I saw a Fons & Porter TV show where they were making a T-shirt quilt. Considering all of the T-shirts and sweatshirts which I didn’t wear any more and the closet space they were taking up, I decided to try to transform them into a quilt. Fons & Porter recommended using a fusible tricot interfacing and I used Pellon #EK130. This is a very light interfacing and gave some stability but it was still a little trying to cut and sew the knit fabric. I’d suggest cutting the portion of the shirt you want to use an inch or so bigger than you need. Iron on the interfacing and then trim to the size you want.
I pieced alternate blocks in a very simple pattern – if you had enough T-shirts, you could just use sashing between the pieces. I used my Bernina to do a very simple meandering stitch to quilt and used large leftover scraps for the backing.
I enjoy using the quilt and getting to see my treasured shirts every day: the two shirts with pictures of my grandson when he was a toddler…..
….a cute scottie….
….a commemoration of the women’s baseball league during World War II…
….a view of Bern I had painted after a trip to Switzerland….
….and even a picture of Kramer from the old Seinfeld show.
It was a quick, fun quilt to put together.
Lillian, I knew you were cool, but is there anything you can’t do?
I love it!
I am working on my first quilt (it’s a mini), and when my friend recovers from her knee surgery she is going to help me finish it. I’ll post a photo when it’s done.