Paul Pierce’s wife describes him a “bigger than life.” This man, who passed away at age 57 in 2012, was adored immensely. And, he adored so many things immensely in return: the Air Force, the Phillies, his motorcycle, his children and grandchildren, Hawaii, and, of course, his beloved wife, Diane.
Paul and his motorcyle.
I say all of this to explain why making a quilt out of Paul’s clothing is a huge undertaking. Usually, I can process a shirt for a T-shirt quilt in a bout an hour. For this project, each shirt is taking me 1.5 hours! But I am enjoying every minute of the process. As I spread out the shirts and determine which parts will be used in the quilt and the wall hangings, I think about Paul and his interests.
Each shirt needs to be cut along the neck, armholes and sides.
Because Paul was so large, he often wore Big Dog clothing, a line of shirts tailored to the very big and very tall. It makes sense, then, that I include a the size label from the neck of one of the shirts in the finished product.
The size label from a Big Dog shirt.
I love including the front buttons of a shirt in a quilt. Every time someone looks at the squares made from this part of the shirt, they will think about the person who buttoned and unbuttoned this garment again and again.
I don’t toss away the buttons…I use them in the squares of the quilt!
Sanctuary Weavings 