When she’s not taking care of medical/surgical patients at Northside Hospital-Forsyth, Kyle Offermann can be found sewing in her home studio. A nurse for almost seven years, she also owns a new business, Just T-shirt Quilts.
Working at a hospital and running a business at the same time can get hectic. Last Christmas Eve, for example, Offermann delivered a quilt to a customer at 3 p.m. and then rushed out to buy gifts for her family. Then she worked at the hospital on Christmas Day.
Offermann says she wouldn’t have it any other way.
“I’ve been sewing all my life, but had never tried quilting until I took a class about the same time I started nursing,” said Offermann, RN/BSN. “While traditional piece-quilting didn’t appeal to me, I really had fun making T-shirt quilts, which have fewer pieces and more meaning for customers. I started out making quilts for myself and my friends and even had one accepted into a quilting show.”
Offermann enjoys turning T-shirts into treasured keepsakes.
“Everyone has a stash of old T-shirts from sports teams, college, concerts, events or places they’ve visited,” she said. “They don’t wear them anymore, but they don’t throw them away either, because of the memories. I can turn them into something both practical and artistic.”
She describes her work of turning old clothing into something useful as “up-cycling.”
“I began marketing my talent at craft shows and tennis tournaments, since I’m an avid tennis player,” Offermann said. “I spent so much time explaining the process to people through e-mail that I finally created a website [www.JustTshirtquilts .com] that would let people see examples and customize their own orders.”
Each customer gets his or her own page on the site and can track progress until the quilt is finished.
The process begins with customers choosing 20 to 30 favorite T-shirts, depending on whether they want a quilt, a throw or a wall-hanging. It doesn’t matter if the shirts are worn; Offermann can reinforce them in the quilting process.
“Choosing which shirts is often the hardest part for the customer, but then I guide them through the choices of colors and fabrics that can be used for the borders, backing and binding. Each piece is completely individual,” she said.
Offermann can also include other pieces of clothing — such as nylon jackets — and flat memorabilia into the quilts. One mother recently ordered a quilt for her son’s college graduation. Offermann is incorporating part of a jumpsuit from space camp and a photo of his favorite pet into the quilt.
“The human history component is what I love about what I do,” she said. “I really get to know my customers.
“When I’m sewing, I feel like I’m doing something good for them, and that’s rewarding. It’s a lot like nursing in that respect, doing good for someone doesn’t feel like work.”
Offermann used to work in sales and marketing, but with jobs scarce in a down economy she decided to pursue a more stable career. A hospital-based tuition stipend with a two-year obligation to work there helped pay for her education at Kennesaw State University.
“I worked as a technician first to see what the nursing field was like, and knew it would be a good decision,” Offermann said.
Since she graduated, Offermann has worked for hospitals, a physician’s office, a telemedicine company and done contract nursing training for patients on blood thinners.
“A lot of nursing is about relationship- building and education, and that helps me in developing my quilting business,” Offermann said. “Most of my orders come through referrals.”
Whether Offermann is helping a patient or a customer, including them in the process produces the best outcomes. “I do a lot of collaboration in both careers,” she said.
Clients appreciate that she is a nurse.
“Entrusting their personal items to me — knowing that I’m going to cut and rework them into something else — requires a high level of trust. They want to know that their treasures will be in good hands, and nurses have a good reputation for being trustworthy,” she said.
Even as her business grows, Offermann has no plans to leave nursing.
“I invested a lot of time and effort to get here, and I enjoy taking care of patients. I’ll always be a nurse,” she said.
Those who want to see some of Offermann’s creations can attend the Peachtree Health and Fitness Expo in Atlanta on July 2-3.
