How often have you cursed about those t-shirts gathering in the back of your closet? You know, the ones that have sentimental value and just cannot be disposed of, but will never be worn again. For many, the t-shirt is more than a simple garment. It is a meaningful souvenir from a special time or place — a memory that represents a major accomplishment like running a marathon or playing the finals is a college basketball tournament. It signifies belonging to a club or sorority, or was bought as a souvenir during a weak moment in Venice, Tokyo or Bondi Beach. When the wearer has outgrown the shirt (physically or mentally), but cannot bare to part with it, stitch’T offers the perfect way to give new life to old shirts otherwise doomed for the Salvation Army. Although it involves some cutting.
Stitch-T was started in 2004 by husband and wife team Ariela and Jason Friedman and has since then helped thousands of people all across the country turn closet clutter into cozy quilts. The concept is simple, send them your old t-shirts and about six weeks later they will send you a quilt made from those tees. Although they claim to have seen it all, concert, travel, sports and college t-shirts top the list of what they most commonly receive.
The Friedmans say that stitch’T was born out of a necessity — an excess of t-shirts gathered over the years, countless cluttered drawers and limited closet space in NYC called for a clever solution to a common problem. The team at stitch’T began creating one of a kind, handmade pieces (quilts, pillows, etc.) from vintage tees in an effort to clear the clutter and hold on to precious t-shirt treasures.
“All of us at stitch’T have our own custom keepsakes made from our collections of t-shirts!,” says the Friedmans. To me, one of the most interesting parts of this is how each quilt seems to tell a story of the owner. An “If you want to know me, look at my old tees” kind of thing.
For that special occasion that may be a bit badly planned, they do offer rush delivery options. However, be sure to consult with your special someone before raiding their closets and mailing tees off, because obviously there is no exchange policy.
