I gave away several quilt tops I purchased at a garage sale. The original sewing machine had serious tension problems and they were not going to be washable. That is probably my criteria - not capable of holding together. Another member of my quilt group took them to fix them, but I have no idea if she did. They haven't come back to be made into a prayer quilt.

I agree with the others, if they won’t hold together then I would trash them. Seriously poorly made quilts can still be donated to the humane society, dogs don’t care one bit. :)

There are groups that donate many quilts for very poor people. It doesn't matter if it is t a beauty if it keeps them warm. I give many tops to the Lutheran Church for donation to all sorts of uses. All are appreciated.

Quilts made of polyester double knit wear like iron. That is not a reason to discard.

I wholeheartedly agree with you. When I first realized that a library near where I lived was having meetings of a group of quilters, I began going with a friend who was an excellent hand quilter. Another lady there would consistantly bring home blue ribbons from the Puyallup Fair. One member had been very ill, so I did not meet her until I had been going to meetings for almost a year. That ill member"s current quilt was made of small squares of double knit and had been contributed to by all the other members. Each would sew on it for a while before passing it on. Not one of those ladies had anything negative to say about that quilt, or that of anyone else's project.

When I finally started looking for quilting articles in magazines, one of the first I spied had to do with a quilter who lived in a not so large RV. She used the doubleknit scraps to make quilts and rugs. They were beautiful. I use cotton, but do appreciate any fabric in a quilt except dacron in the permanent press, can't tolerate the smell when ironed.

A few thoughts;

Who are the recipients of your comfort quilts?

I admit I cringe when I hear comments that the homeless should be happy for what they get, but I also remember a post here a few years ago, from someone who had lived in shelters for a time. She said that pretty things tended to be stolen and a warm ugly quilt was more likely to be left alone.

1: Fibre Content - Is it washable?
2a: Type of fabric - I have used denim and flannel or denim and cotton together, as long as it is washable
2b: Quality - if the fabric will not withstand wear and tear or washing then no
3: Seam Allowance - if the seam allowance is too narrow, can you quilt over it?
4: Design - Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. There are a great many quilt designs that I do not care for and some I love that make others cringe
5: Size - are you talking too big or too small? If too big cut it down, if too small, is there fabric available to make borders? Can you sew two too small together?
6: Puckered Seams - I generally have a few puckered seams on my quilts and seam allowances pressed the wrong way or in two directions.
7: Doesn't lay flat - Most my quilt tops neither lay flat, nor are square.

You do not have to attach your name to these quilts you finish.

If they are truly not suitable for your comfort quilts, quilt them and give them to your vet clinic or SPCA. Animals do not care what their bedding looks like as long as it is washable.

I remember a story from years ago, probably posted by someone on the QB. She had started quilting when she had two young children. She didn't know anything about making a quilt, but made one anyway. She said it was a hideous green monstrosity, but she was hooked, so she started taking classes and ended up being quite an outstanding quilter. Decades later, when all of her children were grown up, she had lots of quilts in her home and decided to divide them up among her children (five of them, I think). Guess which quilt they *all* asked for first? Yup. The hideous green first quilt. Because it was so awful, this was the quilt she allowed the kids to use for making forts in the living room, creating tents outside, playing with the dog, and this was the quilt she wrapped the kids up in when they were sick. It wasn't until all those years later that she realized the value of that quilt.

I remember one member of the QB purchased a polyester double knit quilt top on eBay, partly because it brought back memories of her childhood. It quilted up beautifully. It was a heavy quilt, but will last longer than any of us will.

My sister has coordination problems, so I have quilted several tops for her. The tops were all wonky in many ways, with tucks and puckers here and there, seams coming apart, and in one top she had sewn the fusible backing into the quilt. I repaired the seams coming apart, sometimes by adding fusible underneath, but that's about all I did. Left in all the big tucks and puckers, wavy borders, etc. I am not an accomplished frame quilter, by any means, and these were some of the first quilts I did. After a lot of close quilting (simple loops), including over seams, I was amazed at how good they looked when finished! The tucks and puckers became unnoticeable to any but a practiced quilter's eye, and the paper that crinkled when I sewed it dissolved after a few washings.

The upshot is that I think that, as quilters, we can become more critical than creative in our thinking. This is not to say that every quilt top can be made into a useable charity quilt; I'm sure there are some tops that are best turned into pet beds.

There have been a couple of posts some time ago, asking about how to get certain odors out of found fabric, ie, donated, garage sale, etc. They were wanting to make donation quilts with it. Bad smells like mildew, mold, or what ever, is where I would draw the line and toss it for sure.

My hairdresser has a quilt made of polyester squares that was made by her grandma. She chose it after her grandma passed and uses it as a picnic blanket. She loves it. Now, after her sister has seen the usefulness of this quilt, she is wishing she had picked it!

i can agree. I have a double knit quilt made in 1973 (date embroidered in corner) on a spare bed and I’ve made 3 for shelters. They’re indestructible and serviceable.