4 patchwork teddy bears and one patchwork bunny with storybook
Click on image to read more.
​When my husband died in September 2020 (way too young and with too much suffering), our entire family was devastated. We would never again see his smile or experience his gentle spirit. I struggled to think of tangible ways to preserve his memory, especially for his five wonderful grandchildren. Through my network of friends I learned about Jean’s business, Remember When. I knew Jean from my teaching days, and coincidentally she taught both of our daughters. When I saw her website and what she could make with my loved one’s shirts and ties, I knew I had found the answer to my quest. Despite the obstacles posed by the COVID pandemic, and after many back-and-forth emails, Jean and I were able to meet up (thank you, Manheim Twin Kiss!) She was very attentive to my description of my husband, his personality, his temperament and his legacy. I handed Jean a tote bag full of his dress shirts, ties, polos and Penn State gear. 
 
A few weeks later (and after another series of emails), I met Jean again at Twin Kiss with the final products – four Bearloom bears for the boy grandchildren and one Hareloom bunny for his only granddaughter, born exactly one week before he died. I was amazed and truly touched by the amount of time, love and attention to detail that Jean poured into these tributes. Each bear/bunny has pieces of his life: Penn State, High Industries (his employer), neckties and shirts are incorporated into each body. There is also a personal memento from their grandfather for each grandchild and a personalized (and rhyming!) booklet telling his story about his heart full of love. Every time I look at the pictures of the bears and bunny, I experience bittersweet memories of a man well-loved. Thank you, Jean, for such beautiful mementos.
We asked Jean to help us preserve our daughter’s baby blanket. She came up with the idea of making a memory pillow and using the blanket as part of the fabric on the pillow. When we received it, we were blown away by her creativity and quality of her work. Our daughter’s tears of joy were a testimony to how beautiful and sentimental this gift was. It will be a treasured family heirloom for years to come. We would not hesitate to use Remember When Studios again. ~ Allyson 
Jean of Remember When Studio did a fantastic job with a heirloom quilt I had her make in remembrance of my Mother. Jean took the time to hear me talk about my mom and how important and special a woman she was to our family. From the items of my mom that I gave her, she made a beautiful quilt that our family will cherish forever. She also made smaller keepsakes that I could give to my mom's grandchildren. I highly recommend Jean and Remember When Studio. ~ Liz Martin
So often when loved ones pass on, there is such a sense of loss. We know that we won’t see that face, hear that voice, or feel that touch again in our lives. Jean and her wonderful work with textiles has made it possible to actually hold on to our loved ones and their memories. We have pillows made from my father’s military uniforms which were so much a part of him and our family culture. And we have pillows made from German capes that honor my mother and her love for us. Jean’s work is thoughtful, detailed, and beautiful, creating pillows that preserve the love and memories of parents and family as a tangible gift. ~ Meg
5 pillows made from chidhood German capes. Each is embroidered with a red Cardinal to represent MomMom Gibble.
click image to read more
Couple on a cruise for their 30th wedding anniversary Whitney is wearing her redesigned wedding dress and shawl and necklace made from the dresss.
click image to read more
I am so grateful to you this year.  You made my 30th anniversary even more special than I could have imagined by redesigning my wedding dress as creating the accessories.

Also, I will be eternally thankful to you for turning a simple horse fabric into a treasure to be included at every meal.  My mom would have loved the table runners as they will assure she is at the center of all family meals.  With appreciation ~ Whitney


Thank you so much for all your efforts in creating a very meaningful heirloom for me.  And I loved the sentiment on the attached note - it captured my husband's feels so well. ~ Jocelyn
​
​Thank you so much for creating a special memory - my husband would love it! ~ Jocelyn
 Shadow box willed with the dress and suspenders from a wrist date along with the invitation, bow tie, love letter and cufflinks and studs.click image to read more

​


​Jean—You are amazing!!  I just love the special ornaments and know my children will, also.  Can’t wait for Christmas—I’ll try to remember to take a photo of the decorated tree.  I so enjoyed working with you on this project—you went way "above and beyond” my expectations.   Thank you for your thoughtfulness. ~ Jocelyn


​I smile every night when I hear slippys soft thud as she slips onto the floor during the night. It has made me laugh out. Thanks for restoring slippy it has been of great comfort to me and has helped my healing. ​ ~ Celia
Magenta Pink blanket that lying over a back yard bench.
click image to read more
Multi colored story quilt of interlocking circles each of which represent a positive outcome of Cancer diagnosis or survival
click image to read more



​The quilt, "Chain Reaction", captured my attention through Jean's artists, especially her exquisite "stitches of story".
I will always "Remember When" I acquired the quilt through the online auction for Livestrong at the YMCA.
Thank you Jean , for the contributions to my life as I am "Covered in Care"!  ~ Anonymous
 A few months ago, I decided I was finally ready to do something with Anthony's beloved blue plaid jacket. I wanted it made into something for Gage and for me. I was hesitant about sending it away to a stranger. It turned out I didn't have to. Through the magic of Facebook, I discovered that a friend knew someone who specializes in making memorial items. I then discovered that that person is none other than Ms. Jean Gerdes, my 8th grade home-ec teacher. I connected with her and we met last month, the week of Anthony's 5-year anniversary. As it turned out, she had Anthony too. It was tough to hand that jacket over, but Jean was so very respectful and compassionate, asked lots of questions about what I wanted, and made it easier to let that jacket go. She kept in touch with me, sent me pictures of the prototype, and finished quicker than I thought. Earlier this week I picked up the completed pieces, right before his 29th birthday. 
To say that I love them is an understatement. I will treasure them forever, and I'm sure Gage will too. Thank you, Jean, for giving us such a wonderful remembrance of Anthony.
​~ Stacy Emmlinger
two memorial, memory monkeys.
Click on the image to read more.
image of the original quilt
Original Quilt
page from the story Starter Booklet
Page from the Story Starter
Finished memory quilt
Finished Heirloom - Click on the image to read more.
Working with Jean was a heartwarming, joyous experience. We took a tattered hand made quilt painstakingly made with love by mother in law 34 years ago when my first child was born. When I pulled it out to give to my firstborn grandson, I realized the years had taken their toll. It was falling apart at the seams…literally. While I could have easily tossed it away and replaced it with a store bought baby quilt, I knew this was a work of love and art by my mother in law who passed away over a decade ago. I wanted to somehow pass this on to my son’s son. Jean was exactly the person I needed. I was familiar with her work and turned to her with my tattered quilt in hand. Off she went with it to find materials to match, ways to strengthen the weak parts and fix up the tatters. She also had plenty of imaginative ideas about how to make it a strong, durable and adorable keepsake. We spent a bit of time discussing what I wanted and what became so evident was how well Jean listened and tuned in to what I was looking for. She even came up with a sweet book to go with the quilt to explain the story of it to my grandson with images of his Nanny and Pop-pop and the rest of his family. I know he will be read that book many times and the quilt will be a gift that will remind him he is love and cherished by all of us including those who are no longer here. The original quilt was a work of love that through Jean’s talents, creativity and thoughtfulness we were able to restore and pass on.  Thank you Jean!  ~ Cathy Walker
~ I cannot thank you enough for embroidering my Dad's handkerchiefs for our girls. They have really been missing their Pappy and seeing his handwriting on their quilts is going to bring them comfort. I really appreciate you bringing them to school today. That's the best package that has ever been in my school mailbox! What a great surprise that you finished them so quickly.  I enjoyed catching up with you and cannot thank you enough for being a blessing to our family. ~ Tiffany
Our girls received their quilts last night. They were thrilled with them and then we showed them the surprise that you created. Both girls LOVED seeing Pappy's handwriting on their quilts. Our little one asked if she could have his handwriting put on all four corners. Thank you for the extra special touch you created for our girls' quilts. ~ Tiffany
heirloom tree skirt with the family name
similar tree shirt Clare's - Click on the image to read more.
Jean, Nearly 25 years ago, you made us a tree skirt for a wedding present. That skirt was one of the treasured items we hand carried during our Army moves. It was too priceless to entrust in other hands. It has been the first thing I take out and the last thing I put away every holiday season. Through babies, deployments without John, Maddie home from college, family visits, and friends from all over the country; the skirt has been there. It represents Christmas and family. Of course, it’s beautiful work, but it’s so much more. We love it. Thank you. ~ Clare
 Even if there were no back story to our Remember When quilt, everything about it would still be beautiful. The fabrics used, the design, the quality of the work, is all absolutely gorgeous. But add on top of that the meaningful experience and the person (my son and his birth) the quilt represents, it turns from a beautiful quilt into meaningful art. It really symbolizes the brightness and hope his birth meant for us, and it'll definitely become a family heirloom. Thank you, Remember When!      ~ Sharon
baby Robin on story/memory quilt with robin's nest
Click on the image to read more.
mother and daughters with their memorial/memorial pillows and table runners.Click on the image to read more.
​Lin’s father passed on.  After helping her mother work through her father’s clothing, Lin showed me a bag of her dad’s neckties. She shared how her dad wore one of these neckties each day over the course of his 40-year car salesman career. Lin fondly remembered each tie and especially the ties her father’s sister, Aunt June, had made. Lin stated that her mom wanted to donate the ties, along with the other articles of clothing. But Lin wanted to do something with her dad’s ties, as they were too meaningful to discard.

I said that I would investigate “tie memorabilia.” There had to be someone who did this kind of work, this kind of art. The search to find someone who would be able and willing to create a special memory started! I asked family, friends and colleagues to ask others and to keep “the Project” in mind. I asked my seamstress. One and one-half or more years passed and the ties were still in my possession. No connections were made. Mr. Miller’s ties were too meaningful to hand over to someone unknown.

One day in July, 2017 a dear friend and I took a day road trip for a reunion and "the Project" re-surfaced. It turns out, my friend’s sister sews, creates, and more. She was in the throes of a number of family projects. I asked if Jean may consider a tie project. Lee said, “Jean can do anything!” And over the months that followed, Jean and I connected, met, shared, explored,  planned, emailed, talked, and celebrated “the tie project!” Jean respectfully, tenderly, and carefully created four pillows and two table runners in memory of Dad Geo. Miller and his ties. Jean included “his projects signature” and “his emails closing!” Both accents are/were very dear to Lin and her sister. No words can capture and/or describe the emotions, the love, the warmth, the memories, and more, that Lin, her sister and their mother felt upon opening the ties gifts. Jean is a blessing and blessed with gifts and talents. I am forever grateful that “the ties” and I found Jean!      ~ Cathy 
Mady's Memory bunny
Click on the image to read more.

Maddie and I had a trip down memory lane examining this bunny's patches. . . "do you remember. . ?" Her swim team friends, who now live elsewhere. Old school buddies, and a favorite  play date with "Nana"! It's amazing how much memories mean to family togetherness. Thanks so much, Jean, for rekindling them. HUGS!      ~Barbie

For our daughter’s high school graduation, Jean created for us an amazing, happy and huggable friend sewn lovingly from favorite t-shirts and memory filled fabrics of every kind.     ~Amy
memory memorial pillow made from military uniformClick on the image to read more.
My grandfather was a career military man and a lifelong man of stories. Some of his stories were set against the backdrop of the Great Depression and growing up poor, while others took place on Air Force bases dotting the U.S. and in the halls of hospitals from South Korea, to Germany, to Lancaster, PA. To his fifteen grandchildren, he was always part man/part myth—but we did not grow up in his shadow. Instead, we learned to play, fight, and love under his and my grandmother's protective shade.

When he died, my grandfather left behind a closet full of dress blues and boxes of badges, pins, nameplates, and dog tags. These were not just pieces of clothing or objects to him, but rather the foundation of the life he created, how he saw the world, and how he wanted the world to see him. My mother wanted to save these things, but knew that they would just gather dust and be forgotten if she kept them in a closet. She enlisted Jean's help to preserve the pieces as pillows and sent her his dress uniform, trench coat, winter trench coat, two dress shirts, and assorted regalia. My mother expected simple patchwork pillows, embellished with a dog tag or two. We were given so much more.

Our whole family was astounded and touched by what Jean created. She crafted ten unique pillows, and each reveals a chapter of who my grandfather was—from his early days in the Korean War to his final rank of Lieutenant Colonel at Langley Air Force Base. One of my favorites shows a complete but worn sleeve of his blue-dress shirt, and I love imagining him buttoning his cuff before going to work for the good of his country and family. 

There are many people who can make patchwork pillows or blankets out of old shirts and jackets. What Jean does is something far deeper. She is able to listen to the stories about a person, and then translate the core of who that person is into a comforting and meaningful physical artifact for their family to hold onto. Jean creates time capsules and paints portraits through her work, and she is a storyteller in her own right.    ​  ~Maddie



The story of my adult life is told in this bear designed by Jean. Items from the birth of my three children and their grandchildren, milestones, along with family history from my Parents and Grandparents. Every time I look at this BEAR it invokes memories. More than any photograph, Jean has recreated my history in a living form that is a real treasure.      ~ Diane 
When my husband died, this pillow was created to remind me of our special times together. More tangible than photographs, the Pillow consists of the tie John was wearing when I first met him, the tie he wore to our wedding, gift ties he did not like that we laughed about and many other memories. It is on my sofa and surrounds me with his love. Thank you, Jean.      ~ Diane 
Memory Pillow made from black velvet and neckties.
Click on the image to read more.