I did it. I really did it! I made a quilt out of old tshirts! I have had this plan in my mind ever since my now 17 year old daughter was little. I saved up 17 years worth of tshirts and made her a quilt for her high school graduation. Trust me on this. If I can do it, you can do it. I am not a seamstress. I am not a quilter. I sew for fun only. I am going to give y’all some links that will help you to make your very own t shirt quilt.
So, I knew I wanted to make this amazing and HUGE queen size quilt. But where do I even start. I had a big pile of tshirts and an idea. I started with lots of research. The two tutorials that will help you the most are here and here. Do lots of research. Google tutorials. Read, read, read. It will help to build up your confidence. You can do this!
I will tell y’all now that this is a lot of work. The layout is the hardest step. Adding fusible interfacing to all those shirts is no walk in the park either. I spent around 20 to 24 hours on this one complete. I just tied the quilt at all of the intersections so no actual quilting was involved. I wanted to give my daughter something extra special for graduation. You know what? I succeeded!
There are baby shirts in this quilt. Shirts she painted in preschool. School shirts. Ball shirts. Shirts with so many memories attached to them. I could not throw out those memories. But who is going to go through a box of old tshirts to bring back memories? This quilt is something she can keep around for her entire life and remember each and every event associated with these shirts.
My quilt fits a queen sized bed. It is very large. You can tackle a smaller version for your first project. Or jump right in with both feet like I did. I took it slow and was extra careful. Are there mistakes? Oh yes there are mistakes. I call that “character” from mom making this one herself. I hope she can tell her grandchildren about how mom made her a quilt for high school graduation.
I could not keep this a surprise though. It was spread out in my living room and other areas on my home for weeks. I just worked on it a few hours at a time. Once I had the shirts sewed together into a quilt top I knew it was all going to be worth the effort. I could cry looking at this y’all. I don’t think I am going to make it through the graduation ceremony without bawling my eyes out!
I actually used the quilt as a display during her graduation party. We will talk more about that this week. I have some tips and ideas for a party if you have a graduate in your life.
So, don’t throw out those tshirts with memories. Don’t send them to Good Will. Get up your courage and make your son or daughter a memory quilt that they will cherish for years to come.
I hope you enjoy reading about this quilt as much as I enjoyed making it. It was work but all of the effort was worth the end result!
Linking up to the Best DIY Project of May Party.
~Thanks for stopping by!~
~Angie~
Linking up to the Best DIY Project of May Party.
~Thanks for stopping by!~
~Angie~
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Jessica @ Sunny Tuesday says
May 8, 2012 at 5:19 pmYou did an awesome job!!
Carolina says
May 8, 2012 at 5:57 pmAwesome job Angie! Yes, it looks like a TON of work – but something your daughter will treasure for years… and so much better than an overflowing box of old t-shirts! 🙂
gail wilson says
May 8, 2012 at 7:34 pmawww those are so sweet! I made one for jamie when she graduated HS and I don’t even know where it is now. They really are great keepsakes!
gail
Anne Lyken-Garner says
May 9, 2012 at 6:05 amYou have done a service to me today. My kids always go to bible camp and they get new tee-shirts each year. They’ve grown out of so many of them and I just packed them into a bag to give them away. I’d been thinking for years about what to do with them and I finally gave in and decided to give them to charity (I didn’t really want to).
Now I know just what to do with them. Thank you!
Jo Ann says
May 9, 2012 at 3:57 pmWhat a memory for your graduate. A very close friend lost her son and she made a memorial quilt from his T-shirts and baseball uniforms. Thanks for sharing yours and perhaps moms who’ve lost their children could get ideas for doing something like this in their child’s memory. Congratulations to your daughter!
TheSewingLoft says
May 14, 2012 at 6:55 pmThis comment has been removed by the author.
TheSewingLoft says
May 14, 2012 at 6:56 pmOh my Goodness Angie, it looks incredible!! I love that you saved 17 years worth of amazing memories!
~Heather
Staci says
May 31, 2012 at 8:45 pmI have been saving my little ones T’s just for this! You did a beautiful job and I am sure it will be treasured FOREVER!
Tammy Partin Spangler says
August 2, 2012 at 8:03 amThis looks great! and what a cherished treasure it will be!
Justine Y says
May 19, 2014 at 10:58 amI love this! Great job! I have actually been wanting to make something like this for myself for awhile out of all my old Hard Rock Cafe shirts I’ve collected, but I will have to do this in the future too! 🙂
Cindia says
April 13, 2016 at 6:11 amYou did a very nice job! For those out there who would rather not tackle this huge project on their own, I make t-shirt quilts for people all over the world, and would be honored to make theirs, as well! If you are now making these to sell, please take this comment down, as I am in no way trying to infringe on your business. I just know when I made my first one – seventeen years ago – I had no idea I would be making them for celebrities, pro athletes, White House Staff, military heroes, and normal ole’ people just like me for retirements, graduations, birthdays, and in memory of loved ones who have passed. Thank you and may you be blessed!
Cindia
http://www.facebook.com/cindiasquiltsnstuff