Thoughts On Scraps - Why Men's Dress Shirts Make Scraps Challenging

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Paul the editor here. Cathy is travelling and won't be able to respond to comments much, but will, as always, read them all. Thank you for watching.

[@giselleyoung3248]

Prayers for safe travels!

[@kscheuerman5378]

Thank you Paul, you are a wonderful partner and support to your dear wife!! I appreciate you letting us know. Cathy is a very special person. Her God given light brightens my days... God Bless you both

[@christinahall3318]

Thank you Paul! You and your wife are so precious to me! God just knew I needed you all and chose the right time. His timing is always so good!

[@sewhappysarahr8912]

Happy travels, Cathy!

[@coreygilles847]

When I was taught to quilt…I was taught to improvise my own designs from whatever fabric was available to me (shirts, sheets, fabrics from the fabric store, and what have you) and still to this day quilt patterns are merely “suggestions” (I have great difficulty sticking to a pattern even if I was the one who designed the pattern I’m attempting to follow). And after years of trying different fabric organizing systems…I have realized that the way my quilting brain works…that the best way for me to organize my fabric is by color family. So, all my blue fabrics are in a container together-from the tiniest scrap to 3 yard chunks. All together. My mom and great aunt who taught me to quilt were always very firm that each quilt is unique unto itself even if the same fabrics were used and it was sewn together by the same person. Each one is a moment of love solidified in the world by the effort of the maker. And using scraps increase the individualality

[@emilie1365]

"I don't tell quick stories" 😂 Thank you for the burst of laughter and your legendary wisdom ❤

[@jeanettehudepohl4177]

My rule on scraps-- If I can fold it, it's not a scrap, it's stash

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

I love this!! What a great way to think about it! 🤓👍🏻

[@julias.8236]

So true. Normally that means above 4" for me :)

[@annerankin1191]

I spent yesterday working on a quilt documentation project with our guild (with many other members). As you can imagine there were some beautiful quilts…. But the beautifulist was a scrap quilt. Small 1.5” (finished) squares (1584 squares to be exact) hand sewn together and all hand quilted. Some of the pieces were pieced together and the maker had tried to match the plaids. The quilt was dated to the mid 1800’s and contained lots of indigo and bits of linen. It was stunning and it was such a privilege to see it. The most beautiful thing was when the owner realized she had a treasure. We all wanted to bring it home with us. I love scrappy quilts and this was the finest. I wish I could post a picture here for y’all to see it! XOX

[@genier7829]

My scraps are my stash. I buy backing fabric but VERY rarely piecing yardage. I entered quilting as a garment sewer, and it was a way to use up lovely leftovers. I still love the challenge and economy of scrap quilting, and I do use a lot of thrifted shirts and sheets (backs). I don't use commercial patterns, but do traditional patterns or improvised modern designs.

[@kylierigby1953]

Oohh, scraps, love those! ❤. I think I love working with scraps more than the original sized pieces. They make you think more laterally. Give the brain more creative juices. Those small pieces can be all laid out on fusible fleece overlapping slightly, with the backing also added. Then ironed and crazy stitched all over. Trimmed and bound. Makes a great sewing machine mat. I've one under my machine. So the scraps are not scraps after all. They become little pieces of creative fun.❤ Blessings.

[@Kaylene16]

Hi! What a great video! I’ve recently started crumb quilting using all the tiny bits from my ‘crumb’ jar and it’s so fun. I sew all the bits together and make what I call new fabric. Then I’ll cut it into 5 inch squares or whatever size the quilt pattern calls for. It’s a fun way to make those pieces that seem unusable into useable pieces.

[@kitzimmerman9843]

I started apparel sewing when I was 10+/- yrs old so I have a ton of 'leftovers' with weird angles like your shirts. Nothing is impossible. I'm 74 next month so I have a lot!

[@lynndandelion]

That's what I started quilting with. I put out a call for cotton scraps suitable for quilting on a local buy-nothing forum and the garment sewists found me. ❤❤❤

[@leehollar9881]

I love to quilt but being on Social Security couldn't really afford the fabric, so made very few. I saw one of your videos one morning and by lunch time I was at our local GoodWill Thrift Store. As far as scraps as you call it, it's only scrap if it's less than one inch by one inch. Thank you for your videos and keep up the good work.

[@carmencreamer3769]

You can take smaller pieces and make 2 1/2 inch strips using register tape as a foundation. I have seen people do this with scraps that are sorted by color and it’s very effective. Essentially you are making your own special 2 1/2 inch fabric…how creative is that!

[@marybeth4002]

I learned a new word... scrapstash! You are so right and I never thought of it before - scraps from men's shirts look very different than scraps from yardage. It was so good to see you and listen to what you have to say ❤

[@silver_csmith]

So fun! ☺️👍🏻 Those odd shaped pieces would work well for a “crazy quilt”…also for a foundation paper piecing project.

[@donnaf2666]

Interesting thoughts. Thanks! As a make do quilter......Once I cut up a shirt and cut one square, I cut up the whole thing. I start with the largest of these sizes and cut until the biggest piece is the next size down, and keep going smaller until it is all cut. 5", 4", 3", 3"x5.5", 2'x3.5" each size has a small tote plus a tote for strips smaller than 3", and a tote for crumbs. When a little tote becomes full it is time to do a quilt or stop cutting.😂. I also use sheets from goodwill for backing and when I cut out sheet or shirt hems, I save them for tomato ties. I also prewash and Magic Size or starch everything before I cut.

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

What an interesting and wonderful process! I bet it makes sitting down to sew so much easier since your pieces are pre-cut! I laughed out loud about when your tote gets full it's time to quilt or stop cutting! 😂 Thank you so much for watching and for sharing your process, Donna! ❤️

[@debracav1933]

Managing a scrap bin is a whole other opportunity in quilt piecing. I seem to consider leftover scraps as part of my stash too. Most of my stash is probably what quilters would call ‘crumbs’ and some garment makers refer to it as ‘cabbage’. Your deep red irregular polka dot strips are an example. I make an effort to sub-cut scrap in 2.5 squares and 1.5 squares and crumb or toss anything smaller. Some days I just cut and plan zippered pouches or mug rugs and coasters.

[@leeannlively]

Hello from Texas 🤠 "Crum quilts" might be something you would enjoy exploring to create from "your" scrap bin.

[@veronicaosborn3029]

Just happy to see and listen to you on this lovely Friday afternoon. Honestly you just never know when that one scrap will make the perfect piece for a block. ❤

[@michaelcaselli2716]

Great video! And thank you for creating a new word to add to my quilting vocabulary! I enjoy sewing miniature quilty projects, and I needed a word (or is it two?) to describe a huge portion of my fabric resources. ‘Scrap-stash’? Oh, YES MA’AM! I LOVE IT!

[@annettemaxie-mahmoud2390]

Thank you for another great tutorial! I am also fairly new to quilting and used to have a more difficult time determining if my leftovers were scrap or stash. I now use my scraps to make small projects between my quilts. ❤

[@Siennaflower]

Bravo!!! I just did a video about making doll dresses from thrifted children's clothes. I talked about maximizing both the material that I used, and the material that I saved after making the dresses. Luckily, with what I was doing, I could take advantage of more of the fabric and the seams already sewn for me than you would with quiltmaking. That's what I love about using already made clothing--half the work is done for me--whereas with quiltmaking, using thrifted clothing makes for more work, though I'm sure it's all rewarded in the end!! ❤

[@romonaelrod7870]

Hi Siennaflower,what is the name of your KZbin channel. I would love to see your videos.

[@teresamcfadden2414]

Good afternoon Cathy and Paul. I love love love scraps. I don’t have a lot of room so I don’t color code my scrapstash”. I use all sorts of sizes. Soon I’ll be able to “build” a crazy crumb quilt with all my blocks that I have. Thanks for your way of thinking

[@davidhatfield5714]

Crum quilting was what it was about 3 or so years ago. I made 2 from a box of vintage scraps I found a yard sale. Never had so much FUN sewing..size, shape, doesn’t matter! Must admit, didn’t use any smaller than 2”. Surprising how those odd shapes turn out! (KH)

[@pegpage8618]

Two of my favorite things to discuss in quilting are about “color” and “scraps” - this is why I LOVE your videos. I store my scraps by color family which really help me when I go to make a scrappy quilt. I hope you do more videos on scrap management and scrap quilts. PS - those small strips of scraps that you have would work great in a piano key border (just sayin’). 😂❤

[@cathyfromcanada637]

Crumb quilting is your answer. It's like string quilting but with odd shapes, basically crazy quilting without the applique on top. There's lots of videos on it.

[@pammeinzer6757]

Great to see you this week! I'm in love ❤️ with almost anything quilts. It's better when it's simple, but I still love it. Learn something new from your videos. Thanks

[@nancie4727]

I piece, applique and make garments, so my scraps are every shape and size. Even the scraps from quilt store fabric are odd sizes, but I keep them all and use them often. Just this week, I constructed a quilt binding out of 3 chunks of the same fabric.

[@glynisreynolds446]

Morning Kathy and Paul 😃 Love Friday mornings when I find a new video from you 🎉🎉 I have a separate container for useful pieces that are less than fat quarter size - like another comment says ‘if I can fold it it’s stash’. These pieces then stay flat/not crumpled so they are ready to use when I need a small piece 😃 Thanks for sharing your thoughts 👏👏🇬🇧 Love the quilt on the wall 🤩

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Glynis, that’s so smart to have another container for those “useful pieces” (great term, by the way!) and yes, keeping them flat makes so much sense too! It’s hard to want to use fabric when it’s wrinkly and crumpled! Thanks as always for your great comment! 😘❤️

[@rochelleschmidt160]

Good morning! Scraps are my favorite! It’s like a palette of paint color with endless opportunities to create! Thanks for starting off my day with happy things!❤

[@karonwostenholme6533]

😊 thank you, I’ve started collecting large mens cotton shirts cheap too, I’m so enjoying your videos x ❤

[@Sharon-pb7so]

I'm currently working on a string quilt. I use plain newsprint paper that I bought on Amazon. I do my strings using men's shirts. The secret to using shorter pieces is to work on the diagonal. Your middle piece of fabric is the longest you'll need, as you add more pieces you need shorter fabric. Men's dress shirts are perfect for string quilting. I cut my strips to 1½ inches which makes a 1 inch finished string. The paper I'm using I cut as big as I could, it's 9½ inches square but again I use it on the diagonal. The left over paper I keep because I can make a piano key border for the quilt. I think it's about 3½ inches. Nothing goes to waste and the results are beautiful. Hope this helps you with your smaller scraps, they can be used easily. 😊 I could show you my string quilt if you'd like. A string quilt uses about 6-7 shirts depending on the size you want your quilt. Good luck and happy quilting. Sharon Martin, your long lost relative in Michigan.

[@jennjennedington279]

I want to see your string quilt! Do you have an Instagram?

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Sharon! I would love to see your string quilt---message me on IG or FB so I can see your work! ❤️ And thanks for the suggestions for how to use strings! 😘

[@anjamaas7140]

Thank you for sharing your toughts about scraps! If I have only 1 peace smaller than 10", than I cut it into 5", 2,5" or 2" squares or 2,5" or 1,5" strips. Everything smaller than 1,5"strip or 2"square goes in my crumbbin. I've made lots of crumbquilts and squarequilts now. It is so much fun! My star in my profile is made from crumbs. Everything bigger than 10" or of I have more of the same fabric, is stash. My friend gave me a cotton dress her grandma made. I have used it in many quilts. It is so beautifull. I used it in the quilts I made for her. There was one bit, that was torned and her grandma made that, I put that in het quilt. That was so special for my friend.

[@christinahall3318]

Ooooo I would love going through all of your scraps. So wonderful! I love scraps - scrappy is happy!!!

[@georgiadabinett6312]

We have a reuse non profit store that happily takes scraps to bundle as stuffing if very small or or organize by color to resell. Nice to know what i get frd up with goes somewhere than immediately to the landfill.

[@debrajohnson4812]

Loved your video today. I keep all my scraps down to about 1" and use them to make crumb quilts. Not very much goes into the bin from my sewing. All the quilts I make are scrap friendly.

[@stefflcus]

Wheeeee, it's Friday again already! Since I come from garment sewing (and a lot of improv even at that), I've always had odd scraps, and I can't *bear* to throw them away. I made SO MANY hair scrunchies back in the day (...the '90s. Back in that day. That was when the day was.) and doll clothes and jewelry and wall hangings, and still they multiply. Now that I'm thinking along quilting lines, I'm wondering about lap and even dollhouse quilts, but there's no reason quilting scraps MUST become quilts, as fun as that is. Can't wait to see what you come up with for your particular scrapstash (my brain, immediately upon you saying that: "That's scrapstashtic!"), and I expect to have to go digging for my own elderly stash. Inspirational as always! And, as always, thank you.

[@TheQuiltingLunchLady]

I haven’t started yet, but I plan, in the long run, to size my scraps. Those that are foldable or easily sub-divided into smaller squares, definitely stash. Smaller scraps into a scrap bin, eventually to be color sorted. But I am not there yet. So far, all my scraps fit in a shoe box. Not enough to do too much with. But I am picky though about the size. Anything less than 1 1/2” square is not usually for my needs, so toss it it goes. That green square is definitely stash as it looks to be almost 10” square. I hope to do a landscape quilt some day, but need more variety in color and value in my scraps first. Love love love how you approach your fabrics and your stash and scraps. Thanks again for a lovely video. I am still waiting on my machine to be finished. I am getting twitchy to sew.

[@angelastevenson252]

Hi Kathy, Love your videos! I had watched another lady doing a crazy quilt. As I was watching you just now, you made me think of using the scraps from shirts in a crazy quilt project. I wanted to thank you for the inspiration!

[@freddiehansen7324]

I hope you have a great trip!! Also, I agree with the scraps - they can have their uses, you just have to think outside the box a little more :)

[@chrisdistelrath9386]

Thanks for another Friday "lot to say about it" topic. Scrap makes me soooo happy. I've got scrap that acts like stash, then there is itty bitty that becomes part of scrap squares that can be sashed together for small lap quilts. Oh the possibilities are endless.... off cuts are less than 1.5 they become stuffing.

[@harperreads]

I sort my scraps by color, with two different bins for each color. One bin has larger (a fat quarter with a chunk taken out) pieces, and “precuts” - 10 inch squares, 5 inch squares, 2.5 inch squares, and 2.5 and 1.5 inch strips longer than about 10 inches. The other bin has odd shaped pieces, strips narrower than 1.5 inches, smaller pieces, etc. Since I love scrappy quilts, the pieces in the first bin often get put into quilts to add variety of pattern within a color. The second bin I use for crumb quilting and string quilting. When I am done with a project, I try to look at my leftovers and store anything larger than a fat quarter in my stash, fold fat quarters with a chunk out, and then cut what is left into precut sized pieces. Anything left that is at least 1 inch square goes into the crumb/string bin. Pieces smaller than that go into the stuffing bin. I hate to throw out fabric!

[@AnitaSouthall]

I have a policy of no textile waste to landfill. Everything gets used, including weird angled bits. I make pin cushions, zippered pouches and scrap blocks for both gifts and for sale. The scrappier the better.

[@DebbieWolgemuth]

When I scrap quilt, I sew the little bits together to make them into a long strips. All the 1.5" wide strips can get sewed together on the ends, etc.

[@deborahpruyne6274]

I like using scrubs, too. The shirts are usually boxy (instead of fitted) and have cute prints on them and the pants have wide legs, but are often plain colors.

[@dougandsuepflum7526]

Jenny at Missouri Star has a good video on scrap quilting with odd sized pieces.

[@nicolebeauchamp7622]

As a quilter where more is more when it comes to variety in colour I would love to dive into your scrap bin and have a ball. I'm not afraid of a wonky foundation pieced scrap string block. Or using a variety of the same colour in tge one block to make up the colour I need. Eg use lots of different yellows to make the flower centres. Oh the fun I could have. Another great video. Thanks for sharing ❤ Australia

[@karenhoney9850]

My neighbour had a sewing business that produced big bags of off cuts. I used a method like Sharon Martin did below to use up the scraps that were too small to save.My recipe was to cut several six inch squares from ordinary newspaper, lay a strip of focus colour across the diagonal, slap a light strip (sunshine) or dark strip (shadow), sew them. Continue chain sewing more of the same. Next press all the strips and then turn the papers over and cut the strips to length and perhaps adjust the width of the strips. This gave the maximum value for the least fuss because except for the first few strips the pieces were just chunks. Anything wider than closetoaninch was fair game. Before I pulled the papers off I stay stitched around the squares. Also many antique log cabin quilts have logs of various widths .

[@Bubbawork]

Great video Cathy, it was enjoyed with a nice cold glass of wine (usually it’s coffee, but it’s that time of day here). You have a very enviable range of scraps there. Loved seeing your progress on the quilt behind you, that’s looking fabulous x

[@julias.8236]

I think storing your less than a fat quarter pieces in your stash makes perfect sense if you have several of it because in the end its more fabric than a fat quarter, just in several pieces. I consider scraps to be below 2" and above 0.75" and am working on an adding maschine tape stips quilt. Great for odd shaped strings is a pennant chain since they do not need to be very long and the scrapiness makes them so much fun. A crazy quilt is on my bucket list as well but I have not come up with a method to keep the scraps somehow still slightly organized to get a harmonious quilt. But maybe I'm just overthinking 😂 Have a wonderful weekend and thanks for the great video again.

[@esthervonepp8908]

I make my string blocks using some of my shirt scraps by using a foundation fabric...it works quite well for me

[@lindaherrington6291]

Strips and small pieces can also be used to make Courthouse Quilt blocks.

[@jeanettewithrow9641]

Log cabin is my favourite block and I have a lot of 1.5 and 2.5 strips that I call it playing and I could see all day

[@chris21cole]

Jean Wells book Intuitive Colour and Design 2nd edition Adventures in Art Quilting may be helpful thinking about your "scraps" I bought the book love the ideas but haven't made anything yet. I believe she is also on KZbin which is how I found the book. Hope this might help 😀

[@michellegallas9916]

Your voice is so relaxing.

[@TheKjoy85]

I would use the scraps from the shirts like crumbs and make large swathes of crumb fabric to cut into blocks for a scrappy quilt.

[@nevafitzgerald2402]

Good Friday morning to Cathy and mister Paul ! Oh no the dreaded scraps 😥 have a great weekend by the way MS Cathy when is your birthday? Let's me know please. You're funny girl love you're explanation . thank you 🙏

[@graybynature2449]

When I do a paper piecing project - I get some very interesting shape scrap pieces left over. I tend pass on scraps of anything less than 2 1/2" .

[@TheRozylass]

I came to quilting from dressmaking so I'm very familiar with odd shaped scraps. My first quilt was a scrappy nine-patch using sewing scraps, old clothes, cuts from downsizing king-sized pillowcases to regular, and such. I've always felt more in common with pioneer women making quilts than with those who chose a pattern and then buy yardage to make a quilt. I love your approach and attitude. You can make a nice string block on a foundation (muslin or other plain fabric). Look up MerryMabelMarket KZbin channel and she has a wonderful video on how to make them. (I tried to add the link but couldn't get it to work.)

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Thank you so much, Rozylass! And thank you for the suggestion--I'll check it out! ❤️

[@lindamasson3094]

I wonder if you have ever calculated the cost per yard of the fabric obtained from shirts bought at thrift stores or garage sales? I made a quilt once from cut apart shirts. The poly blends drove me crazy and I said "never again"! But the concept is interesting .

[@jennjennedington279]

I have had that question and came up with an estimate/average of about $3.25 a yard. Based on the (ahem) reasonable quantity of shirts I have bought and broken down, I feel like that’s a dependable figure. And a bargain! 😊

[@Sharon-pb7so]

I made a twin sized string quilt and used 7 shirts that I paid $1 each for them. I got the backing on sale so the whole quilt was made for about $22. I did use a yard of fabric for the binding, that was my biggest cost and even that was on sale.

[@connieking9873]

Until one of your more recent tutorials on how you keep your shirt pieces whole until ready to use I was getting every possible block or strip out of my shirts. What was left became my scraps. I have tons just like the ones you showed. I decided to take these pieces and added in the crumbs and am making yardage. I have several pieces close to a yard long and so far 18 inches wide. These then can become just about anything you want.. bags, quilt squares or appliqué projects. Sky is limit.

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Connie, I have been thinking about doing that exact thing as of late! I want to redeem all those linen pieces that are cutoffs from the orange peel quilt I'm working on! ❤️

[@Moni221960]

I love all your videos. You are amazing and so cheerful. Thankyou for what you do. Monica from Australia

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Thank you, Monica!❤️

[@lisascenic]

This is so interesting to me, because I never use commercial quilt patterns. I make all my quilts based on quilts from the 1930s or earlier. As I understand it, the quilters at that time worked largely from the off cuts from garment making. So their quilts were structured very differently than what is being done now. There were no cutting diagrams, or lists of yardage required. Looking at historic examples, one can see that there was much more of a “figure it out yourself” approach. I tend to work from sewing scraps, because I relish the challenges, and because I have a LOT of sewing pals who are happy to unload their leftover on me.

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Lisa, it definitely is a whole other way to approach quilting--and "figure it out yourself" is hard-wired into me, I think, even though I do follow a pattern. Because I don't use a ton of yardage, I often work backwards from unfinished piece sizes---it is unfamiliar to me to go to a quilt store and buy XYZ amount of fabric for a quilt top!

[@lisascenic]

@@TheCatBirdQuilts yay for team Figure it out Yourself!

[@tamiduquette1592]

If you start EPP it will use up every bit of your left over pieces. Hexagons and nine-patch is addicting with EPP. A relaxing thing to do on the couch at night.

[@jennjennedington279]

I just started EPP for that very reason…. Special bits that I couldn’t bear to lose. It is fun!

[@tamiduquette1592]

@@jennjennedington279 tula pink has a great series of videos on youtube that are worth watching. Very beginner focused with good tips.

[@jennjennedington279]

@@tamiduquette1592 thank you!

[@swissflentie]

These are typical scraps from appliqué or improvisational sewing! Those are great ways to use organic shaped fabric.

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

What a great idea! I don’t know if I have the courage for an improv quilt, but it could be fun! 🤩😊

[@angiewarren6045]

You could always sew two pieces together to make them longer. I think you could make a great string quilt with your shirt fabric scraps.

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

I have had that exact thought, Angie! Maybe I’ll make another video that dives into this very thing (and other ways to make scrap patterns work)-great minds think alike! 🤓❤️

[@cashby1425]

I do that as well when I’m short of something I need - when the quilt or placemat or whatever is quilted nobody would ever know

[@raymondgabica4696]

Scrapestach!!! Love it!

[@AvivaHadas]

You hit on one of the trickier bits - what is a scrap? Your definition & mine may differ. Heck, my definition changes per day or per sorting session. My stash while 99% from a quilt store is a pile of scraps to a lot of quilters i.e. fat quarters with a strip or chunk missing... And unsaid, some quilters like to use scraps while others do not. (If you like to make "3-yard quilts" a partial fat quarter is useless to you. And if you want to donate fabric to charity - they generally do not want smaller/random cuts either.) Also how people use fabrics. If its in my scraps - I will use it without hesitation. Meanwhile if it is a fat quarter "what if I need a full fat quarter? Ok, I'll choose something else." (Not that there are that many patters that use almost all of the fat quarter - some could be classified as a fat eighth or layer cake friendly instead, but I digress...) That gets exponentially worse with a full yard. BUT I also will use 10 reds instead of finding "the 1" red...

[@ScotMcAfee]

Hi! We love your videos!! So helpful!! We also use tiny amd odd-shaped pieces to make string blocks and crumb blocks. It is so rewarding to use even the small pieces and see how pretty the resulting blocks turn out. When they seem too small for those projects, we Mod Podge them to cardstock and make note cards out of them. People seem to love them! We have also covered empty syrup bottles from Cracker Barrel to make a scrappy, country-looking tiny vases. Hard to throw just about anything away as long as we have an idea for it! 🙂

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Hi! Thank you!! ❤️ I love these ideas--especially the note cards one! And I do agree that it is so hard to throw away fabric that can have a use! Now I have a question for you: who is "we?" Because if this is a team effort, I need some names to thank you both (all?)! 😘

[@ScotMcAfee]

Hi-- My name is Sheri. My husband Scot and I are the "we." We started working on quilts together over 5 years ago and really enjoy it. The note cards and tiny vase projects are just me. I love using up the little bits and also making cards and presents for people. 🙂

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

@@ScotMcAfee Hi Sheri and Scot!! Thank you both so much for watching and commenting and for your support-it’s so nice to meet you and have you along this journey with me! ❤️

[@ScotMcAfee]

Scot found your site first and shared it with me. We are learning a lot from you and enjoying sharing our quilting journey along with yours.🙂

[@anneoconnorao]

Would it be an acceptable challenge to do a crazy quilt, perhaps using foundation piecing, using the small scraps? Would you like something like that?

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Anne, I might eventually do a crazy quilt or scrap quilt, but I have more than I can do right now!! 😂😱 And so far, no FPP for me!😘

[@socalgingerjohnson]

Foundation paper piecing could be a perfect solution for those wonky shaped scraps.

[@socalgingerjohnson]

Lo & Behold has a Granny Patch pattern that might use small enough pieces.

[@EOgma]

I love your men's shirt quilting ideas. The one you made for your daughter is fantastic. A few years ago I made a memory quilt for a friend whose husband passed away, using many of his shirts. It was a challenge but turned out nice. Anyway, I went on your website but couldn't find an email so I'm asking my question here. What type of batting will give a nice soft drape, for a tee-shirt quilt I'm making using my grandson's little baby shirts. I used the thinnest fusible stabilizer I could find, and I don't want the quilt to be stiff. I do dense quilting, so I need the best advice about the batting. Thank you!!!!

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Thanks so much for your comment, EOgma! I will confess that I don't know much about batting (I usually use 100% cotton or 80/20 cotton poly if I want the quilting to be puffy) BUT I have had so many people say that bamboo batting drapes beautifully! I've not used it, so I can't testify, but there are lots of experienced quilters here in the comments on my channel that know more than me! 🤓👍🏻

[@bethkay8194]

I've not been quilting much longer than you but am wondering, since you are familiar with the Magnolia quilt pattern, would it be one that would work well as a gingham quilt? I'm also considering a free pattern from Sew Can She. It is the charm Poppy Quilt pattern.

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Beth, I love gingham in the Magnolia quilt pattern, so YES! I’ll have to check out the Poppy quilt pattern-I bet it’s pretty! ❤️

[@BonsaiQuilter]

Two comments: (1) if you lay the fat quarter sideways across the width of the back, there would be even less waste of the fabric. (2) The small 'string' pieces created by cutting from men's shirts can be used like the String Along Lily on Page 63 in the book 'More Lap Quilting with Georgia Bonesteel'. You're gonna like the use of those odd shaped pieces without cutting them first..

[@Sylvie_M]

Awesome scraps for Donna Jordan's scrappy lattice quilt on Jordan's Fabrics KZbin channel.

[@Mickey-jn8hz]

Hello CatBird Lady, Mouse Lady here….I tried your tip on taking the buttons off on men’s dress shirts….which I struck gold on a couple of beauties….can you tell me how to press out the memory of the cotton where the buttons were. Yes it does give you more but I can’t get the imprints of the buttons out. Sprayed with water and pressed with a new iron….those little dots are still there. Also what do you do with all those buttons….do you have someone that would like to have them, I don’t believe that I will be sewing any baby stuff as I am old…now…HA! Have a beautiful day!

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Hey Mouse Lady! They will come out in the wash-and not before! I’ve tried every way, including soaking, but it just has to be washed and dried (for me that’s at the very end when the quilt is done!) I haven’t found a good use for my buttons (yet) but someone recently suggested using them for bean bags? Which is a great idea-if you need bean bags! If you think of another idea, I’m open to it!

[@SewGurl58]

So here’s my hierarchy of fabrics. Fabrics on bolts, yardage (1-5 yds), fat quarters, WOF strips, usable smalls, and then it goes scraps. Nothing smaller than 2” goes to scraps. That 1/2 of fat quarter is a usable small. 😁

[@SewGurl58]

Oooooh you know what them tiny weird pieces word good in? Foundation Paper Piecing.

[@maryannharlow5172]

Great video

[@joycerideout6311]

Thankyou ❤❤❤

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

You're welcome!❤️

[@Mickey-jn8hz]

Do you use collars, cuffs and button hole strips?

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

I save the collars and cuffs for random future projects, but I toss the buttonhole strips!

[@reneecorbin8501]

I disagree on not being able to make the the string quilts with the scraps that you have there because you just sew the lengths together to make them longer so you can make your 10 inch squares on point using all strings . You just need to think about adding strings together to make what you need, works out fine for me ,you use what you got ,maybe just use the strings differently . They all don't have to match perfectly, because you are using scraps not making a show quilt,,It still can be beautiful if you sort thru and match up what looks nice. Well anyway that's my 2 cents worth,,,,Renee

[@cmurphy-qk5ie]

Since those fabrics and colors have given you such joy, why not try the adding machine tape method for those irregular idy biddy pieces. Karen Brown at Just Get It Done Quilt has a wonderful tutorial about piecing idy biddy scraps to adding machine tape. Here's the link kzbin.info/www/bejne/b4qqlGmwbJqXp6M. I would piece together scraps of the same color familty i.e. pinks, blues, yellow to make "bricks" that can be made into simple paterns. Love those fabrics to the last thread I say, and think back to all those lovely quilts you've made.

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Great idea!🤓 Thank you for sharing the link---I will definitely check it out! ❤️

[@creativeplum]

The lobster bib! 🦞 😂

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Lol! Right?! I cracked myself up just thinking of it! 😂

[@lindagear9014]

The problem gets even more complicated when you do applique quilts as well as pieced quilts, leaves can be very small, petals, a snowmans nose or buttons. Everything seems potentially useable and it sort of is a problem. You have to stop somewhere. 😅

[@TheCatBirdQuilts]

Oh my---I don't applique so I hadn't even *thought* of that! Whew! But yes, I think you're right, we all have to stop somewhere! 🤪

[@juliemac5604]

Scraps are smaller than my hand.

[@kathyweverka7886]

When I saw your video topic, I was interested. However, you need to get on with it. It's taken you forever to get to the point. Doubt I'll live long enough to get to the ends