5 things to know about T-shirt quilts

So you want to have a t-shirt quilt made and find a wide variety of pricing.  Why are some t-shirt quilts so inexpensive? My answer would be:

• The quilter is not concerned about being paid for their time. I went to a very nice quilt shop in Intercourse, PA, the heart of Amish country, and was told the “quilters make about $1.50 an hour; they do it because they love it.”  
• The artist has not learned to value their time and talent.
• The quality of the end product is different. That is not necessary a bad thing.  If you want a quilt that is going off to college with a young person and will be used hard, perhaps you don’t need it to last or want to pay top dollar.

"​Do you make t-shirt quilts?" is a common question I am asked. Of course we can, but a better question: is Remember When Studio the company you want to have make it? Our goal would be to make a uniquely designed quilt that will stand the test of time. We don't cut corners (just fabric, hee, hee!) You may not want or need that from a pile of high school t-shirts. Here is what I would ask about to determine the quality of the work of any t-shirt quilter:

1.  Stabilizer – a product applied to the back of fabric to keep it from stretching out of shape; adds a bit of strength to well loved t-shirts. It is important for t-shirts to be stabilized before being sewn into a quilt or you will have a wonky quilt down the road.

2.  Quilted or Tied  – 
Quilting - by definition, a quilt is something that is sewn through 3 layers – normally a top layer, batting and bottom layer.  My preference is to use the quilting to highlight the  design of the shirts.  Another option is to use an overall quilting design which is much faster.
Tying - alternatively, the quilter makes one stitch through the layers with, yarn or string, every so often to hold the layers together.
Quilting or tying- it's a personal preference, as they create very different looks. Quilting will generally hold up longer

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3. Batting - as mentioned above, is the middle layer. It can be made of  materials like polyester and cotton (the most common) or bamboo, silk, soy or wool. There are pros and cons to each and the price range is great. The choice will impact the warmth, look and feel of the quilt. My preference is Warm & Natural cotton batting because it breaths well, and I like the results I get with it.

For batting to be stable, it is important that it is quilted or tied every so many inches. This varies for each batting type and is normally written on the batting instructions. You want to be sure the maker is going to quilt or tie within the requirements of the batting.

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4. Quilting Thread – Quilts can be quilted by hand or by machine. Hand quilting involves a single thread going in and out through all three layers by hand. Machine quilting would have two threads, top and bottom, interlocking each stitch on a machine, which is faster than hand quilting. In Harriet Hargrave’s book, Heriloom Machine Quilting, she advises to never use quilting thread stronger than your fabric. This way, with wear, the thread would break, rather than the thread wearing a hole in the fabric. It is much easier to restitch the quilting than to repair the fabric down the line. Cotton thread is not as strong as polyester thread. Most T-shirts are cotton or a cotton/poly blend. For this reason, I prefer T-shirt quilts to be quilted with cotton thread.

Personal note:  I have found companies online that make a good product for a more than a fair rate. When you choose a company/quilter to make your quilt and you are happy with their work, consider asking how much time they invested in your project and do the math. You may want to consider offering a tip for all the love they have brought to your quilt.

Still have questions? Feel free to contact me and I will do my best to answer them.

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