Day of the Dead 2025

One of my favorite Christmas gifts last year had to wait until now to be displayed and featured here because it was meant to go with my Day of the Dead offrenda wreath. My Brooklyn niece made me this beautiful cempasúchil flower mini quilt using new fabric as well as fabric from her mother’s (my sister’s) stash. She based it on a pattern from the book “Flossie Teacake’s Guide to English Paper Piercing”.

Hanging under my sister’s offrenda ornament this year is the new one I made for my husband’s brother, who died in June.

He was an animal veterinarian who specialized in transplanting cow embryos, and at various times in his life, he either embraced or hated getting cow gifts. So I thought his offrenda definitely needed a cow. Being a Christian was an important part of his life for many years, so I added a cross. But before he embraced Christianity, he was a serious Deadhead, so instead of cempasúchils I added the Grateful Dead bears all around the sides of his offrenda ornament.

We miss you, Allen.