, avec courtepointes de vaillance - société canadienne.
Making a Quilt of Valour™
A Quilt of Valour™ is a hug from a grateful nation and a tribute to an injured Canadian Armed Forces member, past or present. Although most of us will never know the soldier who will receive our quilt, imagine what it would be like for you if you did know the soldier. What if that soldier was your spouse, your brother/sister, your friend or your child?
A Quilt of Valour™ serves a special purpose and quality construction is important. Quilt standards must reflect the level of gratitude that we want to demonstrate to the recipient. Quilts of Valour™ can be made by individuals, social groups or quilting bees. In all cases we request that the standards we have established are followed. If you are making a quilt or have a quilt ready to donate please ensure that it meets the QOV Specifications.
Quilt Specifications
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Fabrics should be new, high quality 100% cotton. Do not use repurposed fabrics (eg: old shirts, blue jeans etc.)
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Choose fabrics with prints that are appropriate for a Canadian Armed Force member.
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Patterns and blocks can be of any design; however, recipients often prefer quilts that have a Canadian theme.
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Quilts must be large enough to cover an average-sized adult, with a minimum size of 55” x 70” and a maximum size of 72” X 84”.
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Quilts must have a top, batting, and backing, and must be machine quilted or hand quilted. A tied or tufted quilt is not acceptable as a Quilt of Valour.
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Backing fabric should also be a good quality cotton fabric, and if seamed the selvage edges have been trimmed from the seam.
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Batting should be 100% cotton or an 80/20 cotton/poly blend. Wool, bamboo or 100% polyester batting should be avoided.
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Quilting should be appropriate for the quilt and not overly dense, which can reduce the loft of the quilt.
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Binding strips should be joined with diagonal seams. Binding should be double-fold (“French fold”), attached by machine, and finished by hand or machine.
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Please DO NOT wash the completed quilt. We want your gift to be crisp and new.
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When your quilt is ready please contact a QOVC Representative near you who will make arrangements to pick it up and sew on an official Quilts of Valour label. Provide your name and the names of others who helped make the quilt so that they may all be added to the label.