Rock Legends Cruise T-shirt Quilts {3 Cruises - 3 Quilts - 3 Finishes}

As I prepared to write this post on my latest finish, a T-shirt Quilt for Native American Heritage Association's Rock Legends Cruise, I realized I had failed to share the quilts from the previous two cruises.

After the whirlwind finish of two quilts at the beginning of 2015 the Association contacted me about the possibility of making another quilt for the 2016 cruise (Rock Legends Cruise IV), of course my answer was yes. I had enjoyed making the first two so much and it was for such a great cause I couldn't say no. Click HERE for info on the Native American Heritage Association and HERE for info on the Rock Legends Cruise, with proceeds going to support the Native American Heritage Association.

Just as with my previous Rock Legends Cruise T-shirt Quilts I used the "Too Cool T-shirt Quilt" method of construction. If I have my choice it's the only method I'll use for all the  T-shirt Quilts I have the privilege to make.

 I hear you out there, asking, "What is it I like so much about this method?" first the fact that there is no need for adding a stabilizer to the back of the T-shirts, which saves a bunch of time and money. Best of all with no stabilizer the quilt is wonderfully soft and cuddle worthy.  Secondly the fact that each block is custom cut to the design so that no design is cut off and lost and small designs aren't left floating in a huge square of fabric. In my humble opinion it's simply the best T-shirt Quilt method out there.

On the design wall - working out the puzzle and the partial seams.

I hear you protesting, "But look at all those partial seams, aren't partial seams hard to do!?!"

Not difficult at all. They just take a little forethought and some planning. Probably the biggest thing is figuring out the order of your seams, making sure to pay attention to which seams you need to leave open until later. On those seams leave a couple of inches or so open so that when the other seams are sewn together you've got room to come back and finish up the seams as you go.

 When it comes to quilting I choose to custom quilt in and around each t-shirt design. Then after custom stitching each design I go back and do a medium meander across the open areas between the designs.

Finished December 2015 for Rock Legends Cruise IV - January 2016

Quilt Name: "Rock Legends Cruise IV T-Shirt Quilt"

 Finished size: 64" x 72""

Pattern Method: "Too Cool T-shirt Quilts"

Batting: Heirloom Premium Batting 80/20 Blend

Quilting Thread: 50wt. Aurifil

Quilting: Free Motion Quilted using my Husqvarna Viking Sapphire 875Q


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Rock Legends Cruise V - 2017 at the Fundraising Auction during the cruise

 When I'm handed the box of T-shirts for the next quilt I always feel a surge of anticipation and excitement, as if looking at a blank canvas ready for those first brush strokes.  I start with washing and drying all the T-shirts to remove any sizing, loose dyes or allergens that might be an issue while working on the blocks. Then out come the rulers.  I absolutely love this set of rulers ranging in size from 4.5" square to 16.5" square with the ability to combine the rulers for larger blocks when needed.

The best investment I've ever made for making T-shirt quilts

Layered and ready to pin

Quilting with my Artistic Quilter SD18. Love this machine!!

Finished January 2017 for Rock Legends Cruise V - January 2017

Quilt Name: "Rock Legends Cruise V T-Shirt Quilt"

 Finished size: 72" x 80""

Pattern Method: "Too Cool T-shirt Quilts"

Batting: Heirloom Premium Batting 80/20 Blend

Quilting Thread: 50wt. Aurifil

Quilting: Free Motion Quilted using my Artistic Quilter SD18
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Finished January 2018 for Rock Legends Cruise VI - February 2018

Quilt Name: "Rock Legends Cruise VI T-Shirt Quilt"

 Finished size: 76" x 84""

Pattern Method: "Too Cool T-shirt Quilts"

Batting: Heirloom Premium Batting 80/20 Blend

Quilting Thread: 50wt. Aurifil

Quilting: Free Motion Quilted using my Artistic Quilter SD18

 If you're interested in having a soft, cuddle worthy T-shirt Quilt made from your T-shirts send me an email to info@littlepinkrose.com and we can discuss creating a treasured quilt just for you.

Thank you for stopping by and sharing in my quilting journey!

Happy Quilting and God Bless,
Marcia

Rock Legends T-Shirt Quilts {Two Finished}

Rock Legends T-Shirt Quilt at Auction.
Photo from Rock Legends Cruise III

Until recently I dreaded making T-Shirt quilts. But when I learned about the "Too Cool T-Shirt Quilts" method I immediately downloaded their book with step by step instructions and tips. I poured over the book and was excited about my next T-shirt quilt.

In the Too Cool T-Shirt Quilts book I discovered:

• there is no need to use stabilizer on the T-Shirts
• no sashing is required
• a faster method for cutting the fronts and backs of T-shirts
• template sizes to ensure designs aren't cut off
• a formula to figure the size of quilt needed for the number of blocks
• a quicker method for fitting the puzzle together
• an important step that insures the stretchy T-shirts lay flat after quilting.
• the joy of creating a beautiful T-shirt quilt to be proud of.
• the method I will use for all future T-Shirt quilts.
• a book I highly recommend! 

Several months ago I was asked to make 2 Queen size T-shirt quilts for the raffles on the Rock Legends Cruise III presented by the Native American Heritage Association. I had just 2 weeks to piece, quilt and deliver both quilts. Because of the Too Cool T-Shirt Quilt method I was ready to dive in and knew I'd be able to save time with cutting and skipping the stabilizer. These would be my first quilts with this method so while I was ready, I was still a bit nervous about the time frame.

 Cutting T-Shirt Designs and keeping all the autographs and designs intact was a bit of a challenge on some of the shirts. When my brother learned what I was working on he told me it was just sacrilegious to cut up all these autographed T-Shirts. I'm sure many agree with him, but I had to do what was asked of me. It was an honor to work on such a great project.

Autographed T-shirts were among what I had to work with

 After cutting it was time to organize all the squares by size.

 I'm not the best with computers and the excel program so I went old fashioned with graph paper and a marker to create all the pieces for my puzzle. Then it was onto organizing them into an arrangement I liked.  Once finished arranging and rearranging I divided the design into four quadrants for piecing.

 Partial seams are a necessity when piecing a quilt with multiple block sizes.

I was thrilled to discover who flat everything was after all the quadrants were sewn together!

 Once layered and pinned together with Pinmoor anchors and straight pins I was ready to Free Motion Quilt. For these quilts I outlined each of the designs with matching thread and then did a large meander across the rest of the quilt.

Completed Rock Legends Autographed T-shirt Quilt....Auctioned off on the cruise earlier this year.

The second Rock Legends T-Shirt Quilt

I really like how both of these quilts came together and turned out. In the end I was able to finish both quilts with a day to spare thanks to the Too Cool T-Shirt Quilts method of preparation and construction. Amazingly I'm actually looking forward to my next T-shirt quilt.

Thanks for stopping by and letting me share another quilting adventure with you.

God Bless & Happy Quilting,

Marcia

A Memorible Memory Quilt {A Finish}

I can't believe it's been so long since I've blogged about this quilt and what all I've been up to lately! 

Time just passes much too quickly, especially when I get busy.  I'm sure you understand and have experienced this yourself.  Before I dive into my next quilting project I wanted to be sure and share with you my most recent finish. I love how this quilt turned out!

Brent's Memory Quilt that I had been working on was one of those quilts that I wanted to be extra special for his family and I poured an exorbitant (huge, enormous) amount of time into this quilt. 

Custom Memory Quilt
With Custom Trapunto Work and Free Motion Quilting

I asked Melissa to share a little about Brent and her thoughts on this quilt, which is what I want to share today.

Here is what Melissa said and the pics she sent:

"Our 18 year old son was tragically killed in an auto accident in May of 2013, having just graduated our home-school high school and celebrating that accomplishment just 3 days earlier. After a few weeks of trying to process the whole thing in our minds, we knew we wanted to somehow preserve Brent's flannel shirts - one of his favorite things to wear. We thought a quilt would be a wonderful way to utilize the clothing in a tribute that would also serve to be useful.

In cruising the internet looking for ideas, I knew what I did not want: a quilt with big blocks of shirt: that just wouldn't be "him", nor something he would like. He didn't have a T- shirts collection of significant events in his life, or anything that would really lend itself well to that type of design. He was a young man that loved the outdoors in a major way: he loved to ski, hunt, ride motorcycles & ATV's, and most of all - he loved people. He loved to help others (he was a Jr. Firefighter, and left "Jr" status when he turned 18 earlier in the year), and he enjoyed spending time not only with his age mates, but with everyone from kids to the elderly. His "quirk", I guess you would call it, was that as much as he loved to be totally involved with something, he did NOT want to have attention called to him: he wanted to do his thing but remain in the background when possible.

Then it struck me: his quilt needed to be one where the shirts themselves were not the star attraction, but that the pieces of them were integral in contributing their flair into the overall design.

I began looking for quilts that might seem to fit this idea, and came across Little Pink Rose. One of the beautiful quilts jumped off the screen at me: the details and design spoke as much as the colors and the fabric. I felt a "connection" and a surge of hope.

I contacted Marcia and shared our story & what we were looking for, asking if she would be available for custom work, and to work with us on a design. Working with Marcia was such a joy! She listened to my ideas, and considered my preferences, and worked to make the quilt an amazing representation of Brent's life and memory. Those who have seen the quilt in person marvel at the workmanship, and remark at how she managed to capture the essence of Brent's life in fabric and stitching. (And I know that it would get Brent's grin and nod of approval, and probably a, "Wow - that's pretty cool...")

Words can't adequately express how much we appreciate all the TLC and careful thought and planning that went into the creation of this quilt. That kind of crafting ability is a gift from God! And we have a wonderful keepsake, made from our boy's favorite shirts, which expresses his personality, love of life and the outdoors."

It was truly an honor to create this memory quilt and pray for Melissa and her family. 

Here are a few more pics of the finished quilt

Trapunto Work in the Border.
Brent's full name and birthday were also done as Trapunto Work in the borders.

Borders

Pieced Backing

Corner

Some of my favorite quilted blocks.

Quilt Details & Stats:

Finished Size: 95" x 110"

Quilt Pattern: Squared Off by Elisabeth DeMoo of Brown Bird Designs

Batting: 1 layer 70% Cotton 30% Rayon

Thread: Aurifil 50Wt. Thread (used 12 colors)

Quilting: Machine Free Motion Quiltied on my domestic Husqvarna Sapphire 875Q

Thanks for stopping by and catching up with me!

God Bless & Happy Quilting,

Marcia

P.S. 

Stop by our website to shop our End of Summer Inventory Reduction Sale. 

Click HERE to shop www.littlepinkrose.com

"Memories" {A Christmas Finish}

Today I'm happy to reveal the finished "Memories" Quilt a non-typical T-Shirt Quilt. 

I say non-typical, because as you will notice there are absolutely no T-Shirts to be found anywhere in this quilt, it's all plaid and flannel shirts that were favorites of the soon-to-be recipient. Additionally the blocks are only 4-inches square instead of the typical 12-14 inch blocks with sashing normally found in a T-Shirt quilt. 

To prepare the shirts I cut away the seams, buttons and pockets then ironed a feather weight interfacing to the  back of the fabric sections. On a typical T-Shirt quilt I add the interfacing to stabilize the T-Shirts and tame the natural stretch they have. I chose to interface these shirts as well even though they didn't have any unruly stretch, I knew I wouldn't be able to cut every block on the grain and I wanted to avoid some blocks stretching out of shape due to being cut off grain. 

 The interfacing does add a little bit of weight to the quilt, but not too much.

I'm sure you've already guessed that the recipient of this quilt is a big Ohio Buckeye's fan.  The Block "O" is a layered applique. The red is from the same red shirt as the solid blocks in the rest of the quilt top. For the white and gray in the applique I used Pure Elements Solids from Art Gallery Fabric: Moonstone Gray and Snow White. The Buckeye and the Leaf are both made from shirts. 

To keep all the pieces in place I used fusible web on each layer. This did cause it to be a bit more stiff than I had hoped for, but it will soften with use and washing. The red and white layers of the "O" were satin stitched to the gray before it was attached to the quilt. Then to attach the entire "O" I fused it to the quilt then satin stitched it the around the gray layer  to quilt top before adding the leaf and the buckeye. Once everything was stitched in place I did an outline stitch around each element. The only place I had a little trouble was when straight stitching around the leaf where there were several layers of fusible web and fabric. My needle didn't really care too much for the fusible web, but we made it through it.

The numbers came from the sleeves of an Ohio Buckeye's jersey and are a part of the quilt in memory of this young man's brother whose Volunteer Fire Fighter number was 11 and who was tragically killed in a car accident earlier this year. 

To attach the number I added some fusible web to the back of each number to help tack them in place until I was able to stitch-in-the-ditch between the red and gray stitching.

The quilting is a Free-Motion All Over Medium Meander Stitch. It's bigger than a stipple stitch, but smaller than an a regular meander. I like it for it's ability to give a good amount of stability to all the layers while remaining soft.  If you're curious about how I use an inkjet printer to create my labels click HERE and scroll to the end of the post. 

I just have to share this picture....love it when I can catch my helper peeking at me over the top of a quilt! He's just too cute and so much fun!!! 

Quilt Info: 

Finished Size: 56-1/4" x 71-3/4"

Backing and Binding: Free Spirit Designer Solid Slate Gray (available at www.littlepinkrose.com)

Thread: Aurifil 50Wt. Color number 1158

Batting: 1 layer 70% Cotton 30% Rayon

Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog, I greatly appreciate the time you've spent with me here! 

Merry Christmas & God Bless,

Marcia 

Running with Eagles Wings {A Finish}

I've been neglecting my blog for much too long! But, while I've been gone I have managed to accomplish quite a bit. We moved out of our house and into a hotel for 35 days while we waited for closing day to arrive on our new home.  Tried really hard to not let the cramped quarters of the hotel keep me from sewing and quilting, but in the end the hotel won as I wasn't able to make the quilt sandwich to be able to finish a custom T-Shirt quilt (so that had to wait until we were in our new home).  So, while I wasn't able to finish the quilt I wanted to I finished up a couple of other Works in Projects. 

This piece started as the center of a quilt, but I'm making a substitution and thought this would make a great wall hanging.  The vines are all free-motion quilting.

I made this little embellishment with small yo-yo's and seed beads.

 The other Work-in-Progress I was able to almost finish was this hand embroidery piece. 

I found the pattern at www.dreamalittlebigger.com 

Once the embroidery work was finished I used it to practice my free-motion quilting. 

I love the texture accomplished when combining quilting motifs!

Eventually this will become either a pillow top or a framed piece of quilt art. 

Alas, closing day/move in day finally arrived and after a few days of unpacking essentials I was able to make the needed quilt sandwich. Once that quilt sandwich was put together it was just a matter of days to complete the quilting.

It is completely free-motion quilted with no markings whatsoever.
I chose specific areas of each design to outline and then between the blocks I stitched a small to medium meander stitch. This size stitch gives the quilt more stability while allowing the hand of the quilt to remain soft.

To create the label I cut a piece of freezer paper to the size of a regular sheet of paper (8 1/2 x 11) then ironed it to a piece of white muslin and trimmed away the extra fabric to match the freezer paper exactly. This makes the fabric stiff enough to be run through an ink jet printer.  I used Print Shop for Mac to layout the wording and logo. After printing the label on the fabric, I removed the freezer paper and pressed the label to heat set the ink. To further set the ink I ran it under cold water, blotted it dry with a white towel and then finished pressing it dry with an iron. This process will permanently set the ink so that it  won't run and makes it washable the same as the quilt. Once it is set I press under the edges, cut a piece of light weight Wonder Under fit just short of the edges of the label. Peel off the paper and press the label to the quilt, then to keep it in place I do a tiny slip stitch completely around the  label attaching it to the quilt. 

A note on the quilt itself:

Tiffany is a runner and had many T-shirts from the races she has participated in over the years.  Her desire was to have a quilt created that reminded her of the most meaningful races and family moments.
Among all the stories of the many blocks the Green Apple Block is my personal favorite, it is the shirt  from the race where her husband proposed to her at the end of the race. How very romantic!!
When I asked her if there something special or meaningful that she would like to name her quilt she said that, "Running with Eagles Wings" would be the most meaningful to her, as Isaiah 40:31 is their family verse.  It is a verse they have looked to during times of difficulty for courage and strength, it is a verse that reminds them that it is the Lord that cares for them in all things.

Thank you for stopping by and catching up with me!

God Bless & Happy Stitching!
Marcia