Here is a t-shirt quilt that will be auctioned off for the benefit of a local Catholic elementary school. My dear friends belong to this parish and put together a “Mommy & Me” basket with some of my Etsy items (aprons, headbands and bandana bands.) I hope to get a picture to share. I also made a quilt using t-shirts and sweatshirts and old uniforms. They did not have a wide variety of shirts available, so I used some plain squares. To jazz it up a bit, I used a celestial fabric for the sashing. It captures the blue, gold and black of the quilt squares. The quilt has a fuzzy fleece backing – perfect for a young girl or boy to snuggle under.
I have made all but one of my nieces and nephews a quilt when they graduated from high school. It makes a nice memory gift, but also a practical item they can take to college. I have made a number of custom quilts for friends and family and I’ve contemplated adding a custom quilt to my Etsy shop. We’ll see. Right now I enjoy making them because each one is unique and the recipients are usually thrilled to receive them.
I hope you all have a great weekend!
Here’s a giveaway for a free yard of fabric!l
I love the blue and yellow! It seems as though you do lots of charity work. How did you get into that? Is there a story? Or were you just raised that way?
Thanks, Kate. I always feel guilty because, as a knitter, I feel quite selfish. I see so many people doing work for cancer victims, soldiers, babies, prayer shawl ministries, etc, but I have rarely knitted for charity. Perhaps it’s the length of time to make an item that makes me that way. But I have been able to sew some items – mostly at the request of a friend or family member. That is, I believe, how we ultimately make change, one person helping another. There is an entire back story, too, to the changes in the Catholic Church and the tradition (and cost) of Catholic education. Anyone growing up attending Catholic schools is steeped in memories of that tradition and is struggling to see the schools and churches close in our cities. That is what is happening in the greater Cleveland area. Bingo is still out there as a fundraiser, but many churches have replaced that with raffles and auctions.
I haven’t done any quilting for ages. When fall comes along I always start to hanker for a quilt project, but my sewing machine died last February and I have yet to replace it. I’ve thought about saving some of my boys’ favorite t-shirts and doing a shirt quilt for them before they go off to college.
This is such a great idea! It also saves you from having oodles of shirts you don’t want to wear, but save!