What to Include

What To Include

When considering having a quilt made, one of the decisions to make is which items to include. Here are some tips:

1)  First make sure you have everything.  Look through all of your drawers and other places you may have tucked t-shirts, hats, patches, jackets, unstuffed animals, shoes, a parachute, pretty much anything that can be sewn down can be used.  Check the closet, laundry room, under the bed, in storage in the basement or attic;  Mom’s or grandma’s house; at your friend’s; a child’s room. Gather them all together.

2)  Next go through them one by one and decide if that item is still special.  Does it make you smile?  Does it transport you back to a special event from the past? Are you reminded of why you tucked it away in the first place and glad you still have it?  Is it colorful, have a special graphic? Does it have your name, or team on it, does it have an interesting picture on it?  Are you ok with not wearing that shirt or clothing item anymore?  If the quilt will be a gift, keep in mind what you think the recipient would choose rather than yourself!

3)  Now separate the t-shirts into 3 piles. The most special ones that you want to include go in to  the “ yes” pile. For all of the “yes” shirts, put a safety pin in the part of the shirt that you want to include:  front, back, sleeve, pocket.   Those that you’ll include only if they’re needed to complete the quilt go in to the “optional” pile;  those you clearly either don’t want to include or no longer want go into the “no” pile to be donated or repurposed.

4) Count how many are in the “yes” pile. Do you have everything that you want to include. If so, you’re done. If not add in from the “optional” pile to the “yes” pile until you have enough. 
Mark the optionals “optional” and put them into a separate bag in the order that you want to include them. We start with design and this way we know exactly what you want “in” and in what order.
If you don’t have a target size, the quilt ends up being its own unique size. If you do have a target size, such as a bed size, we’ll start with those parameters and design with that in mind. Blocky and Wonky sizes are like a grid and we need an exact number that fits a grid. Freestyle and Masonry can be any amount. We can do any quantity and any size.

5)  Be sure to smell your t-shirts after washing. Sometimes with athletic shirts, even after washing, the “authentic” sports fragrance can linger.  Think of that musty thrift store or sweat smell. This can remain in clothes, particularly synthetics used in athletics, even after washing! So take a whiff. It can help when making a final decision on which items to include. Also, be sure to wash any brand new items to check for shrinkage or bleeding which can happen with bright or dark colors.

6) Stains? — that slide in to first base; the lipstick residue; the blueberry blotch from a birthday cake. If it hasn’t washed out by now, it probably isn’t going anywhere. We can patch or cut around but otherwise they remain as part of the history !

7)  Put all of your “in” shirts in a plastic bin or sturdy bag to transport them. It keeps everything together in the early preparation phase. When all done, your container will be returned to you along with your remnants and “optionals”.

8)  Good job!  You’re done.  Contact Us to come on in. We have the talent, time, and space to get the work done professionally.  We’ll guide you through the creative decisions needed to craft your masterpiece. 

Hope this helps you take the “leap”  and start getting organized for what treasures will go into your special custom quilt! Here are some more ideas on Quilt “Booty” !