Basically, it sucks. There is nothing anyone can do or say to make things how they were. Things will never be how they were. But there are a few ways you can make the getting on with your life a little less awful.
A memorial quilt is made from the clothing of your loved one. Clothing triggers memories. If we see a shirt our loved one wore all the time, that shirt will trigger memories.
That is the premise of a memorial quilt. Make a quilt from clothing items our loved one wore. When we see, and hold the quilt, we wrap ourselves in the memories those pieces of clothing hold.
Below are a number of ideas to help you decide what to do with the clothing of a loved one who has died.
This is a quilt made from T-shirts. Some people just have tons of T-shirts. They wear them all the time. It’s who they are. This is the type of person who’s clothing will fit nicely into a T-shirt quilt. If you are looking for a T-shirt quilt, we have a lot of information.
For example, if Grandpa has died, you can use his entire wardrobe for a quilt. We cut different size blocks from each clothing item. These pieces get puzzled into a quilt.
The awesome thing about clothing quilts is that they can be interactive. We leave pockets open so they are useable. We include zippers so that you can zip and unzip them in the quilt. We include collars so you know that it was a dress shirt. We leave buttons can so you can unbutton them in the quilt. An interactive quilt takes a quilt to the next level of fun.
One caution about clothing quilts. If one item is dry-clean only, the entire quilt is then dry-clean only too. Consider the implication of this. You might be ok remembering to have the quilt dry-cleaned. But will your grandchildren remember to do so? We are happy to talk with you about this consideration. Just drop us an email.
Planning a memorial quilt or pillow?
Here are step-by-step directions for ordering your Too Cool quilt or pillow.
We also like to include pieces with holes. We put another piece of fabric behinds the holes that helps emphasize the hole.
We like to add one colored item to an all jean quilt. For example, a shirt or jacket that is a different color than the jeans. This pop of color gives your eyes a visual resting place. It makes the quilt dynamic and less a flat looking.
Blue jeans aren’t the only pants you can include in a quilt. You can make a pant quilt that includes jeans, kaki’s, work pants and dress pants. Pants do tell a story by themselves.
If your loved one was a medical professional, they have a wardrobe of scrubs. We have made quilts entirely from scrubs. These tend to be on the busy side if the scrubs were made from printed fabrics. We like to include a few solid scrubs in the quilt to help make the quilt less busy. The solid fabric gives the eyes a resting place.
We can make up to 4 medium size quilts from a good stack of scrubs (20 to 30). We would cut one or two pieces for each quilt from each scrub as well.
If your loved one was a PJ’s person, then a pajama quilt is one way to go. We would cut a number of pieces from each item for the quilt. We include items from the pajamas such as embellishments and pockets. Lounge pants are part of a pajama wardrobe.
Some people wear a uniform to work each day. Such as firefighters, police officers and those in the military. We can make a quilt exclusively from their uniforms. We include pieces from the uniforms that tell a story. These include pockets, name tags, patches, necklines and other interesting parts of the clothing.
We have made many memorial quilts that are from photographs. These photos celebrate the lives of those who have died. Read more about photo quilts here.
You are not limited to these typical types of quilts. You can mix and match any type of fabrics to create your own unique quilt. We can make a quilt that includes T-shirts, pants, clothing, PJ’s, scrubs, photos and uniforms.
Don’t feel limited. Tell the story of your loved one with what you feel needs to be included. If something just won’t work, we will let you know.
A memorial pillow is another way to remember a loved one.
Next, determine your budget and how many clothing items you have to work with. The smaller your budget or a few clothing items will limit what you can do.
When Larry died, I made quilts for everyone except myself. It’s a mistake to this day I am sad about. If you can’t afford to have a quilt made for yourself now, save some items back. This way you can have one made down the line.
Again, spouse or partner should be first. If there are a lot of grandchildren, you need to work with your family. Determine who feels they need something more – the children or grandchildren. This might be a case that a quilt is made for each child’s family.
If you are not sure who needs a quilt, step back and wait. Having a quilt or pillow made doesn’t need to be a rush decision. Wait 6 months or more. This may help you figure out who needs what. This may also help you get all the clothing items together. This way you know what you have and what you want memorialized.
If you are planning a clothing quilt, you have a lot of flexibility.
You can first determine what size quilt you would like. Then you can send us everything you want included. If you want a large quilt, we will cut the number and size of blocks based on the size quilt you want. If you want a smaller quilt, we can do the same.
If you have a small pile of items and want a large quilt, your quilt will have multiple large blocks from each item. If you have a large pile of items and want a small quilt, we would cut a small block from each item.
Typically, 6 to 10 items are what we use in a pillow. More than that will result in a pillow made from a lot of very small pieces. We can do that, but this isn't reflected in our pricing. If you would like more information about this, please let us know.
We are happy to work with you on your memorial quilt. First, figure out how many clothing items you have. Then, how many quilts or pillows you need. As well as the size of the quilts you want. We can help you figure out if you have what you need.
Here at Too Cool T-shirt Quilts, 1 out of 5 quilts we make are memorial quilts. We have the experience to help you make a quilt to remember your loved one.
To learn more about memorial quilts and pillows, visit our Learning Center.
We have over 200 articles about all aspects of memorial and T-shirt quilts.