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Originally Posted by bnndr
(Post 4818736)
If I received a hand made quilt that someone took the time to search for fabric, took the time to stitch the blocks, took the time to quilt the quilt, took the time to bind the quilt I would be grateful for that quilt. I dont care how sad the quilt was or how loppy it was or if it was made of sun yellow and hot pink together with splashes of purple, I would cherish that quilt as much as if it was the most beautiful quilt in the world. Someone choose me to present with a gift of their hard work and I would use that quilt even if it didn't go with a thing in my home. But that's just me.
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I'm going to open up a can of worms with an example. My church has a quilting group that is mostly quite elderly. They only tie quilts (maybe 6-8 inches apart) and use donated fabrics. For the last few years they have made quilts for the graduating high school seniors. When my son got his, it wasn't bad. It had a bit of a pattern, and was appropriate for a young man. He used it happily to wrap up in watching TV. When my daughter graduated (one year later), all the graduates got random/scrappy quilts made of widely varying fabrics (knits, wovens of different weights), no pattern, absolutely just 4" squares sewn together with a backing of very thin fleece (no batting). The quilt wasn't bound, just serged with a gray thread. I love scrappy, but this is truly a dreadful quilt. It was also quite small, not big enough to use on a sofa. My daughter thanked the group for the quilt, but it ended up as a cat bed. I finally rescued it to leave in my car trunk, something I had recommended to my daughter.
I appreciate the elderly women who put together 4 quilts for the graduates, but did they ever even think of what might be useful/loved by the recipients? To give a gift that was thrown together does not leave the recipient thinking they are valued. It didn't help that the leader of the quilt group told the recipients (in front of the entire church!) that the group didn't have much time so they had thrown these together (really, a direct quote!). Oh well, rant off. At least I was proud of my daughter that she didn't react negatively in church and that she thanked them kindly. Pam |
When I make a quilt and give it away I'm always anxious and hoping that they will love it and appreciate it. Any crafter who puts a lot of work into something hopes that. But having said that: people's tastes are all so individual! What one person loves, another disdains. I try to avoid that happening by tailoring the project to the person, but someday it is bound to occur. I must confess that sometimes I'm unsure about where the borderline between whimscal and tacky lies. So I hope someday when I give a quilt away and the recipient isn't that thrilled that they still are gracious enough to make me feel like they appreciate that I was trying to show how much i care about them by making it. And at least that they'll use the quilt to keep warm on car trips or in tents or...something. hee hee
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Originally Posted by MaryMo
(Post 4818991)
I buy quilts at thrift stores, garage sales, estate sales, and auctions and then give them the love they were meant to have. At an auction once I bought what was displayed as a bag of rags -- inside it was a hand sewn quilt that had rarely been used. It was made from 30's flour sack fabric - I cherish that one. If they are well-worn I turn them into teddy bears or something. I used one as the background in a shoadowbox for a friend's mother's jewelry and knick knacks that we made together to honor her mother. My friend loves it. We're not all museum or Hollywood quality, and neither are handmade items such as quilts. Just as I want to be loved as I grow old (and I wasn't too pretty either), I want to give homemade quilts the love they deserve.
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I would say thank you and give a comment about what I did like about it. I would also mention that I enjoy home made gifts. I would then find some where to use it especially if people would see it used or I would tell them how it was used.
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Originally Posted by Bibliogirl
(Post 4820680)
My grandmother made beautiful quilts. When she died she left several blocks of the 1950s "Maple Leaf" for a quilt she never made. The blocks were beautiful. My sister took them and had them put together and handquilted. There were 3 of us girls and my sister wanted the quilt rotated each year among us. When I saw the finished quilt I wanted to cry. All of the blocks were sewn together, no plain blocks in between or any sashing to set them off. It was a hodge podge. The sister who had it put together has since died and the quilt went to me. I showed it to my other sister for her "turn" and she refused to have it because it really was ugly. I am the only one of the 3 of us who quilts and I am thinking seriously of taking the quilt apart and lay it out the way I think my grandmother would have done it because she had made the same quilt pattern several times. It would be quite a job, but I think my grandmother would not like this quilt. Should I try to make it into the quilt it deserves to be?
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Originally Posted by mlsa
(Post 4818605)
I will always remember something my daddy taught us boys: "If somebody thought enough of you to give you a gift and it's nothing but a safety pin and that's all they could afford then you treat that safety pin like it's the grandest safety pin in the world."
I would be absolutely thrilled if somebody gave me a handmade quilt no matter the colors or pattern. Just to know they thought enough of me to give me anything would be joy enough. I would cherish it; use it; and show it off. David |
Thank you so much for your very thoughtful gift. I will treasure it! I can tell you have spent a lot of time on this.:)
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I would be delighted. Even if I didn't like it and I would use it.
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Originally Posted by valleyquiltermo
(Post 4822255)
I say do what your heart tells you your DGM would have done.
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