T-Shirt quilt: Finally complete! (picture heavy post)

Here's a secret: I actually finished my T-Shirt quilt over a month ago. I've even used it twice since then. Sorry, y'all.

Yes, that is a Harry Potter pillowcase in the background. 

This is a special post- this blanket has been something I've wanted to complete for several years! I kept getting side-tracked, starting it then stopping, then starting again but forgetting what I was going to do, then having to redo things and oof! It was a very time consuming project. Every single step of it. I don't want to dissuade anyone from undertaking their own t-shirt quilt, but I will say this was a heifer of a project to undertake.

Back of the quilt. The square in the middle was not a
smart move, sewing wise. 

Things I learned 
Or, how to avoid a disaster


1. I am not a quilter. Nope.

Front of the quilt! Yay!

2. I rush through planning projects sometimes. This is not one of those things you can rush through! I learned that the hard way, more than once. Yikes.
3. Have a plan that you know you can follow. And keep it nearby for handy reference. I really should have printed out a plan at the start.
4. I have more skills than I thought when it comes to sewing! I also have fewer skills than I thought, as I learned from a few different points where I actually thought "UH. What is this tutorial even asking me to do?!" Oops.
5. Even if there are flaws, it still looks impressive once it's finished. People do NOT notice the things I do, like the lack of straight stitching, the pen marks I can still spot on some of the shirt fronts, my terribly tied knots between the layers...people only see this massive quilt and the shirts which make it up!

Close up of the backing fabrics. Totally wrinkly. Sorry, guys. 

     Resources for the T-Shirt-Quilt-Project(-That-Lasted-Forever-Because-of-Poor-Planning):

This is resting on a full size bed (ha, get it, resting?).

~Here is the website I should have followed the whole time. I found it AFTER I had already (poorly) cut my shirts and attached fusible. Most Unfortunate for me, but fortunately for you, I can save you that anguish.
        Some Notes: 
        ~ If you are a first timer, absolutely go with the "blanket as the batting, sheet as a back" suggestion. And if you are not a first timer, definitely do NOT try to put a square in the middle of the back of your quilt, even if the fabric is beautiful and you only have a square of it. It is not worth the trouble it takes to try and sew in a square between two single pieces of fabric and also be precise. Nope.
         ~Where the tutorial tells you to iron, don't think "Awwww heck, this fabric seems fine. Plus I hate ironing, so I'll just skip that step." It will not turn out well for you.
         ~You do use a lot of thread, but JoAnn Fabrics typically has spools (decently sized) of "quilting thread" that are 99 cents. I found the quality to be fairly sturdy!
         ~TAKE YOUR TIME doing the "math" parts. As a good friend's dad says, "Measure twice, cut once," or as I have adapted it "Measure quickly then cut once, and then do an hour of extra work for each hasty cut because you forgot about x, y, or z, ya dumb dumb."
 
Here are a few other tutorials which are thorough:
~ Cheap Chic Home
~ Sew Caroline (Part 1, there are 2 parts total)
~ Almost Casual
~ The Dixie Chicken (Part 1, there are 3 parts total)



I used some extra interfacing I had laying around, and unfortunately, it wrinkled in the dryer after I washed the quilt. You can see in the picture to the left how it has wrinkled; basically the interfacing disconnected from the shirt and bunched up underneath. When it is hot out of the dryer, I can sort of stretch it back out, but it stays pretty wrinkled. I have a few shirt backs like this. I didn't know that interfacing adhesive could go bad, but I suppose it did!

For the edge, I folded it all over twice and sewed to keep it in place. Not fancy, but also not super difficult!

Video I used for the edge of the quilt (I did not do as much ironing/gluing, hence my non-straight lines)

More of the edge of the quilt

You can sort of see the tiny yellow blob there, left of center in the picture to the left. That's one of the ties on the quilt, to hold the front and back together in the middle spaces of the quilt, so that it doesn't "bubble" out. These took a painstakingly long time, because I did them at/near each corner seam. I am not patient enough nor advanced enough to sew a quilting design into the quilt, so I went with the ties as a more practical option. I think it looks great, actually, and they are small enough that the bad ones are relatively hidden anyway. Wink!


Ta-da! What do you think? Is this a project you'd undertake? Or do you have a project that you've been putting off because you know it will take a lot of time?

I seriously love this pattern. 

One Month Later...

Whelp. I knew it would happen. This is why I have never really been a "blogger!" Life gets in the way people!

Top 10 things that have contributed to the large gap between posts: 

1. Work. Last week I was at school every day until 6:30 or 7. Possibly the week before as well. Ew. Gross. Ugh. 

2. HOCKEY PLAYOFFS. I'm a bit of a fanatic. Let's go Caps!! (obligatory #CAPSLOCK @washcaps)

3. Our outdoor soccer league is finally getting to regular schedule (rain kept us from playing the first several weeks)

4. Weekends away/with visitors. Springtime apparently = ALL the visits. 

5. More work. Writing IEPs, doing transition meetings, lesson planning...not enough time in the day!

6. Procrastination

7. Third Rock from the Sun is on Netflix! Game of Thrones is back!

8. We decided we are going to move this summer! Which led to apartment hunting and.. 

9. Cleaning out closets/stuff around the house (still need to work on this)

10. Warmer weather has meant we've been outside a lot more! At the outdoor bars, taking a walk, grilling dinner, etc. 

I started to try and type an actual post but all of those things in the above list (particularly #1 and #5) have made me what we (in college) call "cracked out." I'm so tired but I'm giddy but mostly tired but also not in a bad mood just really really really REALLY in need of bedtime happening soon. And I don't write as well. But it's more entertaining, from what I hear.

So, to make it up to you, here's some lovely pictures to show what I've been up to: 

--> Going to Williamsburg, VA to visit the ol' collegiate stomping grounds/spend time with friends who are moving halfway across the country in a few weeks. We had an enjoyable time wandering campus on my spring break, and pointing and laughing at the students who had classes/exams. We didn't actually do that. We just talked about doing that.

 <--  Enjoying the pleasant spring (less so enjoying the pollen that accumulates everywhere) by taking some walks and hanging out on the back patio*.

*This is actually not from my back patio.








 <-- Baking lots of things for Easter and in general. Easter was entertaining because I got my cousins to show my mom how to video chat me, and she took pictures of me (on her computer) video chatting with them, on her camera.

--> Spending time with friends on nice evenings! This is a picture of one of the games at our favorite local hangout. We call it "Barcade" because we never remember the real name. They have a bunch of old school video games and you can play any of them for 25 cents. It definitely brings back old memories!



 <-- My Easter Peep wreath from my grandma. She made this for me one year as a Christmas gift, and it is awesome! She also got me the peep basket and cover. Last week, my mom gave me some greeting cards and the front is a peep with the phrase "Inside, we're all the same." Can you tell my family likes Peeps? It's actually part of an Easter tradition I started where we roast the peeps like marshmallows.

DONUTS. DONUTS. I MADE THESE. TASTE SO GOOD. DONUTS.

Okay I think we need to end there today. I have some interesting baking challenges coming up and a few pre-summer crafts/activities I want to accomplish. Which means I'll be rearin' to go with material and clearly should not take another month to post. Clearly. Obviously. (Donuts?)