Have you ever....
 

got in the middle of a heated debate with quilters...never encountered anything like it. I've been quilting 30+ yrs, started by hand went on to machine and now longarm. Still do it all 3 ways.

The debate was on "are you really a quilter if you, "only sew the top" meaning that the top is sent out to be quilted by someone else.

Never heard this debated before, and it was heated!

Any thought on this ladies?

PS... I left and went home to quilt

You did the right thing by going home. Time is too short to be arguing over such silliness.

: )

Annie68 is absolutely right. Why argue about what a word means? Was there some underlying hostility that just found an opportunity to come out?

My EX daughter-in-law told me one time that her mother did not think that "anybody" (meaning me) was not a quilter unless they cut out fabric with a scissors and had hand pieced and hand quilted a quilt - as she did. Actually she had to go to her church sewing group once a week and use their tables to cut out her fabric because she could not find a square inch in her house clean enough to lay a piece of fabric - HMMMMM

I agree also, you did the right thing by going home. Comming from a long line of quilters,
who have either hand pieced decorative quilts, machine sewed decorative quilts, and both hand quilted small and large quilts as well as sent out to have machined quilted quilts, it's the art of putting together with your hands and heart a beautiful hand made top whether hand quilted or machine quilted that makes you a quilter in my book.

You did the right thing, some people just have closed minds. Is a seamstress not a seamstress today because she uses computerized sewing machines, seam tape, maybe computers for designs and electric cutters? The product is still something created by being sewn together.

SusieQ, some people will argue about anything :D I'd have gone home with you :thumbup:

The first quilters did everything entirely by hand because they used the only tools available at the time. Taking advantage of new technology and tools doesn't make us any less of a quilter nor does it diminish the value of our finished projects. It's my opinion the colonial, civil war and pioneer quilters would have taken advantage of any "new" or "modern" tools available to get the job done. Just look at how quickly these busy women adopted the sewing machine. I'm sure it made their lives much easier. My great-grandmother, who was also a quilter, sewed all the shirts for her husband and five sons. Bet she appreciated her sewing machine.

Off my soap box now. I get so tired of this argument.

"Can't we all just get along?"

I'm down with this response! How nuts is this, not worthy of debate.

builders pay contractors to do the actual work, so why can't a quilter pay someone to finish their top. its still their quilt. i would have left too though, and not gotten involved, LOL! Much more fun to be sewing!