Memory Quilts: Save the Memories Without Cluttering Your Home!

One of my worst habits is holding on to clothing or other textiles that I can't use. I have dresses that are falling apart but too comfy to part with. I have button-down shirts that my sons have worn holes in but I can't bear to throw away. I still have the nightie I took on my honeymoon, though it's now 2 sizes too small and worn from too many runs through the washer. I have scraps from other projects that will never get used. I even have a few dresses from my own childhood.

With three children and a small house, I can no longer afford the room these clothes take up, but I'm so loathe to get rid of them. Instead, I decided that I can cut them down and reuse them, as patchwork squares. So I started this weekend, and have enjoyed it so much that I think I will continue! As I worked, I remembered that my mother had done something similar for my brother. When he arrived from Korea as a baby, he came with several outfits, and my mother didn't want to let go of them. However, onesies from Korea aren't particularly useful once the baby grows out of them, so she cut them up and pieced them into a small comfort-blanket for him, which he loved as a child.

To begin is simple. Decide what size squares you will most likely use-I figured 4 inch squares are large enough to piece easily without being ridiculous looking. I made a template out of stiff paper, and put together as may layers of fabric as I could reasonably cut. I traced of as many squares as I could get out of the fabric, and pinned it all together before cutting to avoid slippage. I decided to use pinking shears, since I don't know when I'll get around to piecing the quilts and don't want any fraying to happen in the mean time. Once you have enough squares, you can start putting together simple nine patches, and either complete a quilt or save the patches for a rainy day. What you will end up with is a colorful, memory-filled quilt.

Each pile of squares from each particular piece of clothing, I stitch together with one stitch to keep them separate, and drop them into a plastic bag in my sewing area. When I'm ready to quilt, I will have stacks of memory-laden pieces waiting for me. As you gather your squares, you can organize them by weight and color, or by weight alone. One thing to remember is that denim won't piece together nicely or easily with thin peachskin, so you won't want to use them on the same quilt. I'm going to dig into my pile of fabric and old clothes and see what else I can chop up!