I just read through all the letters on lack of appreciation for quilts. People can be so cruel even though some of them don't even realize what they have done.
When I was 10 I had taught myself to crochet.
I bought white linen (with my money from babysitting, yes, at 10 and for a newborn no less) cut it into an oval and 2 circles to fit my older sister's vanity. The kind that dropped down in the center with a stool to sit in front of the mirror.
I crocheted an edging around these and gave them to my sister as a gift.
My father had just died 3 months earlier and I had transferred my father feelings to my brother-in law, thought the sun rose and set in him.
The next time I was at there house I watched as he set his foot upon a stool and polished his shoes with the oval piece of the set.
My heart was broken and it still hurts to think of it.
Life went on and I became a professional seamstress. I would sew beautiful dresses for my mother even though I didn't have time to sew for myself. Her response was always; "Oh, Honey this is so nice BUT why didn't you..." If I had put in a pleat it should have been a dart, if it were a dart it should have been a pleat.
I finally learned that I could not buy my mother's love, so I quit trying. I had other people who not only appreciated my work but was willing to pay for it.
My kids shower me with praise for everything I make for them.
I have crocheted a ring pillow lined in silk for my GDs which I know will be appreciated.
Joyce Raab MI