Business & Merchant

Last Updated on Wednesday, 12 October 2016 19:44

By Christen M. Stroh

Sheila Schmeltz didn’t start out sewing for others; her passion for sewing initially began with sewing her own clothes and then, eventually, clothes for her children. But now, Sheila’s time is spent making unique creations for her clients that are designed to preserve memories and createnew ones.

Sheila owns SEW MANY CREATIONS, LLC, a business she runs out of her home in Mt. Lebanon. Memory quilts, t-shirt quilts, and regular quilts are the focus of much of what she does, but she also crafts specialty items for the home, including placemats, table runners, and items for babies and children, including burp cloths, bibs, receiving blankets and pillowcases.

Sheila’s career path hasn’t always involved a needle and thread. Though she’s been sewing as a hobby since junior high – using first her grandfather’s treadle machine before graduating to an electric free-arm machine in 1972 – she opted to earn a living as an elementary and high school math teacher.

The transition from sewing to quilting came about when Sheila retired from teaching in 2004. To fill the time recovery, she took quilting classes at Piecing It Together, a North Hills quilt shop. “I really loved quilting instantly,” she said. “I was able to use my math – there’s geometry and math in quilting.”

Sheila joined the Three Rivers Quilters, a guild formed to promote quilting in the community and offer their skills to charity. Each month, they meet in Baldwin, and each year, they host a quilt show in the spring. Sheila’s first show was in 2009, and from there, she decided to launch her business. In addition to selling her quilts at craft shows, she has donated to a number of charitable organizations.

Quilting is a complex process. Once the design is conceived, fabrics are chosen, cut and sewn together to implement it. At this stage is a single layer of material. It is then sewn together with “batting” (cotton or polyester thick cloth) and another layer of material called a backing. These three layers, (the quilt) may be sewn by hand, a long and tedious process or more commonly, by machine. The tacking (quilting) together of the three layers often incorporates its own design, complementary to the subject of the pieced design on the front.

To make her tee shirt quilts, Sheila pre-washes the shirts to be used, backs them with a stabilizer so they don’t stretch anymore, uses steam to set them, and then cuts the blocks so that they’re even. She then incorporates a design fabric (sashing) – strips of fabric that go between the blocks.

“I use quality fabrics. That's something that's hard for people to understand – the complexity of the workmanship that goes into it,” said Sheila, noting that there are internet companies that make quilts and t-shirt quilts, but what they provide often doesn’t include top-quality materials or batting and backing behind the squares.
At SEW MANY CREATIONS, LLC, tee-shirt quilts cost about $20/block, which includes quilting, batting, sewing and stabilizing. Appliqués and embroidery are extra.

To view Sheila’s work, visit her website at www.sew-many-creations.com. To get in touch with her regarding a specialty item or with a request, call her at 412-279-5138 (home) or 412-656-5138 (cell).

Steeler Tee-shirt Quit

SEW MANY CREATIONS, LLC owner Sheila Schmeltz, made these two custom quilts from an assortment of Steeler Tee-shirts. A great way to display old shirts and a great gift for any Steelers fan!

Sheila Schmeltz

Sheila Schmeltz, adds some finishing touches on a customer's order from the studio in her home where she operates her business, SEW MANY CREATIONS, LLC.