|
How to Quilt>recycle quilts
Recycle Your Falling Apart Quilts
Never throw away an old quilt. There are just way too many uses for it! Yes, even if it is torn and batting is coming out. For instance, have you ever thought about using an old quilt to make a Christmas stocking? Select a portion of the quilt that is still in decent shape and fashion it into a stocking. Top it off with a felt or velvet cuff, or simply add ribbon around the opening. If your quilt only has minor rips and tears, you can probably even get enough fabric out of it to make a tree skirt. Most tree skirts are circles that are 50 to 56 inches in perimeter. Still got a little more of the good part of the quilt left? Make ornaments or small wall hangings from those pieces. For all you quilters who also like to make holiday dolls, why not make a section of an old quilt into a coat for the doll? Coats from old quilts add a sweet, country look to any doll. If you have a quilt section that can withstand washing and drying, make it into a poncho or lap quilt. It is always nice to cuddle up with a warm wrap and is especially nice when it has some familiarity to it as well. You can cut smaller pieces of old quilts to make doll quilts. You might even be able to make a comforter for a doll house bed. Speaking of dollhouses, use pieces of your old quilts to “reupholster” a dollhouse couch or love seat. Make pot holders from your old quilts. Having extras in the kitchen are handy to use for trivets, too. If your old quilt is not too lumpy, turn sections of it into place mats for your table. If you still have good pieces of quilt remaining, make cushions for your dining chairs. You can cut the quilt into sections then sew the sides closed and create kennel mats for your small dogs. Bigger dogs just need more quilt. By the way, cats love sleeping on cushiony quilts, too. Your pup would probably appreciate a jacket or scarf for those cold winter days. The size of your dog naturally depends on the amount of the old quilt you will need to use. For fun, make yourself a scarf from the quilt or mittens to match your mutt. Make pillows out of your old quilts, too. They are a nice touch to any bedroom or in any living room. Try using old quilts to make purses or clutches. Search the patterns at your local craft store and determine the styles you like. You can also use parts of old quilts to make a nice eyeglasses case. Once you have cut your old, worn quilt into pieces to be recycled, you may have to add more quilting stitches to the piece. More stitches will add to the stability of the recycled piece of quilt. The way you finish the sides depends on the project. For example, some (like the stocking) might stitch together nicely – wrong sides facing -- using a wide zig zag stitch. Still others way have to be sewn and turned. In those cases, serging or sewing an over lock seam around the edges will be an advantage. Another way to preserve your worn, aging quilts is to take good photographs of them. If you enjoy tinkering with art on a computer, design some stationery that features a design motif or sections of your quilt. Using a photo of a section of the quilt, you can also create background pages for scrapbooks (just print out the photo on acid free paper) or as blog backgrounds. I wonder what I should do with these blocks. One of my relatives made them and my mom rescued the blocks from a Tale of Peter Rabbit quilt made in the 1920s.
Happy Quilting!
Penny Halgren www.How-to-Quilt.com
©2010, Penny Halgren This article courtesy of http://www.How-To-Quilt.com. You may freely reprint this article on your website or in your newsletter provided this courtesy notice and the author name and URL remain intact.
Search our site below by clicking the button next to www.How-to-Quilt.com. There are hundreds of articles all about quilting:
|
|
