by Katie Arrington Although I have always loved the idea of T-shirt quilts, I do not love sewing with knits.  And if I don’t love sewing with knits, I always figured I would hate quilting with knits.  How could I go about using old clothes without having to sew with knits?  My husband and I have been together since 2003, our senior years of college, and ever since he got his first “real” job, he’s had to wear a button up shirt to work every day.  Some of these shirts hold real memories for me- ones I bought for special occasions, ones worn on some of our pre-kid adventures, and ones I just loved to see him in.  Every year he goes through his shirts and purges, and I, more or less, keep all of them to be used in the future.  I wanted to make quilts from these old worn shirts so that we could all lay under them and feel wrapped in love by him and the memories from the shirts.  I also figured if I could figure it out with mens work shirts, then maybe in the future I could make quilts with the best loved clothing of my children.

I started the first quilt with his shirts at the first retreat of the Los Angeles Modern Quilt Guild, in 2011. I went to retreat with a 6 week old baby and my brain could only work in simple designs. I was thrilled to leave retreat with the finished top.  I made big squares with his shirts, and one each from my dad and uncle thrown in, mixed in with a few of my favorite fabrics at the time.  It’s simple and clean and highlights the pattern of each shirt. Framing each big block in white helped highlight the different shirt patterns.  I sashed everything in aqua, which tends to be a recurrent favorite color of mine in quilting. For the back I used a vintage sheet my mother-in-law gave me because she knew I loved it and would put it to use.  Clearly, it is a work in progress/UFO. I started quilting it and hated what I had done. So, I am slowly picking it all out.  The overall layout of this quilt is a great way to simply and cohesively make a quilt from mostly woven shirts or pieces of clothing. This is going to be my main quilt project to tackle in the first part of 2018.

Since 2011 I acquired another hefty stack of my husband’s work shirts.  I wanted to be more creative for my second try at a quilt with his shirts.  I decided that I would make all improv blocks, that would aim to be at least 50% made up with his shirts (which was only semi-successful).  Every block in the quilt is different and incorporates some of my favorite fabrics next to pieces from his shirts.  It was hard to get to the 50% ratio so some blocks have a lot less than that, especially the low volume ones.  I love improv. This quilt was a joy to make.  I started 2 dark blue, light blue, low volume and orange blocks and built everything out from there.  I played around with the layout for the quilt a lot and in a comment on instagram it was suggested to add more of the pop of the color orange, so I did.  In addition to some of my favorite fabrics I put some pieces in to represent my kids, mermaids and the millennium falcon.  Straight line quilting is not my favorite thing to do, but this quilt called for it. So, that’s what I did along with some crosshatching towards the middle.  When I gave up the idea of having the lines be perfect and perfectly spaced, I had much more fun with it.  So it’s really organic straight line quilting.

There were so many fun left over bits and pieces that I didn’t want to part with.  Namely the pockets and the cuffs of the shirts, neither would have worked very well in an all over quilted quilt.  With all of the leftover pockets I was able to make my son a minky backed small quilt, which he loves sleeping under, and I imagine will be filled with cars and rocks at some point.

It’s hard at first to cut up old pieces of well loved clothing. But after that initial first cut, everything is easier. When I was starting both quilts I cut off the big back panel of the shirts, cut off the pocket from the front, cut the largest pieces I could from the sleeves and front pieces, and saved the cuffs.  Then I had a stack of nicely sized pieces to cut into large squares for the first quilt, or into smaller improv pieces for the 2nd quilt.  I love improv blocks and improv quilts and I really enjoyed mixing the dress shirts in with solids and some of my favorite quilting cottons.  None of the quilting cottons were washed ahead of time, and the mix of pre washed and not pre washed didn’t seem to affect the final quilt. Quilts with old clothing could be made in memory of someone who has passed or to be wrapped up in love and memories of someone still alive.  You could mix pieces from many members of a family, including everyone’s memories in the quilt.  If you don’t have enough shirts or items of clothing for a whole quilt, you could go to a thrift store and find additional items that complement and contrast what you have at home. Have you ever made a quilt from clothes?  We’d love to see if you have: comment below or tag us on Instagram @bouldermqg We also have a Sustainable Quilts board on Pinterest full of inspiration!

By Shelly Sommer

One of most sustainable ways to quilt is to pull fabric from the waste stream for your projects.  Reclaiming fabrics gives them a second life, saving them from the landfill and making new use of the energy and resources already embodied in the material.  It also gives you unique materials to play with and saves you cash.  Are you interested in trying out some reclaimed fabric in your projects?  Try browsing through some of these insider tips to get started.

Thrift Stores

Chain thrift stores are the easiest, most reliable places to find clothing you can convert into quilting fabric.  They not only have gazillions of items to choose from, they always have certain types of garments that convert easily into quilting material, like men’s shirts and jeans.  Smaller, independent thrift shops generally have less selection but may support a cause close to your heart—they can (sometimes) also be better curated.  You’re bound to find something suitable for your project at a thrift shop.  Some serendipity is still involved, though – you need an open mind and a little luck.  

• To make the best decisions, be prepared.  Take a list of projects, and bring swatches if you’re trying to coordinate with fabric you already have.  The hunt is half the fun, but knowing the parameters for what you want can help you sort through the welter of choice.
• Look for sale days.  Most thrift store chains have occasional half price days, which mean you pay a lot less for 6 yards’ worth of blue cotton shirts.
• Ease into reclaiming fabric by starting with men’s button-down shirts.  Most are made from high-quality woven cotton that behaves like quilting cotton but has a softer feel.  Men’s shirts have no darts to contend with and come with lots of fabric in the backs and sleeves.  You’ll get 1-2 yards of fabric from each shirt, depending on its size and cut.  They come in gorgeous solids, often with a slight shot cotton appearance; narrow stripes are also abundant.
• As you get more adventurous, move into the women’s section to find a huge variety of fibers, textures, colors, and prints.  Quality see-saws wildly between items; look for good-quality fabric that will last.  Your best bets for large amounts of fabric are longer garments without much tailoring: think shift dresses, maxi skirts, and larger pairs of jeans.  If you love the fabric, but it’s a small garment with lots of boning, darts, and a lining, for example, it might or might not be worth the extra work to deconstruct.  Decide whether it’s worth your time for the size pieces you’ll get.
• Things are in the thrift store for a reason, and sometimes that reason is wear.  Take a close look at the garment and try holding it up to the light to see any weak spots.  On men’s shirts, wear appears first on the cuffs and collar (which you don’t care about) and the fabric at the elbows (which you might).  I like to use shirts with worn elbows, since I think they probably won’t be sold otherwise; but it gives me a little less fabric to work with.
• A lot of modern fabrics, especially in women’s clothing, have a little Spandex in them.  The stretch makes them easier to wear, but harder to quilt with since they tend to move under pins or between your fingers.  Use them, absolutely: just be careful not to stretch your pieces, use a pin or two, and leave some extra seam allowance in case you need it (you can always trim your blocks down later).  Test the fabric by pulling it between your fingers to see what you’re in for.
• Don’t forget to check the linens section of the store.  Occasionally, within the brangle of worn sheets and mismatched towels, you’ll see a fantastic vintage tablecloth or like-new linen duvet cover that will give you a lot of good yardage.

Local thrift stores include:

• ARC Thrift, 1349 E. South Boulder Rd., Louisville – just down the road from our guild meetings
• Goodwill Boulder, 2486 Baseline Rd, Boulder
• The Salvation Army, 1701 33rd St, Boulder
• ARES Thrift Store, 2536 Spruce St, Boulder
• Humane Society of Boulder Valley Thrift Shop, 5320 Arapahoe Ave, Boulder 

Creative Reuse Centers

Creative reuse centers are thrift shops that specialize in art and craft materials. Most have a broad spectrum of materials for every craft you can imagine, though in some parts of the country you can find stores that focus entirely on sewing.  Creative reuse centers are great places to find fabric donated by sewists or their estates: yardage, remnants, bolts, and rolls.

• Creative reuse centers are reliable sources of quilting cotton and similar fabrics.  The selection can be a wild assortment of fibers and decades and you can’t count on finding particular modern prints or colors.  But bring an open eye and open mind and you could unearth some gems.
• They sometimes have tools, sewing machines, or sergers on offer as well as supplies – these go fast but can net you, for instance, an old Bernina or a used quilting table for a modest cost.
• Keep an eye on their media feeds for special sales, like when they get a huge donation of fabric from a quilter’s estate.  Occasionally they have half price or “by the pound” sales where you can grab silk scarves, linen drapes, and lamé scraps in one treasure-filled shopping bag.

Local stores include:

• Art Parts, 2870 Bluff Street, Boulder
• The Craft Box, 6191 W. 44th Avenue, Wheat Ridge
• Craft Scraps, 5856 S Lowell Blvd #27, Littleton
• ReFrame Creative Reuse Center, 2500 Curtis Street, Denver
• Hidden Treasures, 2330 N. Main St, Longmont

Garage and Estate Sales

More chaotic and less reliable than thrift shops, these personal sales are hit or miss.  But if you find a destashing sewist at home you can find treasure.  Garage and especially estate sales are good places to luck into vintage linens.  Look for embroidered table linens, damask items, hostess aprons, dresser scarves, table runners, and vintage handkerchiefs.

• The richer the neighborhood, the more likely the sale is to have high-quality items.  There are exceptions to that rule, of course.
• Craigslist and the local paper can be good places to scan for sales ahead of time and look for any that mention fabric.
• Prices can be negotiable, depending on the preferences and exasperation level of the person running the sale.  If you are taking a large quantity of material, that can be reflected in the price.
• Check fabric for quality, weak spots, and stains by unfolding it, looking it over carefully, and holding it up to the light.  You may be able to clean the piece or work around any flaws, but you should know what you’re getting.

Your Own Closet

Americans discard an average of 80 pounds of clothes per year.  80 pounds.  Have you tried lifting 80 pounds?  It’s a lot.  Very little is reused or recycled.  Change those numbers for you by folding some of your tired clothing into quilt material.  Quilting is also a great way to reuse those fast fashion pieces that snuck into the house, then shrank or fell apart after their first wash and can’t be donated.

• Before you discard a piece of clothing, look at it with fresh eyes as potential quilting material.  Does it have a soft texture, color you love, or interesting detail you might keep?  Would a shirt pocket be just the thing to stitch onto a quilt to hold your child’s most beloved Lego figure?  Could those worn-out sweatshirts become batting?  The more you conduct this exercise, the more creative connections you will make.
• Denim achieves the perfect texture a few moments before it falls apart.  Cherish the soft, varigated colors and textures of worn out jeans by making a denim quilt or rug showcasing its wabi sabi perfection.
• Old sweaters make cuddly pillow covers or throws.
• Don’t be afraid of combining textures and fibers in your work.  Piecing velveteen, fuzzy sweater knit, and courduroy together can give you a fabulous collage of texture.  Just watch out for combining very light with very heavy fabric (rayon and denim, for example) unless you reinforce the flimsier fabric somehow.

Will you try using some reclaimed fabric in your quilts?  We’d love to see what you do and how it goes: comment below or tag us on Instagram @bouldermqg We also have a Sustainable Quilts board on Pinterest full of inspiration!

 

By Shelly Sommer

 

By Shelly Sommer

In October, The Boulder Modern Quilt Guild, along with the Sustainability, Energy and Environment Community at University of Colorado Boulder, will present a modern quilt show, An Exploration in Sustainable Modern Quilting. In the next few weeks we will be posting some blog posts with information about sustainable quilting including sources for sustainable fabrics, how to clean recycled or reused fabrics, and more. Shelly has provided us with some great alternatives to quilting cotton.

When you start quilting, using cotton is the obvious choice. When you walk into a quilt shop you’re presented with colorful bolts of quilting cotton. There are so many options, it’s readily available, and it’s easy to work with. But there are environmental issues with cotton:

• Growing cotton takes a lot of water and pesticide – in fact, it uses more pesticides than any other crop.
• Fabric manufacture and dyeing is a major polluter of land and rivers. The textile industry is considered the second most-polluting industry after oil and gas production.
• The textile industry is notorious for exploitative labor practices.

Buying new fabric that is easier on the planet and people isn’t easy but it’s definitely doable. Here are some options to consider:

 

 

LINEN

Made from the flax plant, linen requires much less water than cotton and hardly any fertilizer or pesticides.

Linen is usually sold as solids and the color choices are limited. But it’s natural khaki shade is available without any additional dyeing.

Linen has a loose weave that makes it less stable than quilting cotton so you will probably need to use starch. Linen isn’t ideal for precise piecing, but works well for piecing curves.

 

HEMP

Some cottons are better than others: try these as alternatives.

AMERICAN COTTON

JAPANESE COTTON

In 2018, The Boulder Modern Quilt Guild, along with the Sustainability, Energy and Environment Community at University of Colorado Boulder, is excited to announce a modern quilt show, An Exploration in Sustainable Modern Quilting. The show will hang at the Albert A. Bartlett Science Communication Center, 4001 Discovery Drive, Boulder, CO, in the fall.  

Quilts submitted by members of the Colorado Front Range quilting community will be showcased based on originality, design, technique, craftsmanship, and visual impact of sustainability. Each submission is required to fit within at least one of the categories; repurposed or rescued fabrics, renewable or sustainable new fabrics, scraps, waste, or otherwise trashed fabric, repaired/restored or reworked ‘old’ quilts into new quilts, and unusual materials. 

An example of a sustainable quilt made by Boulder MQG member Katie Arrington using repurposed shirts.

 

Quilters who live along the Colorado Front Range are invited to submit up to (3) quilts to be juried by our BMQG panel, Anne Deister, Shelly Sommer, Laura Loewen, and guest Front Range community juror, Stephanie Ruyle of Spontaneous Threads. 

 This is a wonderful opportunity to challenge both quilters and the community to view what a modern quilt is and how it can be constructed using sustainable, environmentally friendly materials and practices. 

 To submit a quilt, please review the call for submissions.