May Morris

May Morris (1862 - 1938) and her father William Morris (1834 – 1896) were both significant figures of the British Arts and Crafts Movement. While William Morris's place in art history is well established, May's place is less well known. This is changing, thanks to a special exhibition of her work that was organized by the William Morris Gallery, and two recently published books on her life and work.

May was born into a creative family, setting the tone for her life's work. William Morris is known for his involvement in the Arts and Crafts Movement. The Movement was focused on hand-made and hand-crafted items, rejecting the mass produced products of the Victorian period. Morris is widely acknowledged for his masterful designs which feature images of organic growth - of leaves, branches, and flowers. He is also known as a craftsman, designer, poet, printer, socialist, novelist, and environmentalist. His legacy remains important today.

Jane Burden Morris, May's mother, was an embroiderer. She was also a muse and a model to her husband and to Dante Gabriel Rossetti, the English painter, poet, and illustrator who founded the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. Elizabeth Burden, May's aunt, was an embroiderer and teacher.  

In 1861, William Morris founded the firm Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co., along with the artists Edward Burne-Jones and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, the architect Philip Webb, and others who were responding to the shoddy practices of much of Victorian manufacturing. Morris designed wallpaper, fabrics, tapestries, furniture, and stained glass windows. He assumed total control of the company in 1875, and renamed it Morris & Co.

May Morris was born in 1862. Her mother and aunt taught her to embroider; her father taught her textile design. At age 16, she enrolled at the National Art Training School (NATS) in South Kensington, London - the precursor of the Royal College of Art. She was part of the first generation to study crafts in art schools such as the NATS. Her focus in school was on textiles and embroidery, with a special interest in Opus Anglicanum - a form of fine needlework developed in medieval England that was used primarily for making church vestments.

Designed by May Morris: Specimen of 'Arcadia' wallpaper, a pattern of intertwined flowers and foliage, cream and brown; color woodblock print, on paper via Mary (May) Morris; Part of 'Volume 2', a pattern book containing 27 Morris & Co. patterns from 1882-96 (E.530-608-1919); England; ca. 1886. Height: 68.5 cm size of volume, Width: 53.3 cm size of volume.  Photo via © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Arts and Crafts in the Victorian Age

The Arts and Crafts Movement flourished in Europe and North America between about 1880 and 1920. 

“The Arts and Crafts movement was an international trend in the decorative and fine arts that developed earliest and most fully in the British Isles and subsequently spread across the British Empire and to the rest of Europe and America.

Initiated in reaction against the perceived impoverishment of the decorative arts and the conditions in which they were produced, the movement flourished in Europe and North America between about 1880 and 1920. In Japan it emerged in the 1920s as the Mingei movement. It stood for traditional craftsmanship, and often used medieval, romantic, or folk styles of decoration. It advocated economic and social reform and was anti-industrial in its orientation. It had a strong influence on the arts in Europe until it was displaced by Modernism in the 1930s, and its influence continued among craft makers, designers, and town planners long afterwards.

The term was first used by T. J. Cobden-Sanderson at a meeting of the Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society in 1887, although the principles and style on which it was based had been developing in England for at least 20 years. It was inspired by the ideas of architect Augustus Pugin, writer John Ruskin, and designer William Morris. In Scotland it is associated with key figures such as Charles Rennie Mackintosh.”   Wikipedia

In 1878, at age 23, May became the Director of the Embroidery Department of her father’s company. She managed the embroidery division until his death, in 1896. From 1885 until 1896, the Morris & Co. embroidery workshop operated from May Morris's house at Hammersmith Terrace. After 1896, it may have been run out of the Oxford Street shop, using craftspeople to make the orders. As Director of the Embroidery Department, May supervised the production of items commissioned by clients and made in the Morris & Co. style - overseeing the making of altar cloths, portières, fire screens, cushion covers, tablecloths, table runners, wall hangings, card cases, sachets, and bed covers. 

As a designer and embroidered who had studied historical needlework as an art student, May elevated embroidery to an art form. She worked with needlework that emphasized freehand stitching and delicate color shading. Her art embroidery was in sharp contrast to the style of Berlin wool work, which was popular until the 1880s.

Embroidered book bag by May Morris and Jenny Morris c. 1880s - 1890s. Hand embroidered silks and gold thread on linen. 22.8 x 15.4 cm. "This bag was designed and made by William Morris's two daughters, May and Jenny. It was designed by May to contain a 'Psalter' (a book of psalms), from William Morris's extensive collection of medieval manuscripts. The bag is made of indigo linen and embroidered by Jenny in silk with the word "Psalterium" in Gothic script. Stitches include back stitch, stem stitch, long & short stitch, loop stitch, satin stitch, couching and buttonhole stitch; round edges with words filled in with chain stitch; pomegranate is padded laid work; surface couched in gold thread."  William Morris Gallery  Photo © William Morris Gallery, London Borough of Waltham Forest

Embroidered bag by May Morris c. 1932. Wool on canvas. Photo © William Morris Gallery, London Borough of Waltham Forest

Small Evening Bag designed by May Morris. © William Morris Gallery, London Borough of Waltham Forest

Nightdress sachet embroidered silk, with Apple Tree. Designed by May Morris for Morris & Co. Colored silks on green. Said by donor to have been embroidered by Caroline Phillips, Lady Trevelyan. ca. 1890-1892  Photo via © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Embroidery design by May Morris; worked by May Morris and Theodosia Middlemore for Melsetter House, Orkney, c.1900

The Importance of Embroidered Textiles for Morris & Co.

“Embroidered textiles were the first furnishings designed and produced by William Morris, enabling him to decorate his homes with the historically inspired textiles he desired, and providing an outlet for his intellectual and physical need to make things by hand. 

After Morris’s interests moved on to designing and manufacturing other products, the Morris & Co. embroidery studio, managed by his daughter May from 1885 to 1896, functioned as one of the most commercial areas of the company, producing kits and finished embroideries, which were popular with the middle classes and wealthy aristocrats and business people.

Embroideries available ranged from cushions and tea cosies to panels for folding screens, and large scale decorative hangings. May Morris introduced many new designs, and was responsible for the success of the embroidery department, as a highly skilled designer and embroiderer, and effective manager."  V & A Museum

"Embroidery kit, Morris & Co., 'Anemone' design, purchased c.1904. Cotton ground or 'Manchester cloth,' painted with design, partly worked with silk thread. Worked areas with stem stitch, darning stitch, satin stitch and laid work. Ground fabric edged on three sides with a double hem, with tacking stitches. Selvedge at left hand edge."  Image via V&A Museum

William Morris is known mostly for his wallpaper designs today. But the embroidered items and embroidery kits, created under May's guidance, were a significant source of income for the company.

"As a screen panel, 'Anemone' appears nine times in the Morris & Co. embroidery workroom daybook in the NAL collections (MSL/1939/2636), in which May Morris listed all embroidery work commissioned for the years 1892-96. This indicates the continued popularity of the embroidered screen panels and this particular design. This 'started' panel, including the cotton ground, painted design, and coloured silks, with areas completed so that the recommended technique could be followed at home, cost £1 and one shilling in 1896. In this case, the panel was never worked, and the threads were also given to the Museum (T.159-2016 to T.190-2016). The embroidery kit was passed to the donor, Jill Ford, by her mother, Elsie Winifred Couper (1906-1948), the daughter of the Scottish civil engineer Benjamin Blyth II (1849-1917).”  V & A Museum

Panel, Small Rose embroidery kit (started) with embroidered cotton in silks, designed by May Morris for Morris & Co., England, ca. 1890. Width: 15 in, Length: 19.5 in. Worked in darning stitch, stem stitch, long and short stitch and satin stitch. Photo via © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

English Wild Flowers gathered near Newbury Berks and painted by Mary Elizabeth Morris (Sketchbook) circa 1890. Watercolor and pencil, on wove paper, bound in half-calf and red cloth, lettered in gold. Photo via © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

May taught at Hammersmith College of Art, Birmingham School of Art, and the Leicester School of Art, and went on a lecture tour in the United States between 1909 and 1910. She was also active in the Royal School of Art Needlework, which was founded in 1872 under the patronage of Princess Helena, a daughter of Queen Victoria. In contrast to government schools of design for women which were teaching through theory, the school, now the Royal School of Needlework (RSAN), was set up to help students learn needlework through practical, hands-on technical training. Students studied collections of ancient embroidery in the South Kensington Museum in order to better understand and learn the techniques used in historical textile works, and got pragmatic experience through structured apprenticeships. 

May’s aunt, Elizabeth Burden, was a chief technical instructor at RSAN. Read more about Elizabeth via the Morris Society. 

May Morris's notes and sketches for embroidery lectures c. 1899 - 1902. "This lecture note dates from May Morris's time teaching embroidery at Birmingham Municipal School of Art and the Central School of Arts and Crafts in London. The notes and sketches set out her plans for practical lessons, covering design, technique and materials." William Morris Gallery © William Morris Gallery, London Borough of Waltham Forest

Organizing Women Crafts-Makers

London’s Art Workers’ Guild was founded in 1884 by a group of architects and designers, and many of the prominent figures of the Arts and Crafts Movement were among the Guild’s members. The Guild was formed to bring architects, designers, and craftsmen together under the shared idea of the importance of handicraft as machine-driven industry was threatening to replace traditionally hand-crafted pieces made by designer-makers. The movement promoted an aesthetic of high-quality designs inspired by pre-industrial examples, produced by hand.

“The ideas of Pugin, Ruskin and Morris encouraged much questioning of both industrial society and of the state of art and architecture. Men seemed to be separated from the products of their hands; art seemed the product of convention rather than the creative craftsman. One answer was the idea of the Guild, a re-creation of the social organisation of the Middle Ages, those craft societies which, apparently, built the cathedrals.” Art Workers’ Guild History

In 1888 several members of the Guild organized the Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society, which was created to show handicrafts.  According to Walter Crane, one of the Society’s founders, the purpose of the Society was:

“We desired first of all to give opportunity to the designer and craftsman to exhibit their work to the public for its artistic interest and thus to assert the claims of decorative art and handicraft to attention equally with the painter of easel pictures, hitherto almost exclusively associated with the term art in the public mind. Ignoring the artificial distinction between Fine and Decorative art, we felt that the real distinction was what we conceived to be between good and bad art, or false and true taste and methods in handicraft, considering it of little value to endeavour to classify art according to its commercial value or social importance, while everything depended upon the spirit as well as the skill and fidelity with which the conception was expressed, in whatever material, seeing that a worker earned the title of artist by the sympathy with and treatment of his material, by due recognition of its capacity, and its natural limitations, as well as of the relation of the work to use and life” Walter Crane "Of the Arts and Crafts Movement"

Photo of May Morris (circa 1886).  Photo © William Morris Gallery, London Borough of Waltham Forest

Rose Wreath embroidery (c.1890) 51 x 51 cm "Rose Wreath was designed by William Morris and this example embroidered by May Morris as a cushion cover for her friend Amy Carruthers Tozer. The design was exhibited at the Arts and Crafts Exhibition in 1890." William Morris Gallery

May was involved in the Arts and Crafts Movement throughout the 1890s and 1900s. She exhibited works at the Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society's exhibitions in London in 1893, 1896, 1899, 1903, and 1906, alongside members of craft Guilds - which excluded women.

The male architects, designers, and craftsmen who were involved in the Arts and Crafts Movement had a social network for meeting and sharing ideas in the form of the Art Workers’ Guild. But the the women May worked with were barred from this Guild, which served as a social networking and meeting place. 

In 1907, at the age of 45, in direct response to this exclusion, May co-founded the Women’s Guild of Arts with Mary Elizabeth Turner, creating a supportive network for the professional craftswomen of the period. May wanted “to keep to the highest level the arts by which and for which we live” in an “atmosphere of camaraderie.” Members of this women’s group included some of the most prominent figures in the Arts and Crafts Movement: painter Evelyn De Morgan, jeweler Georgie Gaskin, bookbinder Katherine Adams, sculptor Mabel White, watercolourist and engraver Mary Annie Sloane, Agnes Garrett, Mary Lowndes, Marianne Stokes, Evelyn De Morgan, Mary Seton Watts, and Mary J. Newill.

The Women’s Guild of Arts mission was to “keep to the highest level the arts by which and for which we live, to keep ever fresh and vital the enthusiasm, the belief – all the things which are the impetus of human endeavor.”

The Art Workers’ Guild remained a male-only institution until the 1960s, when it finally welcomed its first female crafts-maker – Joan Hassall, a wood engraver and book illustrator.

May was a designer, an embroiderer, a pioneer of art embroidery, a teacher, a writer, a political activist, an historian, a socialist, and a supporter of Women's Suffrage. Today, many of May’s works are held in museums – including the William Morris Gallery, the National Museums of Scotland and Wales, as well as regional museums and galleries, National Trust properties, and university collections.

In the winter of 2017 – 2018, the William Morris Gallery raised funds for a special exhibition of May’s works, which showcased her contribution as a designer of the Arts and Crafts Movement, and recognized her important role in elevating needlework from a domestic craft to an art form.

The exhibit, May Morris: Art & Life, was one of the highest attended in the Gallery’s history. It marked an advance in placing May in art and design history.

‘Spring and Summer’ panel, designed and probably embroidered by May Morris. c. 1895–1900. Colored silks on silk damask, 130.8 x 71.9 cm. Embroidered motto translates as: “When the summer’s gentle season makes leaves and flowers and field green again."

Tablecloth, linen with silk embroidery, probably designed by May Morris, 1896, worked by Mrs Laurence Hodson or in the Morris and Co. workshops, ca.1896, England. Silk thread on linen ground, silk lining.
Worked in darning stitch, stem stitch and satin stitch.
Silk lining attached with running stitch. Height: 108 cm, Width: 108 cm, Weight: 0.58 kg Photo via © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Embroidered wall hanging featuring May Morris’s Maids of Honour design, c.1890s

Acanthus Wall hanging depicting acanthus designed by William Morris, ca. 1880. Worked by May Morris and others, c. 1900-1910 (probably). Height: 249.5 cm, Width: 169.3 cm, Weight: 2.7 kg
Felted woolen cloth, colored silk thread, silk cord Photo via © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Embroidered book cover to The Tale of King Florus and Fair Jehane, thought to be embroidered by May Morris. Photo © The University of Manchester Library

Resources - Free to Download

From May's Dedicatory Note:

"These pages are written for and dedicated to those who, without much previous knowledge of the art of embroidery, have a love for it and a wish to devote a little time and patience to its practice. The booklet does not profess in any way exhaustive, but should be useful as a keynote to further study, having been written from practical knowledge of the subject.

I have tried to show that executive skill and the desire of and feeling for beauty, realized in a work of definite utility, are the vital and essential elements of this as of all other branches of art, and that no one of these elements can the embroideress neglect or overlook if her work is to have life and meaning.  If she pursues her craft with due care, and one might even say with enthusiasm, however, she will not only taste that keen pleasure which every one feels in creative work, however unpretending, but the product will be such as others will be careful to preserve: this in itself being an incentive to good work. For work done at the demand of fashion or caprice and that done inevitably, that is, for its own sake, are as widely dissimilar as can be: the first being discarded in a month or so as ridiculous and out of date, and the other remaining with us in all its dignity of beauty and fitness, to be guarded as long as may be against the unavoidable wear and tear of time." May Morris 

Explore More Textile Art

For Your Library

Below are some books about May Morris, William Morris, and embroidery. Click on the buttons to see more and to purchase on Amazon. Please note that as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases (at no extra cost to you).

How to Make an 8 Bit Video Game Cross Stitch

Photo via Pixelkin's Make Your Own Video Game Cross-Stitch!

Making a cross-stitch picture based on an 8-bit video game character or setting is a perfect project for those who are nostalgic for early video games. 

Imagine a picture made up of little x’s, all the same size, with a color palette that’s as simple or as complex as it needs to be to make the image. A cross stitch picture is made up of a series squares formed by one stitch crossing another stitch. The little ‘x’ squares are stitched with a needle and thread on a piece of woven fabric, which has vertical and horizontal threads – a grid. The weave has obvious openings between the threads, with enough room for the needle and thread to pass through.

8-bit images from early video games are made up of pixels, which look like little squares. The word 'pixel' was invented from "picture element," and is defined as the basic unit of programmable color on a computer display or in a computer image. 

In the video below, Courtney Holmes of Pixelkin walks us through the process of creating cross-stitch artwork based on your favorite 8-bit game character.

The Steps

Choose a Character – There are so many great characters to choose from! But, you might want to consider a character with few colors and shading for your first project. Keep it simple when you're starting out. With practice, you'll be able to tackle your favorite characters, no matter how complex their designs are. 

Make the Pattern – Print out a character in color. You’re going to create a grid pattern that will translate into your cross stitch. To do that, use a pen or pencil and a ruler, and draw right on your printout. Draw vertical and horizontal lines which map out the edges of the pixel boxes. Then, number the grid boxes, both at the top and on the left hand side.

Assemble your Supplies and Materials - Below is a list of items to get you started (links below are to Amazon. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases - at no extra cost to you):

Below is a video from MadeByMarzipan which details everything you need to know about Cross Stitching for Beginners. 

If you prefer beginner instructions in text and illustrations, click over to Stitched Modern's 'A Beginner's Guide to Cross Stitch' for a great tutorial.

Helpful Tips and Links

For a guide of different cross-stitch pattern-making computer programs, check out Lord Libidan's review page​

&

Looking for free online cross stitch generators? Check out patternsforyou.com, myphotostitch.com, and craftdesignonline.com​

+

Make Magazine has a tutorial for creating cross-stitch patterns from images using myphotostitch.com

?

Check out Lord Libidan's 500+ free cross stitch patterns, including Video Game characters, TV and Film characters, and Anime Characters.   

!

Use the free-to-use make8bitart to draw your own pixel art, and use to design embroidery or cross stitch patterns. 

&

Use step-by-step pictorial tutorials for embroidery and cross stitching from Shanon Downey.

For your library...

Do you collect crafting books? Check out a page of various cross stitching books: how-to's, classic designs, subversive designs, feminist-based patterns, miniature designs, and trendy and traditional designs.

Sewing a Journal with a Sewing Machine

Dana from Made Everyday has a fun tutorial on sewing paper journals. She uses a standard sewing machine and regular sewing thread. She shows you how to make a simple journal with a card stock cover, how to add pockets to a journal, how to sew with a decorative plastic sheet, how to make rounded corners, and how to add leather ties and elastic.

Note: Before you dive into sewing paper with a machine, you might want to test different stitch lengths to see which is the best for the paper you plan to use.

Journal-Making Supplies

Need supplies to make your own journals? Below is a list of arts and crafts items that are great additions to a maker's nook or studio. [Some of the links below are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a commission, at no additional cost to you.  As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.] 

Free Art Images

There are many ways to get free images to print out and use in arts and crafts projects. For creating a journal, you could use a favorite painting or print image for your journal cover, special pockets, or inside pages. Use them as section separators, or add text and images on top of them.

Click on the links below to discover what you can print out and use:

Want more inspiration and choices for your journal? Find some wonderful arts and crafts supplies and ideas at the Blick Art Store and Joann Fabrics. Or click on the images below to purchase on Amazon. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases (at no extra cost to you). For more about affiliates, please read our disclosure.

Redefining Cross-Stitching

After making a cross stitch present for her mother, Emma McKee was drawn to the technique and compelled to do more. So, she taught herself the cross-stitch process, including how to create a pattern from an idea and sketches.

Emma has made her mark on the art and craft of cross-stitching, putting her own spin on pieces which incorporate what gives her inspiration - art, poetry, and music.

In a span of four years of focusing on creating cross-stitch items, she’s worked with a team of 7 – 14 Chicago-based artists, and has created close to 135 pieces, spending anywhere from 50 – 60 hours on making each item.

Watch the video below from Great Big Story to see what happened when she tweeted a photo of a jacket she cross-stitched, getting her start into making a living doing what she loves.

· Don't miss: You might like our blog posts American Crafters, Subway Yarn Bombing, and Altered Book Sculptures.

You can find books about subversive, feminist, mini-, and classic cross-stitching here. 

The Brooklyn Refinery is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more 

POPULAR POSTS

Storing Costumes in Boxes:

POPULAR POSTS

We see the embroidery design first taking shape as a drawing made on tracing paper, and then making its way to fabric stretched tightly on a frame via a paper and plastic stencil that’s been pricked with holes all along the drawn lines.

A liquid Chalk solution is applied to the pin-pricked plastic, and rubbed  through the tiny holes, making an outline of the drawing onto the fabric.

      · Don't miss: For the Love of Cross-Stitching, Soumak Weaving, Jacquard Weaving, and Tapestry Weaving.  Find best-selling Embroidery books here. [As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases (at no extra cost to you).]

Embroidery thread is held underneath the fabric, while a thin hook is poked through the top, catching and pulling the thread and bringing it through to the top of the piece, making a loop.

Each new loop is pulled through the previous one, making a continuous chain-stitch, following the dotted outline of the drawing.

After the ari work is finished, the embroiderer holds a piece of wood on the underside of the fabric as they use a wooden hammer to pound the threads flat on the upper side.

           · You might find helpful: Crafting Resources.

Screen grabs from the Victoria and Albert Museum's video How Was it Made? Ari Embroidery.

POPULAR POSTS

BeBe Bold’s video instructions below are helpful in learning an easy way to create a Boro Bag. To get a download of Bebe Bold's pattern, you’ll need to go to the website and purchase it. 

If you’re a thrifty crafter or on a budget, you can follow directions, including a free pattern, from Indigobird Design, or from Fabrice Editions to make a loop bag, and adapt it to be a boro bag. 

SASHIKO, JAPANESE QUILTING, MENDING, and SLOW STITCHING BOOKS

POPULAR POSTS

FOR YOUR LIBRARY

POPULAR POSTS

Sashiko Stitching

As a larger piece of clothing wore down to the point of no longer being salvageable with sashiko stitching, it would be repurposed into smaller useable items.

Work jackets and half jackets were repurposed as shoe insoles, floor cushions, quilts, bedcovers, futon covers, drawstring bags, rice bags, door curtains, and cleaning cloths. This repurposing and non-wastefulness comes from the idea of "mottainai," meaning "too good to waste."

Some sashiko-stitched clothes and household items have been passed down for generations, sometimes within the same family.

Thrift and sustainability in maintaining home textiles transposed into an aesthetic that is appreciated and celebrated today. 

For more curated books and crafting supply suggestions, explore our Crafting Resources, The Brooklyn Refinery Shop, and our Materials Source List.

Sashiko Stitching was published by thebrooklynrefinery.com April, 2018.

POPULAR POSTS

Giving Back: Sewing, Knitting, and Crocheting for Charities

Below are some Charitable Organizations that look for sewers, knitters, and crocheters for their giving programs. Some of the programs have specific needs, and they’ll supply you with directions and free patterns.

Some have specific time frames for delivering the handmade items to their offices. So, be sure to check charitable websites for any particular instructions.

All will want you to use clean yarn from a smoke-free environment.

If you’ve got some spare time for making something to donate, I hope you find an organization and cause that matches the time and effort you can put in.

You might make new friends along the way!

You can read about the social platform for knitters, or you can head straight over to Ravelry and search for a group to join. Or, perhaps you'd like to start your own by reaching out to knitters in your locale.

If you're in the UK, you can search for a group near you on the UK Hand Knitting site.

If you'd like to put some time and effort into charitable craftivism, check out sewmamasew's curated list of charitable programs, Mental Floss's list, and visit the website links below to find a good fit for how you'd like to help out. 

List of suggested charities

1 Million Pillowcase Challenge lists charities to contact to see if they need pillowcases for their organizations. All People Quilt offers free pillowcase patterns for this challenge. Be sure to scroll down to the bottom of the page for access to all the .pdf pillowcase patterns.

afghans for Afghans  "...is a humanitarian and educational people-to-people project that sends hand-knit and crocheted blankets and sweaters, vests, hats, mittens, and socks to the beleaguered people of Afghanistan. This grassroots effort is inspired by Red Cross volunteers who made afghans, socks, slippers, and other items for soldiers and refugees during World Wars I and II and other times of crisis and need. Read about the Red Cross knitting tradition.”

Binky Patrol "...is an all-volunteer non-profit organization dedicated to making blankets and giving them away to children who are ill abused in shelters, hospitals, and experiencing any type of trauma. Blankets can be sewn, quilted, crocheted, knitted, or tied." 

Bundles of Love Charity  "...partners with community service agencies to assist Minnesota families in need by providing handmade baby clothing, bedding and basic care items for their newborns. Our vision is to gather communities to support a parent and newborn. We offer peace of mind for families and provide important, essential and practical supplies to show that someone cares.”

Care Wear "...is a nationwide group of volunteers who knit, crochet, and/or sew, providing handmade baby items directly to hospitals. All Care Wear items are distributed by hospital staff (free) to infants, children and their parents.”

Dressed in Hope "...is a charity whose goal is to help impoverished girls around the world. We recognize the critical need that must be met in order for these girls—not only to survive—but to thrive as well. By sewing and delivering simple, hand-made dresses and small "pocket dolls" to these deserving girls, we send the message that all girls are worthy of love and respect.

Hats 4 the Homeless “...distributes knitted goods to the homeless population in New York City every winter. You don’t have to be in NYC to donate; they have an address where you can mail your goods. It’s not just hats, either — they’ll also take scarves, socks, and gloves.”

Knitting 4 Peace – Women 4 Women “The tangible items we create are personally delivered to women, teens, children, infants, and families in global areas of conflict, including our own neighborhoods and countries around the world.”

Knots of Love “Our mission at Knots of Love is to warm the hearts and heads of those experiencing traumatic hair loss. Our volunteers lovingly hand-knit and crochet caps for those struggling with treatment-induced hair loss and tiny Neonatal blankets for fragile new lives in incubators. Knots of Love caps and blankets server as a constant reminder to the patient and their loved ones that they are not alone. All Knots of Love handmade creations are distributed free of charge to hospitals and treatment centers throughout the country -- and most importantly at no cost to the patient receiving the caps.”

Milk Bags Unlimited (Canada) “The milk bag mats offer people without beds, an invaluable, durable and washable alternative to sleeping on the often cold and damp ground. Not only can these milk-bag mats provide comfort as a bedding alternative, but have been used by health-care professionals as a make-ready substitute for an operating bed/table where resources are scarce. It takes approximately 400 milk bags to make an adult sized mat. For quite some time, all across Canada, a community of volunteers, schools, churches and businesses have been collecting milk bags. The milk bags used are the ones that hold the three smaller bags of milk. The bags are cut into strips, tied together, and then woven or crocheted into mats.”

Mother Bear Project "...is dedicated to providing comfort and hope to children affected by HIV/AIDS in emerging nations, by giving them a gift of love in the form of a hand-knit or crocheted bear. The simple gift of a hand-knit bear with a tag signed by the knitter has touched children with the message that they are unconditionally loved.”

Project Linus  “...Provide(s) love, a sense of security, warmth and comfort to children who are seriously ill, traumatized, or otherwise in need through the gifts of new, handmade blankets and afghans, lovingly created by volunteer “blanketeers.”

Quilts of Valor  "cover(s) service members and veterans touched by war with comforting and healing Quilts of Valor.”

Red Scarf Project “Foster Care to Success helps young adults who have aged out of the government support system. FCS helps to support approximately 5,000 young people every year with various programs – scholarships for college, care packages, academic and personal mentoring, and help with readiness skills for internships and employment. They receive financial support, career coaching, and care packages. Each year, The Red Scarf Project sends Valentine’s Day care packages to foster students in need of encouragement as they graduate from high school and move on to college. Nothing shows someone you care like a handmade item, even if that someone is a stranger. See the red scarf guidelines and start knitting or crocheting a scarf for the next cycle of care packages, then browse Craftsy’s knitted neckwear and crocheted neckwear patterns to find one you’d like to make.”

Snuggles Project "...is well-known as a multi-beneficial project. The first, and most important, benefit is to the animals. After being given a Snuggle, a frightened and/or difficult to handle animal is able to become calm. This calming effect gives the animal and the caregiver time to learn how to handle the situation. We believe that this calming effect has saved the lives of many newly-sheltered animals. The Snuggles Project remains a very popular program of Hugs Society (formerly Hugs for Homeless Animals). Its popularity is worldwide. People from all around the world make Snuggles and donate them to their local animal shelters and rescues. Since its inception we have provided more than a million Snuggles to shelter animals around the world. And that number continues to grow.”

Teddies for Tragedies “When tragedy strikes somewhere in the world, the first members of society to suffer are the children. Teddies for Tragedies works to alleviate some of the stress that prevails when these catastrophes occur. The simple gift of a hand-knitted teddy bear sends these children the message that someone in the world cares for them and that they are loved. You can help. Volunteers are the essential ingredient of Teddies for Tragedies. Follow our patterns to crochet or knit a bear or bears, and then send them to us. If you can’t crochet or knit, sew a bag or bags for the bears, or help us with donations of yarn and stuffing.”

The Dulaan Project “Dulaan is the Mongolian word for warm. This project seeks to inspire the generous spirit of the knitting community to help meet the needs of Mongolia’s impoverished people. Mongolia’s winter is extreme. It rarely gets above freezing temperatures on winter days, and can often plunge to -40°F at night. The capital city, Ulaanbaatar, is the coldest capital in the world. Warm, well-made clothing can allow a child to go to school or an adult to go to work; restore a sense of dignity; and, in some cases, literally save a life. This project was started in 2005 at the height of FIRE’s aid distribution project.  

POPULAR POSTS

Faith Rim at The Mod Girl shares a tutorial on making a no-sew pillow cover, cutting strips into the edges of two t-shirts and then tying the strips together to create a front and back for the cover.

4. Memory Scarf

What a great way to keep your favorite memories alive, and close. You can share your sentiments while keeping warm! Makezine has a tutorial for a T-Shirt Memory Scarf.

This would be a great project for two friends to do together, sharing parts of t-shirts so they end up with similar scarves.

5. Tote, Beach, or Grocery Bags

This project is so fast and simple that it would be a great beginner’s sewing project. You re-purpose a t-shirt by cutting off the sleeves, cutting a scoop at the neckline, and stitching the front and back panels together at the hem. It can easily be folded up to tote around until you need to use it, and then it’s super stretchy for conveniently carrying groceries or gear home.

And...

If you prefer watching video tutorials, check out The Smithsonian American Art Museum's video Handi-hour Crafting: T-shirt Bags.

Burda Style takes the t-shirt bag idea and expands on it. They show how to make a Net Bag DIY project, where making horizontal snips at regular intervals creates a super-stretchy bag that can help you de-sand your clothes at the beach, or give your veggies some breathing room.

It flips the previous t-shirts so that the hemmed bottom of the t-shirt becomes the top of the carry bag. With a curved cut and stitch, you’ve got a chic bag. 

POPULAR POSTS

From Old to New Again

But when clothes finally lose their oomph – their youthful elasticity - and are beyond repair, then we can repurpose them. We can turn them into patches for pants, fabric for quilts, or even yarn to be knitted, crocheted, or woven into a rug.

You loved your clothes for their color or pattern, or because they reminded you of a time and place. So, why not give them another life in another form?

I’ve sourced fabric from all but one of these:

• From around our house
• From friends and family
• Thrift stores
• Church sales
• Auctions
• Swap meets
• Craigslist
• Local offer-ups
• Curb alerts
• Online auctions
• Library sales
• Estate sales
• Flea markets
• Police auctions

Okay, not police auctions. I was just kidding about that one.

Church sales, flea markets, auctions, and thrift stores are American as apple pie. Our thrifty ancestors took old wool blankets and turned them into hooked rugs, and turned old shirts and sheets into quilts and rag rugs.

A DIY Mindset in Action

While recycling and repurposing aren’t uniquely American, it seems like hunting down bargains and, at the same time, keeping items from going to the incinerator is a pastime that many of us are passionate about.

Below is a video about a thrifty knitter who sources for yarn at thrift stores—but he’s looking for sweaters, not balls of yarn. I don't think anyone would be able to tell that the sweaters he knits started out as sweaters picked up for pennies on the dollar. Watch the video and see if you agree with me!

BOOKS

Below are some books about repurposing wool and cotton into new projects. Click through to see the books on Amazon. [As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases (at no extra cost to you).]

POPULAR POSTS

STEP 6

The final step is edging your quilt, adding a bias strip to all four sides, and mitering the corners.

Let's look at a couple of super-helpful videos that show how to finish a quilt, both from Rebecca Mae Designs:

How to make bias binding. 

How to bind a quilt.

Time to pat yourself on the back – especially if your mitered corners turned out well! You did it! 

You're a quilter now, and I'm super-proud of you! You want to make another one, right?

Links to Free patterns and Instructions

You might want to try a simple 9 patch block quilt next, or a simple square quilt with half square triangles, featured on Sew Mama Sew.   

How about a quicker project, like a baby quilt, from Diary of a Quilter?  

Free downloadable quilt patterns and instructions can be found at Fabrice Editions and AccuQuilt.

There’s another way to create a quilt, called Quilt As You Go. Rather than creating the quilt top, and then putting it together with the middle and bottom layers, you create the three layers for sections of your quilt, and then join the separate quilt blocks into a whole.

Abby Holverson has uploaded a free tutorial for Instructables, called Quilt-As-You-Go.  Thank you, Abby!

Below are some super-helpful quilting books that will help you get started. Click through to Amazon for more information. [As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases (at no extra cost to you).]

Next, check out How to Make a Quilt from Fabric Scraps and Sashiko Stitching. See some amazing quilts we've pinned to our Quilting Pinterest Board.

POPULAR POSTS