Guest post: Jessica from Quilty Habit
I'm so excited to have some lovely guest bloggers this week while husband and I honeymoon in Hawaii. I'll be back after Labor Day!
Today, let's welcome... Jessica from Quilty Habit!
Hi, I'm Jessica! I'm a 21-year-old senior undergraduate student at a New Jersey college, and I blog over at Quilty Habit. I'd like to thank Suzannah for allowing me to guest post! I started sewing and blogging about one year ago - my blogaversary is coming up, as a matter of fact - and I'm looking forward to doing all sorts of DIY projects for my wedding next year (though I don't think I will be as adventurous as Suzannah, who, as many of you know, made her wedding dress - see next sentence). I've only recently begun making clothing (like this patchwork skirt), but today I'm here to talk about what you can do with t-shirts!
Do you have a closet/drawer (s) full of t-shirts from all of those sports/plays/marathons/parties etc? Or maybe your kids do. I know I did after high school was over. I had taken a basic sewing class junior year but it wasn't something I thought I would ever really do again. Boy, was I wrong. That crafty outlet I'd been looking for (scrapbooking wasn't cutting it) called to me when I found out that there was such a thing as a T-shirt quilt - although I don't remember how/where/when that happened exactly.
Like any person these days, I went to Google and typed in "t-shirt quilts." I was shocked to find that these things (for the amount of shirts I had, which was a lot) could cost anywhere from 300 to 500 dollars - and up. That wasn't happening - not on a college student's budget. So, being the way I am, I decided to do it myself - with a LOT of research on both the subjects of sewing and quilting (it took me a while to understand what quilting actually was - sewing layers of fabric together!) I borrowed my future mother-in-law's sewing machine and got to work.
I didn't have the best tools - I cut with a scissor and did not buy a rotary mat, etc…. But I did it, and even though it's lumpy and full of mishaps, I still love it with all of my heart. Memories! I bring it to my dorm room every year and I'm moving in this weekend for the last time… tear… but life goes on. I have a whole stack of shirts ready for a college t-shirt quilt!
The sewing craze caught on from there. I made one for my brother around the same time:
This month, I made a t-shirt quilt from a friend, which I consider a very significant improvement:
Whenever I finish a t-shirt quilt, I have lots of scraps. Lately, I've just been saving them, but I've been meaning to make some of the things that I've seen, such as t-shirt pillows, t-shirt scarves (here and here), t-shirt flowers (this one is near the top of my to-do list) and even t-shirt rugs! I'm planning to take some of my favorite college t-shirts and make them into a tote bag of some kind, and I'll be sure to post a tutorial on my blog when I do.
If you'd like to make a t-shirt quilt, I can assure you that you can do it, or you can always send it to a company that specializes in them! I like to sew the shirts together with at LEAST a 1/4th inch seam allowance. Working with t-shirt cotton is very different from other cottons. It's more stretchy, so it can be difficult to cut, and it is very easy to tear or get holes in. I mean, think about that favorite t-shirt you used to wear… yep, that one with the hole. Mine was a beloved WNBA shirt… but anyway... you get the idea. Professional t-shirt quilt makers use interfacing to give the t-shirts support so that they are easier to sew - but interfacing is really expensive for big t-shirt quilts, and so far I've avoided using it. I know that I *should* and you probably should too, but what I do works for me, for now. So that's your decision!
There are different ways to sew them together too - the uniform way seems to be much more popular around the internet (rows and columns, with the shirts exactly the same size and framed by fabric), but I like to figure out a layout that works according to the different sizes of the t-shirt designs.
So, as you can see, there are SO many things you can do with t-shirts! Who knew, right? This should give you a really good excuse to clean out your closet - and no, I don't just mean pushing everything into a corner like I have done.
I'd love if you popped by my blog to say hello - and if you have any questions about t-shirt quilts or quilting or anything, I'd also love to hear from you! Thanks again, Suzannah, and I hope you have a fantastic honeymoon!
Thanks so much, Jessica! Lots of great ideas! I've often thought a patchwork t-shirt shower curtain would be fun for a teenager's bathroom or something. And I LOVE the ideas with what to do with the scraps!
See you next week, readers!
Like any person these days, I went to Google and typed in "t-shirt quilts." I was shocked to find that these things (for the amount of shirts I had, which was a lot) could cost anywhere from 300 to 500 dollars - and up. That wasn't happening - not on a college student's budget. So, being the way I am, I decided to do it myself - with a LOT of research on both the subjects of sewing and quilting (it took me a while to understand what quilting actually was - sewing layers of fabric together!) I borrowed my future mother-in-law's sewing machine and got to work.
I didn't have the best tools - I cut with a scissor and did not buy a rotary mat, etc…. But I did it, and even though it's lumpy and full of mishaps, I still love it with all of my heart. Memories! I bring it to my dorm room every year and I'm moving in this weekend for the last time… tear… but life goes on. I have a whole stack of shirts ready for a college t-shirt quilt!
The sewing craze caught on from there. I made one for my brother around the same time:
This month, I made a t-shirt quilt from a friend, which I consider a very significant improvement:
Whenever I finish a t-shirt quilt, I have lots of scraps. Lately, I've just been saving them, but I've been meaning to make some of the things that I've seen, such as t-shirt pillows, t-shirt scarves (here and here), t-shirt flowers (this one is near the top of my to-do list) and even t-shirt rugs! I'm planning to take some of my favorite college t-shirts and make them into a tote bag of some kind, and I'll be sure to post a tutorial on my blog when I do.
If you'd like to make a t-shirt quilt, I can assure you that you can do it, or you can always send it to a company that specializes in them! I like to sew the shirts together with at LEAST a 1/4th inch seam allowance. Working with t-shirt cotton is very different from other cottons. It's more stretchy, so it can be difficult to cut, and it is very easy to tear or get holes in. I mean, think about that favorite t-shirt you used to wear… yep, that one with the hole. Mine was a beloved WNBA shirt… but anyway... you get the idea. Professional t-shirt quilt makers use interfacing to give the t-shirts support so that they are easier to sew - but interfacing is really expensive for big t-shirt quilts, and so far I've avoided using it. I know that I *should* and you probably should too, but what I do works for me, for now. So that's your decision!
There are different ways to sew them together too - the uniform way seems to be much more popular around the internet (rows and columns, with the shirts exactly the same size and framed by fabric), but I like to figure out a layout that works according to the different sizes of the t-shirt designs.
So, as you can see, there are SO many things you can do with t-shirts! Who knew, right? This should give you a really good excuse to clean out your closet - and no, I don't just mean pushing everything into a corner like I have done.
I'd love if you popped by my blog to say hello - and if you have any questions about t-shirt quilts or quilting or anything, I'd also love to hear from you! Thanks again, Suzannah, and I hope you have a fantastic honeymoon!
Thanks so much, Jessica! Lots of great ideas! I've often thought a patchwork t-shirt shower curtain would be fun for a teenager's bathroom or something. And I LOVE the ideas with what to do with the scraps!
See you next week, readers!
These are great! I'm actually gathering up my t-shirts to do one of these!
ReplyDeleteMy mom made me an awesome t-shirt quilt as a high school graduation gift. It used all the shirts from plays I'd done from kindergarten through my senior year. I adore it and used it all through college as my comforter! It's a great way to use up shirts you may never wear again but can't bear to part with.
ReplyDeleteI have a project like this in the works, too! I have a box of cut up tees that I'm "crazy quilting" into a t-shirt quilt by placing them on newsprint. And now, I have the space to lay it out and do it. Can't wait!
ReplyDeleteI have been meaning to do this FOR YEARS! Now that I've been reminded, maybe I'll actually get to it! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad people are inspired! I love working with t-shirts :) good luck on your own projects! PS I also found this in my bookmarks from a while ago - a T-shirt skirt - which you could definitely make from scraps: http://obsessivelystitching.blogspot.com/2011/02/love-week-tiered-toddler-dress.html
ReplyDeleteMy blood is running cold seeing that BEAT EASTON shirt.
ReplyDeleteamazing designs, Great use of colors!
ReplyDelete