Really Need your Help!
 

I was asked to repair a memory quilt that was made for a special need young man a few years ago, after looking at it I told him I would make him a new one but he wants this quilt as it was made for him by a good friend that has passed away, so it is dear to him..

what do I do to fix this? It is a tie quilt so there is no quilting on it and it was done by sewing around and turning it so no binding. I started cutting the ties off and have most cut off. I now don't know what to do with it, they gave me the original pictures so I could try and get them back on the quilt. I really don't know how to go about getting the pictures on fabric either so this should be a lot of fun NOT, I'm not sure how to go about repairing this. the quilt is in good condition as far as I can tell, it also has a very heavy batting in it , sometimes it would be so much easier to just make a new quilt but in this case he wants this one..I think I will regret taking this on as I am in the dark as what to do..

Do you think I could just sew a new block right over the old one and then try and do some quilting to finish it off?

HELP Please, what do I do..I hate to disappoint this young man

What would you do? any suggestions

Hi, am I right in understanding that you have the original photo files to use? If so, why not print these again on new fabric and recreate the quilt with new clear photos - but then use this for a replacement backing for the original top.

That way the lad would have both the clear photos to view, and the original top for the sentimental value part.

Just a thought.....

Cheers, K

What does this young man expect you to do?? Does he think you can bring the pictures back to new?? Unless you can get the original photos, I don't know what you can do. The ink will wash off with regular washing. That is why I encourage quilters to put photos on a wall hanging. You can certainly quilt this quilt. I would do crosshatching in the white portions of the photos without stitching thru them, then do SITD and this time attach some binding. Good Luck. I made a special quilt for a former neighbor of mine whose son has cerebral palsy. I was disappointed because she never let him use it and it was displayed on a quilt rack.

I would make a list of the various ways you could fix the quilt. Then have a meeting with the young man who asked you to fix the quilt. Let him make the decision and then fix it the way he wants. If he still wants the original pictures, I would make a wall hanging quilt with the new pictures on it so he can use the quilt and look at the pictures at the same time. I would include that in the list of choices you give him. Good luck
Sue

By saying that you have the original pictures, I assume you mean the digital images that were used to create this quilt. I would send those off to a professional place that prints images on fabric. They use printers and ink that result in longer lasting pictures. I would then take the quilt top apart, remove the picture fabrics, and replace them with the new ones, put the quilt back together just like it was when new, but quilt it and sew on a real binding. That should give him essentially the same quilt as before, but with images that will last much longer. And it wouldn't be that difficult for you.

Thanks duster, yes I have the pictures on a cd that the mom burned the pictures to it, so if I understand you, there are places that will print the pictures to fabric? I then will rip, YAK!! the quilt apart and resew it. i think this will work,I just have to find a place that does the printing to fabric, does this hold up well with washings? I really can't make a wall hanging as it is a full size quilt and he really wants to sleep under it. Now I have to do some calling around to se where they do this kind of printing, do you know of any place that does this? Thanks everyone for your help on this new project for me.

I like the idea of having the digital images done professionally. If that's unaffordable, there are a lot of tutorials online about how to do it yourself at home; it's just that this does require a lot of time, the right equipment and materials, a learning curve and, as dunster pointed out, they are not as long-lasting and stable as the professionally done photos.

I think it would be fine to sew new photos over the old ones. I would either hand sew them over the old ones or turn under the edges and machine sew them on over the old photos. I would not take the entire quilt apart -- not worth it! Machine sewing would provide some additional quilting, plus it looks like it would be fairly easy to machine quilt around each photo within the block.

At first I thought you meant you had cut off pieces of ties that had been attached around the edge of the quilt (like prairie points). ;) Now I realize you mean you cut of the "ties" that were used instead of quilting.

I do think it would add a lot of stability to the quilt if you could machine quilt instead of re-tying. However, your biggest problem will be keeping the layers stable for machine quilting since the edges are already bound and you have no way of inserting basting spray or glue. What I would probably do is first lay out the quilt and pin so all layers are secure. Then I would use water-soluble thread to machine baste the quilt. I would remove the pins, machine sew the new photos over the old photos, then quilt as needed to make the quilt stable. A gentle washing will remove the water-soluble thread.

Or you could remove the stitching around the edge (or simply cut off the edge) which would allow you to layer as usual and attach a regular binding after quilting.

I don't know for sure but seems that a place that does logos on tee shirts may be the place to look for printing your photos

WOOHOO!!
I like your ideas Prism99 and the not ripping is the best, I really hate to rip it out.. I'll try and put the new blocks over the old ones and see how this works.. Now I have to find some place that will print the pictures without costing a arm and leg..Thanks so much

I suggest finding the place that will print the photos and have him order and pay for it.

http://www.fotosonfabric.com/photo-s...it-orders.html
http://www.treasuredphotosonfabric.com/index.html

Maybe I missed it, but I don't understand what he wants repaired. Is it just the pictures that need to be replaced? In the picture, it doesn't look like the fabric has worn. Just a another thought, if you can just sew new picture blocks over the worn ones, as someone suggested, you might then restore it more to the original maker's by tying it and not quilting and binding it. It may feel more familiar and comfortable to him that way. And I don't think it is that difficult to transfer pictures to fabric. There is fabric made for that purpose. June Tailor is one brand that comes to mind. This is very nice of you to take on this project and best of luck to you.

Looks like you are getting some good ideas here on the Board. Isn't it amazing how sometimes people think just because you have a sewing machine and you can sew, you are able to do magic. I'm sure you will make this fellow very happy with his "fixed" quilt.

I had a memory quilt that I made that I had to replace a picture because of a divorce and remarriage.

What I did was to print a new picture on the special paper (ink jet printer, paper from JAs) and then I put double sticky paper (not sure what it is called; used for appliqué) and ironed it over the old picture. Worked well and saved taking the quilt apart.

I would also tie instead of quilting. He wants it restored, not changed.

My daughter recently wanted me to repair a quilt that was extremely worn, the top fabric has just worn away in many of the blocks. No way to take quilt apart. Luckily it was a simple nine patch block. I just made new blocks, match the original fabric as much as possible, use a backing on the new blocks that I could sew around like a pillowcase, right sides together than turned right side out & appliques the new blocks over the worn ones.
It had been one of the first quilts I made 20 years ago, didn't know much about quilting/fabric, etc. Luckily the backing & batting had held up & just needed a little patching. But she was sentimental about it, making a new quilt would have been easier.

Look for digital camera stores. The one in my area (eastern PA)showed 8x10 pics charging $10 a pic.

Look up Spoonflower to print the photos. You may need to make a collage of them to get the most economical printing possible. Spoonflower has good instructions on their website about sizes and how to upload the photos. The basic cotton fabric on Spoonflower will work well for quilting. There are other services that are like Spoonflower so you could look them up as well.

What an assignment! Do post when you have figured out what to do and have done it.

If you have the pictures, you can have them printed on fabric or you can do it yourself. I'm not sure I would take the old pictures out. I might applique them over the old ones, perhaps a 1/4" larger and use a decorative stitch to attach. This might make it a bit more secure than cutting the old one out and inserting new. If you can remove the old batting and replace it with a thinner (maybe even a warm and natural) batting, it might make it a bit sturdier. I'm just throwing out ideas as they poop into my head with the common base of this quilt getting heavy use and probably washed often. I'm sure whatever you come up with, it will be appreciated.

I like this idea. He would have the best of the old and the new. Restoration doesn't mean making a new quilt. I'm sure he wants his old quilt for sentimental value.

What I see is the issue is the fading of the pictures. This is probably caused because of either not taking care when laundering the quilt or the quilt has been exposed to the sun. When you repair and return the quilt, you might want to include information about how to care for the quilt.

I agree that you should just put the new picture over the old -- I put an new fabric block on top of a damaged block on a quilt my grandmother made and it turned out fine. If the young man wants it restored he wants it to have the same feel as the original condition of the quilt.

If you want to try to print the photos yourself, it is not hard. I print photos for my quilts frequently -- and have done so for over 15 years (back when only June Tailor had the fabric to print on). I use a good, commercially prepared fabric made for Ink Jet Printers that I get from an LQS and print using my ink jet printer (I prefer Printed Treasures, but have also used the Electric Quilt Company Ink Jet fabric sheets). The only quilt that has faded is one we took to car shows and exposed to the sun for 6 years.