The Ultimate Guide to Memorial Quilts

By: Andrea Funk on July 9th, 2015

How Much Does it Cost to Have a Memory Quilt Made? What is the cost of a Memory Quilt?

MEMORIAL QUILTS  |  HOW MUCH DO T-SHIRT QUILTS COST

First of all,I found this article to be interesting. I am in the process of completing  four Memorial Quilts for a client and her children using their beloved father’s clothing.Ann

memory quilt
Memory quilt made from tee shirts

First,on the Internet memory quilts range in price from $100 to over $1,000. Why such a large price range? However,there are a number of factors that go into the cost of making a quilt. Here are a number of cost factors that go into the pricing of a memory quilt.

Materials

There are 3 basic materials that go into all quilts. There is a quality range for each type of material. The price of your quilt will relate to the quality of  materials used. The higher the quality the higher the cost.  In other words,inexpensive materials create an inexpensive quilt.

Fabric

To help think about fabric, compare it to the thread count of bed sheets. For example,the lower the thread count, the cheaper the fabric. Polyester fabric with a low thread count is inexpensive. 100% cotton with a high thread count is much more expensive. For a high quality fabric for durability of wear and use, cotton should be used. Similarly,the backing and binding of the quilts will need extra fabric.

Batting

Secondly,batting  is used in the middle of a quilt. It comes in a variety of quality levels  from thin 100% polyester to high quality  cotton batting. Polyester batting tears easily, it bunches up and will poke out the back of the quilt.  However,cotton battings are the best choice. Yet,they will cost two to three times more than polyester batting.

Thread

Moreover,all quilts use thread for sewing the blocks together and quilting. On the other hand,there are cheap threads that won’t withstand time and use.Quality threads are truly worth the cost. So,a less expensive  quilt is made with a lower quality thread.


Look here for more information on memory quilts.

http://Memorial Quilt Buyers Guide


Labor

memory quilt
Memory quilt for a little boy

In addition, another cost that is calculated into the price of a quilt is labor. Minimum wage is about $8 an hour. Typically, minimum wage is reserved for entry level and unskilled workers. However,an accomplished quilt makers are not unskilled. Above all they usually, they should have over five years or more of quilt making experience .

Skill

Similarly, it takes skill to make a memory quilt. If it didn’t take any skill or experience, you would make it yourself.  Highly skilled and talented quilters make the nicest memory quilts. Furthermore,this means that their hourly rate will be much higher than minimum wage. If you want to only pay minimum wage to a quilter, expect an entry-level unskilled quilter to attempt making your quilt. If you value your clothing and memories you are putting into your memory quilt, an inexpensive quilt should scare you!

Time

How long does it take to make a memory quilt? In short,this depends on a number of factors including quilt style, complexity and craftsmanship. A low-cost quilt will take less time than a more expensive quilt. However,this means that the low-cost quilt will have a simple design without any complexities.  The workmanship may be questionable.

The Worth a Quilter Places on His or Her Work.

If a quilter underprices their work, they are telling you up front that they do not think that their time and skills are good enough to charge more. Think about what this tells you. If someone does not find value in his or her work, will you?

Style

memory quilt

In short,there are two basic styles of quilts – those that are made in columns and rows and those that are designed by an artist.Our Too Cool puzzle style is a creative work. The number of steps and the amount of time it takes to make each style is vastly different.

Traditional

A traditional style memorial quilt is made from blocks in columns and or rows and the blocks are all one size. This makes the project very easy and involves very little planning and time to layout.

The  Too Cool Style

A memory quilt made with many different sizes and shaped blocks involve a lot of consideration, planning, math and other time consuming steps. This style of quilt will take 10 times or longer than a traditional quilt.

To summarize,these and other considerations are indicators of the quality of a quilt. They also greatly influence the price of the quilt.  For example, someone with great skill and artistry using cheap material might make a good looking quilt. But the quilt still has been made with cheap material that will look cheap and not wear well. Conversely, a quilt made with high quality materials that is poorly made is still a poorly made quilt.  You want a quilt that is made from high quality materials by a skilled and artistic quilter. This quilt will be a family heirloom worthy of the cost.

Look carefully at the cost of memory quilts. Be sure to know what you are paying for. A quilt that costs only $100 is probably going to be a disappointment.

To learn more about having a memory quilt made, please feel free to download our Memorial Quilt Guide. It has information that will help you through the process of having a memorial quilt made.

Memory quilt From mom's clothing
Memorial quilt From mom’ s clothing
 memory quilts
group of memory quilts

 https://annbaldwinmayartquilts.com/2021/10/something-about-memory-quilts/

https://annbaldwinmayartquilts.com/2020/11/memory-quilts-i-have-made/

By Ann

Ann Baldwin May was born and raised in Palo Alto, California. She received her education from University of California, Irvine (History, BA Elementary Teaching Credential, Masters in Teaching Spanish) Her first quilting class was in 1975. She retired in 2012 after working 30 years as a bilingual teacher and Bilingual Resource Teacher in Watsonville. After making over 300 bed quilts, she turned her attention to art quilts. Ann is passionate about using repurposed materials often from the San Francisco Design Center. She has won several awards for her work. Kaiser Permanente has purchased five pieces for their Santa Cruz County facilities. Her work has been juried into shows all over the country including San Francisco and Chicago. She participates in the juried Santa Cruz County Open Studios Art Tour. She is married and has two daughters. Ann Baldwin May Santa Cruz Art Center, 1001 Center St.#4 Santa Cruz, CA 95060 baldwinmay49@yahoo.com 831.345.1466 annbaldwinmayartquilts.com Facebook- AnnBaldwinMayArtQuilts@annbaldwinmay Instagram-annbaldwinmay

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