t-shirt quilt

[OCLittleFlower]

Well, my fiance's grandmother is an excellent quilter, but she's always got a million projects going on. I'd feel bad asking her.

Well, if you two are friendly, maybe she can teach you?  Older ladies who quilt just LOVE to teach the youngin's. 

Being able to quilt is different than being able to teach it. The mature ladies who have been doing it for 40 years do many things automatically. Many sewed apparel before they quilted so they already knew the basics. They are great for asking for specific help or learning more advanced skills but first time learning start to finish basics is different. I think paying $35 -$80 for a beginner class at a quilt shop is 100% the way to go. After you do that ask the ladies for show you!

I don't quilt, so I'll trust you on this.  I just suggested it because a dear (and now deceased) family friend always loved to teach young people to quilt.  She taught her granddaughter.

[stitchmom]

Well, my fiance's grandmother is an excellent quilter, but she's always got a million projects going on. I'd feel bad asking her.

Well, if you two are friendly, maybe she can teach you?  Older ladies who quilt just LOVE to teach the youngin's. 

Being able to quilt is different than being able to teach it. The mature ladies who have been doing it for 40 years do many things automatically. Many sewed apparel before they quilted so they already knew the basics. They are great for asking for specific help or learning more advanced skills but first time learning start to finish basics is different. I think paying $35 -$80 for a beginner class at a quilt shop is 100% the way to go. After you do that ask the ladies for show you!

I don't quilt, so I'll trust you on this.  I just suggested it because a dear (and now deceased) family friend always loved to teach young people to quilt.  She taught her granddaughter.

I'm sorry about your friend. How wonderful she gave her friendship and quilting instruction to so many!

Some may be good teachers but my experience is most take the basics they know for granted. Small things like the proper position of the foot when threading the needle, or to meet the fabric corner to corner when pinning are things they do automatically but may not communicate. Piecing a quilt top is all about precision. When some of the small steps aren't communicated it can lead to frustration for both.

[verenaerin]

I didn't read the whole thread, so if someone brought this up, sorry for the repeat.

The issue with tee shirt quilts as opposed to regular quilts, is the stretchy material. If I were to make a tee shirt quilt I would use a serger. Sergers finish the edges off so they can't unravel. This is an issue with tee shirt material. Also, working with material that stretches like tee shirts is a pain in the butt. There is a lot of extra pinning. I wonder if they back it with a fusible webbing and then sew them together. Not sure how that would turn out because the whole thing might be too stiff.

On another note. 500 is a decent price. Quilts are a lot of work. Material is expensive, the correct sewing machine is an investment, and most of all, the time. The hours and hours it take to make a quilt would astound you. And I'm not even talking by hand, except for the binding. 99% of quilters do their binding by hand.

So for the product, I think it is worth it. It puts all your memories together in one nice comfy way. BTW, if you have a choice, always pick 100% cotton or wool batting and muslin or cotton backing. Send us pics if you get it done.