Work and Business

"Stitch'T" Up for Business

Jason Friedman and his girlfriend, Ariela Schulman, had too much of a good thing. They had 200 vintage T-shirts that were lovingly collected on their travels over the years, but nowhere to keep them.

“We were moving on from college into adulthood and did not want to throw away or donate our shirts,” Friedman said.

Then inspiration struck.

In January of 2004, Friedman and Schulman, both 25 years old, decided to start up a business dedicated to the idea of using new and old T-shirts without having to wear them, and they came up with stitch’T.

Stitch’T is their home-based company that blends T-shirts with different fabrics to make quilts and throws. There, they specialize in designing and manufacturing these handmade covers for everyday use.

“They’re useful to people who want to remember the places they went to,” Friedman said, “like a tee that says California on it. It’s a part of us. Everyone has a favorite T-shirt.”

“All throughout the past 10 years, vintage clothing has really been on the up and up,” Friedman said. “People spend a ridiculous amount of money on it. My Pink Floyd T-shirt [with black hammers, from their 1987 world tour] cost me $2. If you were to go on eBay, it would probably cost $40, and in New York, it may go for $60.”

The handmade throws and quilts range in size from 58-by-80 inches to 96-by-104 inches and cost $300 to $500.

Friedman and Schulman also will make them using a person’s own T-shirts. Customers can send the company 18 T-shirts for the regular-sized throw and 25 for the extra-large one. If customers do not have enough shirts to meet this requirement, the duo will find theme-related T-shirts to fulfill a person’s order at no additional expense.

“It’s good for a person,” Friedman said, “who has run 50 marathons over the years and wants to save all those shirts and memories.”

Domus Unaffected Living, located at 413 West 44th Street, carries some of stitch’T’s ready-made quilts and throws and accepts custom orders.

Friedman and Schulman work with a checkerboard pattern to create the look for their quilts and throws. They take the needed material from the T-shirt — the front and back logos, design patterns and chunks of leftover fabric. Each T-shirt selected is first machine washed and screened for blemishes and holes.

The chosen material is then matched with shades of one color or a variety of different colors. After designing the layout of the finished product, pins are placed on the patches to secure them in place.

Subsequently when the two finalize their plans, they pass on the product to a patternmaker. She hand sews each quilt and throw for the company. The entire process takes approximately four to six weeks per product.

“Finding the shirts is a result of a lot of shopping,” Friedman said. “We usually shop outside of the city because it’s really cheaper. We also go to local places in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.”

Besides looking for T-shirts that are comfortable to wear, Friedman said the two pay particular attention to labels.

“Labels indicate how old a T-shirt is,” Friedman said. “We never buy anything newer than 1992, maybe 1995, with funny pictures or logos of places people have visited. We look for designs that are not of the 2000s.”

The name for stitch’T came about because, as Schulman stated, “We wanted a clever, catchy name that represented the stitching together of the fabric. The “T” is a representation of the T-shirts that we use.”

The pair, who grew up in Manhattan, fell in love in high school and attended colleges near each other. Friedman went to Syracuse University to study architecture while Schulman went to Cornell University, where she majored in public relations. After graduating from college in 2002, the two moved back to the city and started their careers.

While Friedman and Schulman have not quit their day jobs just yet, stitch’T allows them to have a private hobby that pays a little extra on the side.

The company, thus far, has been slowly garnering attention. Up to now, they have had approximately 50 orders from all over the country, stated Friedman.

Friedman said, “We get orders for anyone as young as 8 years old to 60 years old. The best thing about the quilts, besides the look, is that it is simple. People can easily identify with a quilt as a way of preserving their memories.”

New York University students can receive a 25 percent discount at stitch’T by mentioning “NYU Livewire” when they call the company at (212) 860-7029.