Give a Gift
Transform a thrifted quilt top into a pair of colorful lounge shorts with this tutorial from Beth Byrge. The perfect project for garage sale season, this upcycled sewing project embraces the trend of creating new garments and accessories out of quilt tops. The designer walks readers through the process of modifying existing patterns so that your shorts are customized to your preferences and comfort.
Quilts as fashion has been a trending style for many years and is showing no signs of disappearing. Sewists can either incorporate quilting techniques into clothing patterns, such as piecing the front of a sweatshirt, or can upcycle old quilts into coats. This tutorial will explore turning a quilt top into a pair of lounge shorts. Learn the important apparel sewing techniques that will make this project successful.
Designer Note: I am indebted to a friend of mine for sending me this quilt top, which her sister had received from a friend. I love thinking about the journey this piece went on just to get to me, and I wonder what life the fabric had before becoming a quilt top. Many of the pieces are hand-sewn together. During my project, I remained mindful of the hands that assembled my fabric and sent positive vibes to that person, if they are still here.
Materials:
Note: Be sure to check the shorts pattern of choice for any different or additional materials that may be needed.
- Quilt top (without batting or quilting) 100% cotton preferred. Important: The quilt top needs to include an equivalent wxh of continuous fabric as called for in the shorts pattern for the size being made.
- Sewing pattern (Friday Pattern Company Sport Shorts is used in this tutorial)
- Interlining material (lightweight woven fabric such as voile or muslin)
- Elastic for waistband
- Interfacing as needed
- Bias tape
Piecing Instructions:
PREPARING:
- Quilt tops can come from various sources, and sometimes origins may be unknown. If you have a quilt top you prepared, you can use it for this project as-is. If you have thrifted or were given a quilt top, it is recommended that you do some pre-washing of the fabric before sewing. Since the designer received this quilt top at least third-hand, she knew it needed a good soak. The instructions below assume that the fabrics are cotton. Cotton-poly blends may be okay (vintage sheets and fabrics sometimes include poly-blends). Pretreat and wash the quilt top accordingly if other fabrics are included. Check the quilt for damage, fraying, or stains. Use a stain remover if needed. If there are damaged areas that you cannot cut around, use a lightweight iron-on interfacing on the wrong side. You could also consider visible (or invisible) mending.
- Since the edges of the quilting fabric are generally unfinished, do not wash the quilt top by machine. Fill a sink and do a gentle soak and hand wash with a mild detergent such as Unicorn Wash. Be sure to squeeze out the dirty water (do not wring!) and rinse thoroughly.
- Air dry the quilt top to prevent fraying in the seams. If it is extensively wrinkled after washing and drying, press or gently steam it before cutting.
- If the quilt top fabrics are particularly thin, follow the manufacturer’s instructions to fuse a lightweight interfacing to the wrong side of the quilt top, either all over or only in the pattern template areas as needed, before cutting out pieces.
PLAN MODIFICATIONS:
- Beth chose the Friday Pattern Company Sports Shorts pattern for a few reasons. First, she had already sewn it once before, so she knew she could make plans with a working knowledge of the pattern and no surprises. Second, the edges of the shorts are finished with bias binding. The designer loves the little nod to quilting by including binding. It would also make the edges less bulky to finish since she would not need to double turn and hem them.
- Even with a simple pattern choice, some modifications may be necessary. In this case, pattern pieces were interlined. Interlining is different from a standard lining. It means backing each individual pattern piece with a second fabric, then treating them as one piece.
- The designer chose a super lightweight cotton voile to back her pieces. You could also use muslin. The interlining will serve two functions: it will protect the raw edges of the fabric from further wear, and it will prevent the seams from rubbing on skin when the shorts are being worn. Her voile was purchased from LA Finch Fabric Shop.
- The second modification was to the waistband. As drafted, the pattern calls for a wide piece of fabric to be folded in half. Beth wanted the quilt fabric on the outside of the waistband but not the inside. To fix this issue, she cut an inner waistband piece from the voile and sewed it to an outer waistband piece made from the quilt top. To prevent the voile from showing, she understitched the seam allowances.
- Lastly, she decided to put a pocket facing onto the pocket bag. Beth had large enough pieces of the main quilt fabric (the green) to cut facings. She finished the raw edge and then sewed it directly to the pocket bag. The pocket bag was cut from the voile to prevent bulk and preserve the quilt top for other pattern pieces.
SELECT PATTERN PLACEMENT:
- Each quilt top will be different. Experiment with placing pattern pieces on the quilt top to imagine how they will look when cut. Avoid common pitfalls such as circles directly on the fullest part of the seat, or odd patterns created over seams.
- The designer did not have much fabric to work with, so her choices on pattern placement were limited; however, Beth is happy with how it turned out, however. There are no strange curved lines over the center front seam or rear seam.
CUT QUILT TOP AND LINING:
- Once you’ve decided on your pattern placement, cut your quilt top. Due to the various grainlines, be aware that it may shift some during cutting. That is okay for now as long as the pieces are slightly bigger than the pattern (more on that later).
- After cutting your quilt top, use your paper pattern pieces to cut the interlining. You should be as accurate as possible with the interlining.
BASTE PIECES AND TRIM EXTRA:
- Place your interlining on the WRONG side of your quilt top pieces. Baste them together around the edges of the interlining, within the seam allowance. Remember, the interlining pieces are the most accurate. After basting, you may have extra quilt top around the edges. Cut those pieces off to ensure accuracy.
- Prepare any other modified pieces such as waistbands or pockets.
SEW PIECES ACCORDING TO INSTRUCTIONS:
- At this point, all the pattern pieces are finally prepared and ready for sewing. Follow the directions in your pattern to complete the sewing steps.
CHECK FOR DAMAGE AGAIN:
- Even though Beth looked for damage before sewing, it was inevitable that as soon as her project was done she found more! One seam was fraying between pieces. Disappointed, she talked to the friend who had sent her the quilt top, and she suggested covering it with a label. The designer searched her stash and found one that was the perfect size and color!
WEAR AND ENJOY!
- Quilt tops converted into clothing will always be one of a kind. Enjoy wearing your new garment!
SOURCE LIST:
- Upcycled quilt top: Gifted
- Pattern: Friday Pattern Company Sport Shorts (pay what you can!)
- Interlining: Cotton voile from LA Finch Fabrics
- Drawstring cord: The Fabric Fairy
- Bias tape: Wright’s pre-made
