Framed Quilt Blocks: Miniature Patchwork with Upcycled T-shirts

Closeup image of framed quilt made with t-shirts in a sort of wonky courthouse steps style in blues and pink and red

Making and crafting is how I show my love the best, but it’s easy for me to get bogged down in overly-ambitions holiday projects. This year, I’ve made a bunch of framed, up-cycled, patchwork art pieces that fill me with joy instead of draining me of it. I first encountered framed quilt blocks from the brilliant quilter (and Creativebug artist!) Heidi Parkes in her fantastic, on-demand framed quilts class. Additionally, I took a class with quilting improv artist Sherri Lynn Wood – also a Creativebug instructor – and learned how to work with T-shirts. This tutorial is a distillation of what I’ve gathered from them but I encourage you to check out their on-demand classes for a deeper dive.

image of various framed pieces of art as well as a fram with the art cut out of it

The first time you make a framed quilt block it will seem as if I am exaggerating about how quickly they come together because the first one does, in fact, take 10x longer than any subsequent one you’ll make. There are fiddly bits (the corners) and specialized tools (a staple gun) but once you’ve cleared those hurdles, it’s a breeze. Including the time it took to stop and take photos, this sample took me less than two hours to complete.

Materials to Make a Framed Quilt Block with Upcycled T-shirts

image of materials needed to make framed quilts such as a framed piece of art, thrifted tshirts and sweaters, scissors, staple gun

Two or three t-shirts headed for the scrap bin or any other knit fabric
Staple gun and staples
Wooden framed canvas, blank or whatever’s available to you
Scissors or an X-acto blade
Serger or sewing machine with a zig zag stitch
Screwdriver to remove the hanging hardware if there is any
Polyester thread

Prepare Frame

photo collage of various stages of taking apart framed art to preserve the wooden frame

To prepare your frame you’ll need to tear off any paper backing, then cut around the canvas so that the wood remains covered but that the image is absent. I’ve tried yanking out the staples and removing the canvas entirely but that can be super fussy and it doesn’t seem to make much of a difference. Be sure to remove any hanging hardware and keep it to use later.

Cut and Piece The Fabric

image of blue strips fabric on a white table

I like to use scissors for imprecise strips because I think that makes the final product more interesting, but you’re welcome to use your rotary cutter instead if you’d prefer. Cut your material into strips about two inches wide and you likely won’t need more than a few strips per shirt. I think it’s really fun to incorporate a bit of velour for the interesting texture or a piece of patterned fabric for visual interest, but play with what you already have on hand. You’ll then begin piecing as you see fit, building a square that matches the size of your frame or is a tiny bit smaller – stretching it to fit is part of the intrigue!

image of progression of a piece of blue patchwork made of tshirt strips slowly growing bigger in 10 photos

I made a shaggy Courthouse Steps version of the Log Cabin block but for freewheeling improvisation, you won’t find a better guide than Sherri Lynn Wood. She has three patchwork improv classes with Creativebug and while she uses woven fabrics instead of T-shirts, the skills you’ll learn in those classes can absolutely be applied here. Be sure to use a serger or a zig-zag stitch so that the seams can stretch.

Attach Block to Frame

images of a blue patchwork tshirt quilt block behind a wood frame and in front of it

Flip your frame over so the wrong side of the block is facing you and staple in the center of one edge. Repeat on the facing edge, then on the other two sides. It’ll look a bit wonky at this point and that’s just fine! Then I work the corners by folding over the point until it touches the inside of the frame, making a sort of miter with the adjacent little flaps, and stapling them down with one staple (though if you don’t give both edges of fabric in the first go, just add a second staple – no big deal).

image of fingers holding down the mitered corner of a framed quilt

You’ll then finish stapling along each edge. Use a ruler to determine the center of your piece and reattach the hardware (you can screw directly through the fabric but be aware it may start to twist). And that is IT! Heidi’s class has the best tips and tricks for the stapling process and her corners are much cleaner but for a quick-and-dirty version, this should work just fine.

image of a hand holding a pen to mark the center of a framed quilt to install hanging hwardware

If you yank on the strips of T-shirt material you might be able to get pieces long enough to use as a ribbon in your gift wrapping. And once you get the hang of this process and feel more comfortable hacking up T-shirts, framed quilt blocks can be a really beautiful project for a special article of clothing or a commemorative piece.