Onebyone

Gee's Bend ladies worked with the top of the line fabrics also...HUH?

I don't know why their quilts are so highly thought of other then the fact they used what they had like any other quilter who had nothing to work with but what they had. I saw the original show and exhibit at Boston and saw the quilts up close. Nice exhibit and marketed to the hilt to be a success.

Auntie V

Old Linen tablecloths make great dishtowels. No lint! I have some smaller ones I keep for cleaning eye glasses.

QuiltnNan

i've used many non-LQS fabrics in my quilts...sometimes the right color is not available on the cotton fabric shelf.

Ms Grace

I like to use cotton men's shirts in my scrappy quilts.
I get some really great plaid ones all the time.
It's actually some of my favorite fabric.

jeanharville

I love this idea, but the Goodwill and Salvation Army near me have their shirts marked up too high. It is hard to find a bargain close to where I live. I Think when the "chain" thrift stores find out decorators, artists, crafters, quilters, etc. are trying to save money, they mark the good stuff up.

just_the_scraps_m'am

Please, ladies, wash it before you spend your time on it....especially since most of the garment industry has been outsourced...years ago i worked in a garment factory as an inspector...well, i found out the brown stains on the garments were from the [sacred]cows walking down the aisle in the factory....what i really found astonishing was the label of the company that was retailing these garments-- a "high end" retailer that is still in business today with way overpriced and over stated quality garments!!

Missysgottohelp

The best quilt I had when growing up was made out of men's suits for the top, old wool blankets for the batting and flannel on the back. That was the warmest quilt to cuddle up in. It's over 50 years old now and my brother has it now and still cuddles up with it.

zozee

I shop at thrift stores in the linens department. I look for 100% cotton and hold it up to the light to make sure it's
not too thin. If I like the feel of the hand and it's a color I want, it comes home with me.

quiltingcandy

My great-grandmother had a rather large supply of calvary wool blankets (not sure why but it was around 1895) and she used them as batting in quilts. Those quilts were heavy - but oh, so warm. Not sure what happened to them - knowing my Grandmother, when the covers were warn she got rid of them. I still have one of the calvary blankets because my mom had taken it to college with her and kept it after she got married.

pennycandy

I'm in the middle of tying a quilt made from mens shirts I bought from the thrift store. It would have been difficult to find the variety if I had tried to purchase new fabric. This has worked out so well that I bought 3 shirts last week and again today.