T-shirt quilts are memory map
Staff writer
The T-shirt quilts Marion mother Nicki Case crafted for her sons, Wil and Grif, were a labor of love and a testament to the fact that a mother’s work is never done.
“The quilts are like letter jackets,” Case said. “Each got what I call a baseball quilt and a senior quilt.”
Along with keeping her boys warm, shirts used in the quilts serve as a memory map by documenting their achievements in sports and activities throughout junior high and high school.
“I had to use extra shirts that I order because the boys’ shirts were all torn up and dirty from use,” she said. “They were birthday and graduation presents.”
Each quilt has about 20 to 30 shirts in it made with Marion Warriors colors. One quilt even has pockets because it is made from hooded sweatshirts.
She embroidered portions of quilts with game scores, game patches, and notable achievements in each sport, after which friend and fellow quilter Debbie Buchholz finished them.
Shirt squares document milestones like Grif’s 2014 league championship in baseball or the prom at which Wil was named prom king.
Currently she is working on a quilt made from a surplus of T-shirts and denim.
Case said she started making quilts about 10 years ago when her oldest son, Wil, was 12. She has more quilts planned.