How to Create a T-Shirt Quilt
T-Shirt quilts are a great way to reuse your favorite t-shirts into a unique and beautiful keepsake to treasure for years to come. Plus, they are functional! Who doesn’t love a gift that is both beautifully handmade, personal, and functional!
Below, I have combined my best tips on how to Create a T-Shirt Quilt. Read on for those, plus some of my own tried-and-true recommendations for making your quilt a stunning work of art.
How to Create a T-Shirt Quilt
Collect your favorite t-shirts. For sizing purposes, keep in mind that 20 t-shirts will make a throw to twin-sized quilt, 30 t-shirts will make a full to queen-sized quilt.
Cut the t-shirt design larger than the size you will finish the block. For example, if you want 15-inch blocks, start by cutting the t-shirt 17 inches. (Note: Sometimes you have a variety of sizes throughout the quilt. Some might be the sleeve of the shirt or the small chest design.)
Using a good fusible stabilizer (I like the Pelion 931), cut pieces just shy of the above size (In the example above, I would cut the stabilizer about 16 1/2”).
With your t-shirt face-down on the ironing board, give it a good press. Then place the Pelion with the adhesive side down on the t-shirt. Press according to package directions.
Repeat steps 1 through 4 for all of the t-shirts you will use on the quilt.
Once you have all the t-shirts stabilized, you will trim them down to an established size. If you are doing all 15” squares, that makes a nice clean look. If you have a variety of sizes, you get a collage look. This is harder to arrange but can be a fun challenge.
Sometimes I take the t-shirts to the store to match a piece of fabric for sashings and borders. Once you know what fabric you are using, decide what size you need to make the quilt the size you want in the end. I usually use 2 1/2” sashings and a 6 1/2” border.
Sash your blocks. Assemble the quilt top keeping everything square.
Add the border. This is your final chance to get your quilt squared up!
Find a great Longarm quilter 😉 to help finish your quilt!
Based on my experience, I recommend the following tips when selecting items. Keep these tips in mind as you are preparing your personal t-shirt quilt. Following these guidelines will ensure that any potential issues are eliminated when you provide your finished quilt top to your longarm quilter.
Try not to mix sweatshirts and t-shirts in the same quilt. The sweatshirts are so much thicker than the cotton sashings and the stabilized t-shirts, it makes it very hard to quilt without having issues with fabric shifting. (Jerseys also don’t mix well with t-shirts for the same reason.)
Never use a stabilizer that is very loose. You are trying to make a t-shirt act more like a piece of cotton, so the stabilizer has to be medium weight.
After you stabilize and trim the shirts up, layout the shirts on the floor or a bed. Take a picture. Now change them around and take another picture. When you look back at the pictures, you will know which arrangement is best.
Edge-to-edge quilting works fine on t-shirt quilts. You may have an area that has thick paint, an embroidered area, etc. that would not look great with stitching across them... you can ask the Longarm quilter to not stitch that area.
T-shirt quilts along with baby clothes, men’s dress shirts, etc. can make great memory quilts. If you do not have the ability to make the quilt top on your own, I am happy to help you with the entire quilt. Click here to see my work!
T-shirt quilts make wonderful keepsakes for you or a special person in your life and are a great way to compile many memories into one beautiful piece of art. And, if a quilt seems too challenging for you, consider a memory pillow, like the one featured below and on our site here.
Happy quilting!
Piece,
Sue
