Tee-Shirt Quilt

A ways back I wrote a post about quilts and mentioned that I hoped to use this summer to make a tee-shirt quilt.  I have so many tee-shirts I don't wear, but I don't get rid of... so I have been planning this in my head for quite some time now. 
Quilts take time. I spent many many hours in July, practicing patience, and little by little making a tee-shirt quilt!

Some of these shirts go back to 1998.  Some are shirts my brother made me using his photography, some I made in a silk screening class in college, many are tye dyes we all made...and some are just tee shirts I used to wear all the time.  There is also a pair of old pjs, boxers, and a beach dress.  The beach dress and the pjs had pockets, so I left them in so the blanket would have pockets too!
 

The process in short:

1. Had a stack of tee shirts I wanted to save.

2. Took the stack and used the rotary cutter to cut out all the save worthy parts (i.e-the picture, the logo, etc)

3. Years later...cut out the tee shirts I had built up since..ha!

4. Laid out all the pieces into 18x24 rectangles that had a variety of colors/images.

5. Began to sew each 18x24 panel together. (A wound up with about 25)

6. Once they were all sewn, I began laying them out to choose the best combination to connect them.

7. Started sewing the panels together into four very long rectangles.

8. Cut off excess fabric, and sewed those four long panels together.

9. Then came the hardest part...putting on the back. I used two old sheets, and screwed up a lot!  I spent hours trying to fix my mistakes, and never completely did. To be honest by this point I just wanted it done so bad, that during the front to back connection things got a bit sloppy and the edges of this quilt are a complete mess. At the time it seemed horrible, over time I got over it.

10. Enjoy your quilt!

The back before I closed it up.

Finally done!

In retrospect, I should I have done a few things differently with the backing.  But on a positive note,  the shirts have been transformed into something new that, if I do say so myself, is very very colorful and comfortable!  It has been great on the couch!  You don't even notice the edges when you're all cuddled up and cozy.

the Hudson River

Let's start by saying I love the Hudson River.  I love the history, and I have always loved living near it.  It is part of my life, and the beauty of where we live.  Of course I wish it was cleaner...but there are many wonderful people who are contributing to the welfare of the river; preserving, protecting and bringing awareness. 

I had the privilege to teach a class and take a workshop on the Hudson in July.  It was an incredibly  beautiful day, and the whole experience gave me more then I expected! The classroom was the river itself, and in the Kathryn W. Davis RiverWalk Center. This center is an abandoned bathhouse from the 1920's that had recently been renovated into classrooms.  It was lovely.

After teaching the class, a kind woman came up to me to tell me I was incredibly inspiring, that my passion was contagious, and that she was thrilled to have have been in my class.  That comment capped off a truly enriching experience.

our honeymoon (14/14)

Technically we had two honeymoons. Lucky us. We knew we couldn't do much after the wedding, since I am a teacher, and we got married on labor day weekend. So we went to France for 10 days the summer before, and called this our pre-moon.

A co-worker has a friend who lives in Paris, and needed to sublet her apartment in district 9.  This meant we had a place to stay that was inexpensive, and not in a touristy location.  Of course we ate out, but we also bought food at grocery stores and markets and had lovely little meals at home.

We went to tons of museums (including the Louvre) and parks, saw the Eiffel tower, and traveled all over the map. We caught a Bob Dylan concert in Nantes, went to Monet's Garden in the country, visited Stein, Wilde and Mr. Mojo Risin' at Père Lachaise, walked the colorful grounds at the Palace of Versailles, and ate a ridiculous amount of delicious food every step of the way.

After the wedding itself we went for two nights to Minnewaska State Park Lodge.  This is the area where we met and was the perfect place to relax before we left our wedding fairytale. We spent our mornings relaxing outside the lodge with our breakfast, our days at the park, and the nights reminiscing about the wedding! It was just what we needed.

Thank you for taking this journey with us through our wedding memories. It was certainly fun for us to reminisce together...and I am so happy to have our special moments documented!  This started out as a rewind for a few posts and turned into 14 posts and a summer long project.  Literally, work starts on Monday...and as we approach our 2nd wedding anniversary, and 10 years together, I can honestly say we are more in love then ever!  Life is good.

the BBQ (13/14)

 

The next day, the weather could not have been better! In the morning there was a yummy rolling breakfast buffet, and after folks took hikes through the property,  played music and sat around in the sun. 

Before departure, we had a final gathering at a BBQ. There was yummy food, a game of frisbee going down, conversations to be had, and memories to be made.

After the BBQ when everyone checked out, my new hubby and I walked back to the ceremony location.  We stood in the exact same spot we had been married less then 24 hours before.  We took it all in:  the trees, the water, the sights, the sounds and felt such joy at the wedding we accomplished.

     Just Married!

the Bonfire (12/14)

A few things we knew from really early on: our wedding would be outside, and we would have a bonfire.  When looking for locations, this option was a must have.  After dinner and desserts most folks went back to their rooms and changed (I stayed in my dress ;)...and met back up at the fire! One of my husbands close friends had the job of starting and maintaining the fire.  He took that job very seriously and did a great job!

At the fire we had smores, sparklers, a light-up frisbee and drum circles.  All of these touches were items we planned and brought.  There was also a barn behind us that had a pool table and music.

Good Times.