A Memory Quilt

Memory quilts are made of reclaimed clothing once worn by the person whose life is celebrated. These are always personal, cozy, and comforting.  We enjoyed seeing this lovely memory quilt at a recent show.

Note: Please check out our eBay shop for great bargains on jewelry, patterns, and collectibles!

A Hug from Mom, made and quilted by Sherlyn L. Kistler  

The fabrics make this quilt, dedicated to Thelma Roar Ledford, b. 3-27-1925. The colorful fabrics must bring many special memories. Her daughter, Sherlyn L. Kistler says, "Mom would have been 100 years old in 2025.  After she passed away, I took the silky blouses that she loved wearing and made a cozy 'memory quilt'. "

 Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2025 Tucson Quilters Guild show.

Necktie quilts for Dad

Happy Fathers Day ! The silk necktie has achieved notoriety as the traditional Father's Day gift to Dad from his family. But what if Dad already has a closet full of ties?  Some quilters have turned neckties into brilliant works of art.   We hope you will enjoy these creations as much as we have. (This is a photo-intensive post... photos may take a minute to load!)

Recycled Silk Ties - No Necks Needed by Virginia Anderson (Washington)

This stunning quilt was made entirely from recycled silk ties and silk tie remnants from the Robert Talbott Tie Company.  Virginia Anderson says:  "I have been working on this quilt off and on for over 10 years ! I am happy to have finally finished it. It was great fun collecting all the silk ties. Piecing with silk is definitely a challenge!"  Her perfect piecing can be seen in the close up photo below.

We loved Virginia's selection of patterns and colors, with the primary red, yellow and blue hues dominating.  For the design she used the "Untitled" quilt pattern by Karen K. Stone.  Recycled Silk Ties was machine pieced and machine quilted and was exhibited at the 2013 Houston International Quilt Festival.

close up, Universal Ties by Nancy Ota (San Clemente, California, USA)

Nancy Ota's Universal Ties is a gorgeous tumbling blocks quilt that was English paper pieced, hand stitched, and hand quilted.  The close-up photo above shows the way in which Nancy incorporated stars among the tumbling blocks, and the beautiful hand quilting.   The photo below shows the full quilt.

Universal Ties, 63 x 88" (2001)  by Nancy Ota

Universal Ties was shown in a special handwork exhibit at the 2013 Houston International Quilt Festival.   Nancy Ota says,  "Silk neckties gave me the opportunity to work with luscious colors and the richness of silk.  Using the English paper piecing method allowed the silk to be managed.  I love handwork as it is both meditative and creative."  Here are some more close-up photos.

We've admired this quilt on the web, and it was wonderful to see the precise piecing and hand quilting up close. These silk tie prints are so much fun; in the photo below, note the American flag print which is next to a golf-themed print.

Nancy Ota has taught her English Paper Piecing methods to many other quilters; for more information see her Lectures and Workshops and her upcoming Schedule.

Fan Wheel or Wheel of Fortune quilt, 88 x 90", circa 1950

Recycling neckties (and other clothing) is a tradition among quilters.   This huge 1950's silk/satin necktie quilt top, seen on Ebay,  is impressive. The Fan Wheel / Wheel of Fortune variation starts with a Dresden Plate in the center.  Tie tails were used in the middle wheel, and the main ends of the ties were used in the outside wheel.   Two edges of the ties were rolled over with a hand sewn blanket stitch.

Carnival quilt, 58 x 58", by Stacey Sharman at Peppermint Pinwheels (California)

Stacey Sharman's spectacular Carnival quilt, made from tie silks and silk dupioni in every color of the rainbow.  On her website, Stacey explains: " I love mixing both vintage and new fabrics to create quilts that are simultaneously modern and traditional and are also absolutely unique."  Carnival was based on a pattern by Norah McMeeking from Bella Bella Quilts.  

Silk Orange Peel quilt, 63 x 63", by Stacey Sharman at  Peppermint Pinwheels

Stacey Sharman's Silk Orange Peel quilt was based on the contemporary Indian Orange Peel pattern by Karen K. Stone.  The silks were either samples or remnants - approximately 4.5 x 12" in size - from a factory that makes neckties.  Stacey says: "Foundation-pieced is the only way to go with silk quilting."

Grandfather's Flower Garden, 42 x 42", by Margit Kagerer (Arizona)

This original and beautiful necktie quilt won third place in the Theme category at the 2014 Arizona Quilters Guild show.  Margit Kagerer says: “Grandfather went through his stash of neckties and revived them as flowers. He arranged the tips in hexagons like grandmother did for her garden.”  For more information about Margit Kagerer see Margit's Fiber Art.

Father's Day 1976 by Bette Haddon at Studio ArtQuilts (Florida)

This fascinating wall hanging was created by Bette Haddon, an award-winning quilt artist who lives in beautiful DeFuniak Springs, Florida. She used whole ties along with tie tips, labels, and buttons to create a highly textured surface.  We counted over 200 buttons and labels.

Ira's quilt by Bet Ison,  Home for Wayward Babydolls (Kentucky)

Ira's Quilt by artist Bet Ison was made with denim, velveteen, neckties, and brocade. The quilt uses the golden mean to make a Fibonacci spiral.  For more information on Bet Ison please see our 2011 feature article, Waste not, want not: a quilting tradition.

Necktie Wall Hanging, 16 x 20", by Nancy Gamon, as seen at Nancy Gamon on Flickr

 

This original wall hanging was made with about a dozen vintage neckties arranged to create a three-dimensional surface on a pieced background. Nancy Gamon is well known for creative use of recycled materials; at her online boutique at Etsy you can find ruffled scarves made from neckties, mixed media artworks and other creations.

Tie Repeat quilt by Louise Silk at Silk Quilt

Tie Repeat by Louise Silk is a wonderful work of textile art made with strips of neckties.  The emphasis in Tie Repeat is on the artistic juxtaposition of the patterns, colors and values of the silks, which are arranged in repeating sets of light and dark.

Judge's Ties by Louise Silk at Silk Quilt

This intriguing and dignified nine-patch quilt is enlivened by the stripes running vertically and horizontally through the blocks. The black squares in each of the nine-patch blocks "tie" the whole composition together.  You can see more of Louise Silk's creations, including many items made from reclaimed clothing, on Flickr and at SilkQuilt on Etsy.

Power Ties in Bloom by Jennifer Ackerman-Haywood at Craft Sanity

For Jennifer Ackerman-Haywood's  Power Ties in Bloom series, silk neckties were donated by West Michigan business men and community leaders.  Jennifer used the ties to create five different quilts with colorful, hexagon-shaped blooms. The series was exhibited at ArtPrize 2010.

Tie Quilt, 35 x 45", by Renay Martin at Purse Strings Patterns

Renay Martin wove together 56 different blue and red ties together to create this Memory Tie Quilt, then hand stitched them in place. She removed the labels from all the ties and re-applied them in various positions on the front of the quilt.  This quilt was featured by Deb Rowden at Deb Rowden's Thrift Shop Quilts.  Renay has developed a pattern for her technique; you can purchase it at Purse Strings Patterns.

Tie wall hanging by Nancy Sturgeon

Nancy Sturgeon created this lively wall hanging with twenty-four different ties. The shirt stripes used on either side of the ties create spinning pinwheels.   The tie labels were sewn along the border.  The block design is from a pattern in an out-of-print book, Quilts for guys: 15 fun projects for your favorite fella (edited by Cyndy Lyle Rymer; check for copies at Amazon). Nancy also made the beautiful quilt shown below.

Nancy Sturgeon's Tie Quilt, 52 x 52",  includes almost the entire necktie (tip, label, lining, and fabric) from 100 different ties.  Also, 140 tie tails were used to create prairie points along the edge.  It is fun to see all the different patterns and labels in this quilt!

If you are inspired to begin a necktie project you may be able to collect ties from friends, family,  or your local thrift shop.  A good source of neckties is Ebay, where you can find whole collections of vintage neck ties such as this one:

Image credits and links: Photos of  the quilts by Virginia Anderson,  Nancy Ota and Margit Kagerer were taken by Quilt Inspiration.  Quilts by Bet Ison, Nancy Gamon, Nancy Sturgeon, Stacey Sharman, Louise Silk, Bette Haddon and Jennifer Ackerman-Haywood  were previously featured at Quilt Inspiration with permission of the artists.

Thrift Store challenge quilts: part 2

Have you ever made a quilt from used clothing?  We love this thrifty idea.  Here is part two of the thrift store challenge quilts featured at the recent Arizona Quilters' Guild show, featuring quilts made from neckties, blouses, dresses and cotton scrubs. Do any of these inspire you to use thrift store materials in your own quilts?

Grandfather's Flower Garden, 42 x 42", by Margit Kagerer

We love this original and beautiful quilt made from silk neckties.  Winner of the third place award in the Theme category, Margit Kagerer says: “Grandfather went through his stash of neckties and revived them as flowers. He arranged the tips in hexagons like grandmother did for her garden.”

close up, Grandfather's Flower Garden by Margit Kagerer

Goodwill Hunting by Sandra Branjord

"Goodwill Hunting" won a blue ribbon for its creative use of thrift shop materials.  Sandra Branjord says: “My inspiration was the thrill of the hunt. This is a mixed media quilt using all materials from Goodwill. I cut apart and reused garments and recycled batting.”

close up, Goodwill Hunting by Sandra Branjord

Sandra used all animal-themed prints to make this artistic quilt.  In the close-up photo you can see pieces of some of the blouses, including the buttoned front and clothing label of a zebra-prnt blouse. The words "Goodwill Hunting" were spelled out with Scrabble tiles.

close up, Goodwill Hunting by Sandra Branjord

it was fun to see all the different materials and embellishments that covered this quilt.  Sandra incorporated buttons, beads and bottle caps, a wooden necklace with carved animals (in the upper right) and other metal pieces.  She must have had so much fun "hunting" for all of the different materials.

Delightful Thrift Store Challenge by CJ Fuhrman

CJ Fuhrmann made this very cheerful wall quilt with one yard of fabric and six different shirts/blouses from the thrift store, spending $25 or less.  She picked up the colors of the tie-dyed fabric in the various flowers, and added interest with squiggly quilting lines.  The block pattern was called "Fanciful Flowers" by Lori Hein.

Delightful Thrift Store Challenge by Gayle Reed

Delightful Thrift Store Challenge by Gayle Reed. “What to do with a dress, two mens shirts and a scrub top? Make appliques by fussy-cutting the stitched flowers from the dress and [adding] a braided border to tie it all together!”  We thought the braided border was the perfect finishing touch.

It's Not Easy Being Green by Judy Peters

Judy Peters says that her quilt was inspired by the 2013 Cool Globes exhibit in Boston, which focused on "hot ideas for a cooler planet".  The adorable Kermit-like frog is pointing at the earth, while wooden Scrabble tiles spell out the title: "It's not easy being green."

close up, It's Not Easy Being Green by Judy Peters

All of the materials were purchased at thrift stores.

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration.

Waste not, want not: Thrift Store challenge quilts

This week, we celebrated Earth Day on April 22, with an emphasis on renewing and saving valuable resources -- including fabrics!  In honor of that occasion, we're presenting a showcase of  quilts from reclaimed clothing from the 2014 Arizona Quilters Guild Show.

Fancy Pants by Stella Kennedy

Winner of the Best Overall Recycling award, Stella notes," [I was] using recycled infant/toddler size jeans with embellishments, thus the title. Being legally blind, crazy quilting is my favorite to make. Made for a great niece. " 

Close up, Fancy Pants by Stella Kennedy

Stella's original design contains so many cute embellishments ! There's a variety of lace, darling floral embroidery, butterflies, and bows. Solid pink background fabric provides bright splashes of color.

Two Shirts and a Dress by Donna Hilliard

Winner of the Best Goodwill ( as in the thrift store) Ambassador, Donna states, "I went to Goodwill and bought two shirts and one large dress. I designed and quilted this wall hanging. I used most all of the material."

Close up, Two Shirts and a Dress by Donna Hilliard

Donna did a great job in appliqueing these flowers, which are a lovely shade of pastel peach. The buttons add a very cute touch to this very creative project.

Blue Jean Blues by JoAnn Taylor Rice

JoAnn says of her original design, "The quilt top of made from men's 100% cotton Levi's jeans. The thread came from my stash. Binding and backing are Michael Miller's  'Fairy Frost' fabrics. We were impressed by  this modern quilt with the whimsical curves and cheerful round "bubbles".  The peaceful waves motif reminded us of a day out on the ocean.

Close up, Blue Jean Blues by JoAnn Taylor Rice

JoAnn quilted this abstract work herself on a stationary machine. The array of stitches used in pink, peach, lavender, and silver thread was very impressive. 

Now I Can See The Moon by Maureen Tollman

Maureen was inspired by Japanese poet Mizuta Masahide's philosophical haiku, "Barn's burnt down, now I can see the moon."  Winner of the "Best Salvage Artist" award, Maureen used a recycled tablecloth, which was dyed, discharged,  solvent transferred, and embellished with a wooden necklace. Maureen's work is certainly eye-catching, with its soft complementary colors, balanced symmetry, and artistic lettering.

MomMom's Table by Andrea Williams

Andrea notes, "This quilt was made using the tablecloth from the children's table at MomMomWoodward's. It was one of the first quilts done on my new  Tin Lizzie Longarm Machine."

Close up, MomMom's Table by Andrea Williams

What a great way to preserve an obviously much loved tablecloth which undoubtedly was a part of family history and some very memorable meals. Muted calico print sashing gives a vintage look to this quilt and helps the tablecloth blocks really pop out.

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration.

Memorial Day 2013

Memorial Day is a time to remember the more than one million men and women who have died in military service to the USA.   On this day the flag is lowered to half-staff, where it remains until noon.  This lovely flag quilt is quilted with the lyrics to the national anthem.

Old Glory by Lucy Wong-Leonard

Lucy Wong-Leonard, who pieced and quilted Old Glory, says: "This quilt is to commemorate the Chinese veterans of WWII, disabled veterans, and the fallen."

close up, Old Glory by Lucy Wong-Leonard

Metallic thread was used to quilt the words of the U.S. National Anthem in the cream-colored areas. We love the use of cream and orange-red for the "stripes". The red-and-cream pieces are offset as in a bargello quilt to create the wavy lines across the surface of the quilt.  However, instead of using straight squares, each block was made by sewing a small triangle in one corner of the square.  This creates smooth lines rather than the jagged look of a typical bargello.

close up, Old Glory by Lucy Wong-Leonard

It is all but forgotten that 20,000 Chinese Americans served in World War II. Their all-Chinese American units served a special mission: to assist American Flying Tigers pilots and train Chinese Air Force ground crews to defend against Japanese invasion. They flew the "Hump" (the lower range of the Himalayan mountains), drove the legendary Burma Road, performed troop transport, repaired planes, and did crash recovery. For more information and photos see this article by Victoria Moy.

Image credits:  Photos are by Quilt Inspiration.  "Old Glory" was shown at the 2013 Arizona Quilters Guild show.

The AIDS Memorial Quilt on the National Mall, Washington, D.C.

A highlight each summer in Washington. D.C., is the Smithsonian Folklife Festival.  Every year, the  Smithsonian Institution invites organizations, states, and countries who are celebrating a milestone in their history to display their achievements.   This year marks the 25th anniversary of the creation of the Names Project Aids Memorial Quilt which was started in 1987.

 Created for the AIDS Memorial Quilt by Yves St. Laurent

The AIDS quilt is the largest living memorial of its kind in the world.  Consisting of 48,000 panels, commemorating more than 91,000 names, the quilt will be on display during June and July throughout the Washington D.C. area. Above, we are showing a panel created by designer Yves St. Laurent, which will be shown at The Quilt Store in Farragut Square. The heartfelt message reads simply, "In memory of Stephen. We are ravaged by AIDS.... There must be no respite in the battle to defeat AIDS."

Created in memory of Richard L. Cotter II

The memory quilt panels are comprised of many different fabrics, including unusual fabrics for quilts such as suede, leather, mink, taffeta, and Bubble Wrap. Sometimes, fabric from the loved one's clothing, such as t-shirts, jeans, jackets, or hats is included.   Above, we are showing a panel which, in our opinion, must have been made by an experienced quilter. The artist has chosen restful muted colors of chambray blue, gold, brown, and cinnamon red. The cats are carefully appliqued, and the patchwork border complements the inner part of the quilt. Neatly arranged lettering and a well-spaced meandering quilting pattern form a very pleasing cohesive, almost heirloom look to this panel.

Created by Tommy Hilfiger in memory of designer Perry Ellis

Tommy Hilfiger, the American designer of traditional, classic sportswear styles, writes about fellow designer Perry Ellis...."I was inspired by Perry Ellis' spirit. He took American fashion and made it new, injecting humor and his own unique sense of style into his designs. I chose the most basic of design techniques for this panel, the rudimentary patchwork..........that still translates into American fashion today. The actual design of the panel was not as important as the involvement and kindred spirit it creates amongst us."

Created in memory of Keith Haring

Keith Haring (1958-1990)  was a New York artist whose drawings and paintings were inspired by the street art that he saw around him.  Here is an entire 12' by 12' block devoted to Keith and his work. The outlines of this "pop art" or comic book style look deceptively easy to draw; however the creators of this block have an excellent sense of movement and perspective, in our opinion.  Their talent gives gravity and dignity to scenes from every day life.

A completed block of  the AIDS quilt

During the past 25 years, individual quilt panels have been created by the loved ones of someone who has passed away due to AIDS-related causes. Each 3 feet by 6 feet panel is donated to the The Names Project Foundation where they are sewn into 12 feet by 12 feet blocks. A typical AIDS quilt block contains eight individual panels.

Spectators viewing the quilt display

When the entire Memorial Quilt is laid out, it covers more than 29 acres of land, and its size comprises more than 1.3 million square feet. If a visitor spent only one minute at each panel, it would take him or her 33 days to view all the panels.  

Quilt display on the National Mall, Washington, D.C.

From July 21-25 2012, the Memorial Quilt will be laid out by volunteers in its entirety for the first time since 1996. It will take four days to display all 48,000 panels. Weighing an estimated 54 tons, the quilt was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in 1989.  This stirring, inspiring work of art is maintained by  The Names Project Foundation. Their website contains instructions for those wishing to create a panel to donate to the Memorial Quilt.