Race Shirt Quilts

[Ariel484]

I just received my AMAZING race shirt quilt in the mail and wanted to share!

I have gotten quilts made from 2 different companies and thought it may be helpful to post mini reviews of each...

Background: I don't wear race shirts almost at all - I have way too many running clothes and too many t-shirts, but I can't get myself to donate my runDisney race shirts (I have gotten better about donating shirts from local races - I'm all about the school of thought that I'd pay a few bucks less to register if it meant I just didn't get a shirt, but I digress)...so what to do? Make them into a quilt! Or, in my case - pay someone else to make them into a quilt.

My first quilt was made in 2014 (I CANNOT sew) - my big regret with this one was adding in shirts from local races, even if they weren't that meaningful to me (though the shirt from my first-ever race is there - I'm glad of that). Second quilt, like I said, I just received today - it is only Disney.

So, the two companies I used...

Project Repat
I got this one through Groupon, and for the size I chose, it ended up being a little less than $100.

After receiving my order, they sent me a large prepaid envelope so that I could send them my shirts. I also laid them out and took a picture for them to use when assembling the quilt...I remember being annoyed that I had to go to Target to print out a physical picture and that I couldn't just email it to them (lazy much?!). I also cut the backs and some of the sleeves off of my shirts to get them to fit into the envelope more easily - I didn't love that part.

I think it took maybe 2-3 weeks for my quilt to come back to me:

It's not *really* a quilt - it has a fleece back (you choose a color, mine is grey) but no binding. The shirt squares are sewn together but aren't actually quilted on, if that makes sense. But it has held up well over 3 years after multiple washings, and overall I am happy with it for what I paid - I just wish, like I said, I would have kept it to Disney races only!

So that was the first place I worked with...

 

[Ariel484]

Campus Quilts
Unfortunately, I didn't get a Groupon for this one - this place had a booth at this year's Princess Half Marathon expo, and I got a flier from them there. I'd been saving up my runDisney shirts for a few years and wanted to sort of "go big" and get a *real* quilt...I was nervous because the Campus Quilts website is a little primitive looking, and this quilt would cost significantly more than my 2014 quilt had. After reading reviews and checking with a few other places (which showed me that I was actually getting a decent deal for a *real* quilt through Campus Quilts), I bit the bullet and placed an order. They took a $100 deposit when I ordered and indicated that I'd get charged the rest once my quilt was ready for delivery.

This is part of why this quilt cost more - I had more shirts for this one (36 here vs. 20 for my Project Repat quilt):

The process for this one was a little different - instead of taking a picture, I laid out my shirts in a grid (above) and taped small numbers to each shirt to show where I wanted them to go. They had sent me a "kit" to print out to do this with a grid printed out, so I taped the numbers on my shirt to match up with the grid. I liked this better than taking the picture to print out, but they did say that I could also take a picture to email to them, so I ended up doing that as well. Like Project Repat, I had to pick a backing fabric color, and I chose blue navy cotton. I also picked a quilting pattern (I think the one I picked is "loop" or something).

One thing that I REALLY was not impressed with was that I had to pay to ship the shirts to them - it wasn't included in the price like it had been with Project Repat.

One thing that I was REALLY impressed with was their communication - they emailed me that they received my shirts and again when they were ready to start producing the quilt - at this time I was able to make any changes to my order (I originally wanted sashing - solid fabric in between each shirt - but ended up removing that from the order to reduce the cost). They emailed me again to say that some of my shirts were too thin and needed extra backing (I'm guessing the dri-fit ones), so I was charged an extra $26 for that (a little over $1 per shirt). Even though the cost per shirt was low, I was pretty annoyed about that - I don't remember reading that this was a possibility and it was sort of an unpleasant surprise...made me glad I'd taken off the sashing.

The timeline for this one was a little longer - I received the kit to lay out the shirts on May 26 and they received the shirts from me on May 30. They didn't actually start working on it until June 27, but once they did it was quick: it shipped to me on July 7 (this is when I was charged the remaining balance for the quilt) and I received it today.

And while I was annoyed about having to pay to ship to them, and the surprise $26 extra, I am THRILLED with the result.

(Cameo appearance from Mr. Ariel484, sort of).

Little dog for scale:

And the back, where you can see the "loop" quilting:

This one is a true quilt - you can feel there is binding in between the shirts and the navy cotton, and obviously it has the loop stitching. Another big con to this one, though, is that it's dryclean only! ARG! But I'm honestly so thrilled with how it came out that I can overlook that.

 

[Ariel484]

So, in summary...

Project Repat is cheaper, and the end product is machine washable. You may have to do a little work ahead of time (printing out a picture and possibly cutting up your shirts) but shipping the shirts to them is included in the price. You get something that is more like a blanket, and not exactly a quilt - this is what you want to snuggle up on the couch with.
EDIT: I just remembered my one big annoyance with Project Repat - their emails!! If you order from them and are put on their email list, they will send you lots of emails! It's both good and bad - good because they send a decent number of discount codes (frequently I get offers for 35% off), bad because I feel like they do send a lot of emails. And they also do it in a way that makes it seem like THIS IS A ONE-TIME DEAL YOU WILL NEVER SEE A DEAL THIS AMAZING AGAIN, and then a month later it's the same discount being offered.

Campus Quilts is pricier (but not as pricey as some other quilting places I had contacted). I liked their process of laying out the shirts the way I wanted a little better (sticking the numbers on and emailing the picture), but I didn't like that I had to pay to ship to them, and that I was unexpectedly charged a bit more due to thin shirts, and that the resulting quilt is dryclean only. But I'm so thrilled with the resulting product - it feels and looks really high-quality, and I like how there's the navy border around the edge...makes it look a little more "finished" and polished, I guess? This one is currently living on our guest room bed.

Hope this helps someone out! Now to start saving up shirts for my next quilt.
(Not sure which company I will go with if/when I do this again, but I would recommend both! Just know that neither are perfect.)

 

[cmarsh31]

I love it! I've saved a bunch of my kids' tee-shirts with plans to do this before they go to college - but with the RunDisney shirts it's just amazing!

 

[ZellyB]

Thanks for these reviews!! I'm thinking of doing this once I finish Dopey. Love the new quilt!

 

[minniebeth]

BEAUTIFUL! Thank you so very much for your review! I've been wanting to do this forever for my DS and have yet to pull the trigger. Campus Quilts is at a lot of the expos we attend and I have a little stack of their coupons. Now that I see their work I will not hesitate to go ahead and use them!

Can you give me an approx. idea of how they price the sashing? I'm sure it depends on the size/how many blocks/shirts there are- just trying to get an idea of the additional
cost for that?

 

[*DisneyDreamer]

Both quilts look great but the Campus Quilts one is amazing! I wish I had enough Disney shirts to make one of those. Although I do like wearing the shirts I have so I'd be torn about actually turning them into one.

 

[Ariel484]

BEAUTIFUL! Thank you so very much for your review! I've been wanting to do this forever for my DS and have yet to pull the trigger. Campus Quilts is at a lot of the expos we attend and I have a little stack of their coupons. Now that I see their work I will not hesitate to go ahead and use them!

Can you give me an approx. idea of how they price the sashing? I'm sure it depends on the size/how many blocks/shirts there are- just trying to get an idea of the additional
cost for that?

It was a little over $100 extra for the sashing! You're right that it depends on size though - it's $108 more for a 36-shirt quilt like mine, but if you have a 9-shirt quilt it's $27 extra...so $3 per shirt.

 

[OldSlowGoofyGuy]

I have gotten quilts made from 2 different companies...

Thanks for the review. I have 31 Peachtree shirts I have to do something with. A quilt is an option, although I'm think of just divesting myself of them. Less junk for my nephews to throw out...

 

[minniebeth]

It was a little over $100 extra for the sashing! You're right that it depends on size though - it's $108 more for a 36-shirt quilt like mine, but if you have a 9-shirt quilt it's $27 extra...so $3 per shirt.

Wow, that's a lot! and it looks great just the way it is! I would go with leaving it out too for that price. Thanks so much for sharing!

 

[Anisum]

Fantastic. I had a family friend make me one (still very price-y) of most of my high school and college t-shirts. It's probably somewhere between your two quilts in terms of backing. Mine has binding but no fancy loop stitching. I have worn when sitting on the couch most nights for four years and my only complaint is that some of the designs on the shirts have started to crack since many were really cheap giveaway shirts. I wish I had a picture but that's the downside of being at work. I'm definitely looking to get a race one done at some point and if my family friend can't do it I would definitely consider campus quilts.

 

[Ariel484]

Fantastic. I had a family friend make me one (still very price-y) of most of my high school and college t-shirts. It's probably somewhere between your two quilts in terms of backing. Mine has binding but no fancy loop stitching. I have worn when sitting on the couch most nights for four years and my only complaint is that some of the designs on the shirts have started to crack since many were really cheap giveaway shirts. I wish I had a picture but that's the downside of being at work. I'm definitely looking to get a race one done at some point and if my family friend can't do it I would definitely consider campus quilts.

I wish I had a friend to make one for me...or that I was talented enough to do one myself. I do get the cost, though - it seems like a lot of work!

 

[Barca33Runner]

They are both pretty rad. I am thinking of getting one with all of my Dopey shirts from the first 5 years (after I get to wear the new ones for a year or so).

 

[FFigawi]

I'm not sure what I'd do with a quilt, but it might be a good use of all the long sleeve Disney race shirts I never wear.

 

[Ariel484]

They are both pretty rad. I am thinking of getting one with all of my Dopey shirts from the first 5 years (after I get to wear the new ones for a year or so).

That would be pretty awesome!

I'm not sure what I'd do with a quilt, but it might be a good use of all the long sleeve Disney race shirts I never wear.

Yeah, I was so excited about getting the Campus Quilts one yesterday and then turned to Mr. Ariel484 and was just like, "ummm...where should I put it?" We have a quilt on our bed that was a wedding gift, and I didn't want to move that one...so guest room it is! Not sure where I'd put another one, to be honest.

 

[Ariel484]

I just remembered my one big annoyance with Project Repat (going to update my above post) - their emails!! If you order from them and are put on their email list, they will send you lots of emails!

It's both good and bad - good because they send a decent number of discount codes (frequently I get offers for 35% off), bad because I feel like they do send a lot of emails. And they also do it in a way that makes it seem like THIS IS A ONE-TIME DEAL YOU WILL NEVER SEE A DEAL THIS AMAZING AGAIN, and then a month later it's the same discount being offered.

 

[whaler8]

Cool quilts! The one from Campus Quilts is really nice and when I first looked at it I thought I saw some hidden Mickey's in the quilting loops on the backing! Maybe you have to squint or look real quick or have bad eyes like me…..

 

[Anisum]

I'm not sure what I'd do with a quilt, but it might be a good use of all the long sleeve Disney race shirts I never wear.

Wrap it around yourself like a cape. I thought that was obvious.

I wish I had a friend to make one for me...or that I was talented enough to do one myself. I do get the cost, though - it seems like a lot of work!

Yours was actually done faster by going through a company though. Mine took about 6 months. I agree though, I wish I was talented enough to do myself.

 

[FFigawi]

Wrap it around yourself like a cape. I thought that was obvious.

 

[GreatLakes]

I think I did almost all of local races on your first quilt. That FANtastic 4 miler was a lot of fun. It's too bad that was a one and done.