love 2 sew

I’d like to make some T-shirt quilt and was wondering what is the best and/or cheapest way to get business. I’ve done a few but they were all out of state.
Thank you,
Joan

toverly

I know a person in my Guild that makes t shirt quilts. She is involved in running and made a quilt out of her t shirts acquired at a few favorite runs. I guess she showed it at one of the running club meetings. The last time I talked to her she said she had several orders for more from friends in her running club. So you might approach it that way, a sports club or athletic club.

boykinsmommy

I agree with approaching clubs. You can also look to see if any towns in your area have FB pages or yard sale type pages, you can always advertise there. Having pics to show of your work is very important. Ultimately, it's word of mouth that gets around. Also look for any business card posting areas in your local library, or local papers, newsletters, etc. Get a business card through Vista Print, they are very inexpensive. Good luck!

Teen

My fireman friend asked me to make one for him and I said I would. He shared this with his firehouse and they all want me to make them one....they haven't even seen my work yet! I have no desire to go into business but a firehouse is a good place to stop by and chat, show your work, etc. They have some really awesome t-shirts...very colorful...at least my friend does.

quiltingshorttimer

I'm just "stepping out' of the t-shirt quilt business--a part time job means little time for doing t-shirt quilts and leaving enough time to do custom quilt work and work on my own stuff. I strongly suggest you get a business card that states t-shirt quilts and get it in the local quilt shops. Also put it on the local exchange/sell website for KC. Also get flyers up in the local library & groceries/drug stores--any place that people shop. I always met customers (that I didn't know) at the local library meeting room. Be professional--I used a flannel backed table cloth marked with different sizes (just use a Sharpie) so that customers could see the size and # of shirts needed. Decide if you will be buying all fabrics and bat (I did so I could control the quality). Be sure you have some samples (lap size are fine). And know the price points for the different size quilts--I'm also in the KC area and the typical price around here is comes to about $20-25/shirt. If you are having to design ways to fit in lots of different size logos,i go with the higher price--yes, some will balk at that but there's enough work in making them that you would still be making less that $15/hr! Also, if you don't do your own machine quilting, you need to get a deal set-up with a quilter so that you can get them done in a timely and perhaps discounted price. Good luck--I have referred 2 potential customers in just the last 2 weeks-it's that time of year when Mom's are thinking about their graduating high school seniors!