bearisgray

When do you consider a quilt to be "beyond repair" and it should be given a decent, respectful burial/retirement/discardment?

Iceblossom

When it falls apart faster by handling than by being alone.

Sometimes all you can do with a well loved quilt is to use it as batting and put it inside a new quilt. I've done that often with worn out baby quilts.

There are all sorts of things you can do to rescue a quilt from minor repairs to covering the entire project with illusion bridal netting and but ultimately cotton decays. I rather like it how quilts change with age, sometimes fabrics don't fade evenly and a whole new design/color sense comes out at the end.

My quilts do typically get a couple of years as dog quilts before they are completely discarded.

juliasb

I have two like that aright now. One had a huge hole in the middle and the bat is hopeless. I keep thinking on this one I should be able to salvage this full size quilt and make it into a lap quilt. Every time I look at it all I can do is shake my head and thinks some more. The second one, for a long time I though I could salvage it too but the more I look just about 70% of the seams have been compromised and the fabrics are so tattered that I think it is ready for a happy burial. I have a 3rd one that I believe can be reworked. The bat is all at one end, I have no idea how that happened, but I know by taking it apart the top can be salvaged and is in pretty good shape so it is on the list, a 4th one I am working one by hand. I have no clue how this one was destroyed the way it was, it is a cathedral windows, it is reworkable. Last but not least is one of the DWR quilts I made. part of me wants to repair it by machine and the other part of me wants to do this on by hand. The jury is out on this one. It is easier to make a new one that repair the old one.
So 2 are deceased without hope. the others require some serious surgery. I suppose the big holes determine when they are ready for burial.

bj

I have a friend who had an old worn out quilt a friend gave her. No sentimental value to her. She cut it up into usable pieces and made a beautiful jacket out of it.

quiltsRfun

I have one that my SIL asked me to repair for her daughters. It was made by their deceased grandmother and is in really bad shape. Nothing much left of the top and the batting is mostly gone. I foolishly agreed thinking it would be nice for them to have something from their grandmother. But I’d essentially be redoing the whole quilt. The more I look at it the less I want to tackle it. Think I just made the decision to give it back and tell her it’s beyond repair.

quiltingshorttimer

I have one my grandmother made--totally worn and not repairable without doing the whole thing over--so it's used to cover some inherited furniture. Another one showed up after a roomie moved out (this was 40 years ago) and she claimed it was't her's (it was) and the top is shot--use it to cover the dining table I iron widebacks on. My SIL made stuffed hearts for Christmas ornaments out of a top that was greatly worn but had emotional attachment too--thought that was a neat idea.

Mkotch

I have several on a quilt rack that I call "sick bay." However, somehow over time they have gotten covered over by other quilts. I just can't bring myself to get rid of them and they are beyond fixing. Thanks for asking this question!

sewbizgirl

When it’s going to take more time to fix it than to make a whole new quilt, it’s time to let it go. Mine become “cutter quilts”, to use to make toys or something else.

JACRN

Hello, years ago I had a quilt that my grandmother had made. It was unrepairable. There was a lady who took your old quilts and made Teddy Bears from them. She was able to make three from the quilt.I just love those old bears. I am 74 so the pieces of the quilt are really old as this was my quilt as a child.

Homespun

I have made stuffed animals from the usable parts of damaged quilts.