Author: KyleTheGirl

Paint the Mall Pink

Posted on | by KyleTheGirl

Paint the Mall Pink

Ladies look for your special offer from Just T-shirt Quilts in the goody bags to be given away to the first 300 participants at this event coming up at Town Center Mall in Kennesaw, GA.

Join WellStar Health System for their 3rd annual Spirit Girls’ Night Out on Thursday, October 2, from 5:30-8:30pm in Center Court, as part of our Paint the Mall Pink weekend.
Good health looks good on everyone – just like the classic Little Black Dress, vibrant health is always in style. You are cordially invited to this remarkable affair filled with free health screenings, ‘Ask the Expert’ health info booths, a fabulous fashion show and so much more! This year’s theme, ‘The little Black Dress’ will focus on two daily essentials in any woman’s life – fashion and good health. Gather your girlfriends, sisters, daughters, moms and aunts and grandmothers; put on your facorite black dress or attire; and join WellStar and Town Center at Cobb as we show you how health is your best accessory.

The first 300 women to register will receive a special gift bag. WellStar will also be holding a door prize drawing for prizes donated by the mall and WellStar.

5:30 p.m. Check-in begins; welcoming remarks from WellStar
5:30-8:30 p.m. FREE health screenings and “Ask the Expert” health & beauty information booths open
5:45-6 p.m. Beauty & Styling Demonstration
6:15-6:30 p.m. Beauty & Styling Demonstration
6:45-7:30 p.m. “The Evolution of the Little Black Dress Fashion Show”
7:45-8 p.m. Beauty & Styling Demonstration
8 p.m. Closing remarks from Town Center

Thank you to our fashion show sponsors – Belk,Macy’s, Sephora, Aveda, and Regis Salon.

Just Horsin’ Around

Posted on | by KyleTheGirl

Run this Sunday!  Sept. 21st is the 2nd annual Just Horsin’ Around 5K in support of Save the Horses.org. Come to Newtown Park in Johns Creek, GA. Start is 8:00 a.m. rain or shine, 7:00 a.m. packet pickup.  5K loop, water, food and you earn a t-shirt and a goody bag full of special offers including from Just T-Shirt Quilts.  Count your t-shirts.  One more may be all you need to get started on your quilt!  The quilt pictured below shows a mockup of a horse stitch pattern.  More race info at justhorsinaround5k.com

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Kennesaw State Univ. Hoot-A-Palooza

Posted on | by KyleTheGirl

As a KSU graduate (BSN Nursing ’05)  I’m happy to be contributing to the special offer for KSU students that attend this event.  It’s in the bag!

Town Center Mall –  Join us for our 6th Annual KSU Hoot-a-Palooza event on Thursday, September 18 from 5-7pm in Center Court.  We’ll have goody bags for the first 300 KSU students/faculty/alumni that show their KSU IDs.  We will also have vendor and tenant tabling, as well as tables from KSU organizations and schools.

There will also be entertainment and a KSU Pep Rally featuring dance and cheer squads, as well as Scrappy the Owl.

162 Days Until Christmas

Posted on | by KyleTheGirl

Believe it or not, our first order for a Christmas 2014 t-shirt quilt came in this past April. The gentleman, wanting a present for his wife, was certainly thinking ahead !

Isn’t is sooo convenient to walk in to a store last minute to shop and buy something, anything, when it’s down to the wire and you’re running out of time. T-shirt quilts, however, don’t forget, they’re all custom and take precious time and talent to make!

Last December 3, 2013, I received a call from a lady asking if we could do a t-shirt quilt for her daughter for Christmas – December 25. Even though it was a small one, unfortunately, by that time, it was too late. There was simply not enough time. By that point, there were also many orders already ahead of hers.

Ring Ring. Same lady calls in January. Her daughter’s birthday is in May. Can we…? Yes. Now there’s enough time. While we’ve reduced our turn around time in completing t-shirt quilts, the holidays do get busy. It takes time to make your special present, and we’d like to make sure we get it to you when you expect it. So for holiday t-shirt quilts for this year, we’re asking that you please get your t-shirts to us by September 1 for Freestyle and September 30 for Blocky Styles. We graciously welcome your trust, confidence, and holiday business.

The Big Re-do

Posted on | by KyleTheGirl

Yes, we did.  This customer wasn’t satisfied with how her t-shirt quilt, from another provider, turned out. So..she brought it to us for an assessment.  We agreed and proceeded to take on the “big re-do”. Yes, we actually took the finished quilt apart, stitch by stitch, seam by seam,  and started all over.

First, we cut out all the t-shirts (pictured). Then, with a seam ripper, one by one we carefully ripped out ALL of the stitches, including quilting, all over the t-shirts. Yes, that took just a little while! Next we worked together to come up with a design that was more pleasing. Then, we re-prepared the t-shirts and fabric for the new design — and began putting everything together.

“I should have come to your first”, she apologized repeatedly. It’s ok. We’re human. We all make mistakes and for many reasons don’t always realize it at the time.

Start off right by bringing your t-shirts here first. We work hard to satisfy you with quality checks and keeping you informed every step of the way. That way there ARE no surprises and you end up with just what YOU expect.

So bring us your mistake. We’re not here to judge. We want to get it right for you.

Plus, ok, we like challenges.  What’s yours?

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High Tech Quilting in the House

Posted on | by KyleTheGirl

Back in the day quilting was all done by hand. Can you imagine how long it would take to stitch all of the layers together by hand with a needle and thread to make a bed-size quilt–forever!  Today, in the 21st century, automation makes it possible to stitch those same layers together, in the pattern of your choice, from thousands of computerized patterns to choose from, with a higher level of precision, accuracy and speed.

As a nurse, it’s a familiar evolution. Computers, once few and far between, are everywhere in healthcare, from med administration to the lab to bedside charting. Pushback? Yes, at first, big time, especially from seasoned, before-computer era nurses.  Some quit. The advantages though now benefit all of us: for patients, faster diagnoses and treatment; for nurses, easier access to essential health information to provide the best care possible.

Back to quilting,  to take advantage of new technology in our industry, we took a leap forward into the 21st and have just purchased a new Innova Navigator computerized robotics quilting system.  http://www.innovalongarm.com .

Shown is the Innova in action on Lena’s graduation quilt.  Learning curve, yes. But, we’re excited and after a week of training and use we’ve got this.  Lena’s quilt turned out perfectly.  Take a look at the closeups.  The blue shown is the back of the quilt, a super soft, plush fabric–minky. The top (or front) is quilted using a variegated (multicolor) thread. The results are exquisite!

This purchase also means, we’ve also shaved at least 3 weeks off of getting your quilt done.

So, what’s your vision?  Bring it. We can and would love to do it for you! The hardest part in making these quilts is giving them back; but, promise, we will give it back (smiles).

Quilters know quilting machines as “longarms”. Check out the evolution. Here’s a little more on the history of quilting automation http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longarm_quilting .

IMG_0808 Innova

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Rain, Rain, Go Away

Posted on | by KyleTheGirl

The rain needs to stop.  It hasn’t let up for the past 2 days. I don’t say any of this too loud. After all, if you complain about the rain in Georgia, what you may get back is…but…we need the rain. Rain is good for the plants and good for the animals that lap rainwater; and, don’t you remember the drought when we couldn’t water our plants ?

Dark, gloominess, the cloud hovers. So much for southern optimism. And while it’s not super cold, after awhile the deep darkness, sound of rain and wind,  branches scraping the window on their way down gets depressing.  My head cloud is not lifting. The cloud is dark. If it lifts, it just lifts higher into darkness. Work helps. So I cut.  I cut up t-shirts. Sharp razor, pressure, slice the fabric.  Productive stress relief.

Could be worse. I could still be in Chicago. Instead of rain, it would be snow.  Everything frozen. Me frozen in my driveway cause I can’t get the car defrosted.  Me freezing at the top of a sled hill, trying to be a good Mom.  Retreating to my now defrosted car with a mug of something hot. Me the next morning easing from the confines of the house into the brutality of the cold. I didn’t have a dog to walk. I just need to…go, get out.

Rain. The rain is beating on the roof as if it’s cold out and it wants to come in.

A tanning bed?  I’ve thought of it. Wait. I don’t need that. How do those even work?

Following that mental road trip, I self-diagnosed myself with  a bout of seasonal affective disorder.  Light therapy helps.  So off I went to Home Depot, looking for light. I already have a bright light, but maybe I really need 2 . I get another and take it home.

Let there be light. Click. Lights on. All of them. Each one has 6 squiggly bulbs. In the manufactured sunshine fairly quickly my mood improves.  The music gets a little happier. I think of the song “Happy”.  I think of swimming in the Mediterranean in July. It’s working. I now also feel the warmth from the ‘sunshine’ as if it’s summer. In my mind, it is; and, for now, that and my quilts are all that matter in my head.

When things look dark, look for light. It gets better. Really.

 

 

T-Shirts From Germany

Posted on | by KyleTheGirl

If you have any travel t-shirts, consider including those in your t-shirt quilt.  These were seen in Germany during Karneval – Fasching.  It was a fun week of parties and parades! If you’re on Facebook more pics were added in the Just-Tshirt Quilts Facebook gallery.

Give the Gift of Different

Posted on | by KyleTheGirl

Graduation is right around the corner.  Never fear if you’ve waited until the last minute. With a gift certificate,  it’s never too late.  You’ll have something to give on that special day AND be remembered for giving “the gift of different”.

Now with a recent feature change, the dollar amount is no longer is printed on the gift certificate so that the money you’re spending is kept a secret from the recipient unless you choose to reveal it.   Give the gift of different! More here http://www.justtshirtquilts.com/gift-certificates/