Maryville woman sews memories into pillows

MARYVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) -- "One of the beauties of this business is really being able to be a part of someone else's life, to hear their life stories," said Barb Schneider, owner of In Stitches Memory Quilts.

Schneider told Local 8 News reporter Chynna Greene that she began trying to make a difference in people's lives by keeping their memories alive.

"Something tangible to hold when that special person isn't in their life anymore,"

Schneider said.

She calls them "Memory Pillows." The pillows aren't made out of any fabric; instead, they're made out of old shirts that usually belong to a loved one who's passed.

"Some people save things for a long time and then I'll make them years after, or sometimes they're ready right away and I'll do it within months of someone passing,"

Schneider said.

"Everybody is different in their grieving and when they're ready to do something like that."

Schnieder said she often sews a message on the shirts she uses, something that the person who once wore it would be remembered by.

"Shortly after my father passed away, my mother had give it to me as a gift,"

said Steven Brookshire, who was gifted one of the pillows.

Brookshire told Local 8 News, the pillow meant more than a picture ever could.

"It's a piece of him. You can go out and buy a picture frame, he didn't touch that frame,"

Brookshire said.

"This is something he actually wore, he buttoned every one of these buttons up on this pillow himself."

Schnieder said she enjoys making the pillows, but she also gets something out of it.

"To have people trust me is such an honor because they're handing over things that are irreplaceable to them, it's a real honor to be a part of that,"

Schnieder said.

The Memory Pillows cost around $40 each, and you can find them online here.