I know several organizations that are "picky" but then again like Project Linus, we are a chapter with tax exemption 504 something or other. Quilts have to be 100% cotton and no embellishmenst like buttons etc. But when we get quilts that don't meet our goals, we don't hurt feelings, we have other groups like CAC, CPS, Nursing homes, etc we can send them to. And they do the same. YOu did a lot of hard work in those ties. I send pillowcases to a friend's son and he gives them out. No rules to follow.
Keep your head up and continue to do what you feel. You have a wonderful, caring heart and your heart was in the right place.

Similar to cool ties, I make cool beds for dogs. (I have bulldogs who do not tolerate heat well, thus the idea.) Anyone know of a group I can make and donate these to for service dogs? Military, police, fire rescue... Heck, I'd even make some for dog rescue or shelters.

I can only think of one reason, why they might not want them to be serged. With the serger threads on the outside it may cause neck irritation from rubbing, especially with the polyester and rayon serger threads.

That would make some sense - But if the serging was on the inside, would it matter?

When I was at the festival yesterday. I seen that someone had these for sale. They were selling them for $14.00. They also said that once you get them to swell you can put them in the microwave for 30 sec. to 1 min. and it will stay warm for about 45 mins. to 1 hr. Has anyone tried putting this in the microwave?

If you are thinking about putting them in the microwave, be advised that ALL fabric and thread MUST be cotton only. Do not use cotton/poly thread or fabric as they can catch fire. Read about the potato baker bags on this board and you will understand.

Cool Ties cause chaffing. My bf chose to suffer the heat for a couple months until he convinced himself he could live with chaffing. lol

If anyone wants to purchase some to check out the construction of an okay'd Cool Tie, or to gift them to anonymous deployed military, Soldiers Angels sells them.

Maybe the serging adds to the chaffing problem? It could just be a zero tolerance rule. It's easier to say "no serging" than "no serging on the outside." It could also be that serging on the inside does add to the chaffing problem.

I don't know. I'd ask my bf but he doesn't understand serging. Email them and ask sweetly for an answer.

I did contact the head of the group and she said it looked better with no stitching showing. I can't believe someone was selling these for $14 and someone would pay that. The only out of pocket cost to a quilter is the beads. Fabric strips are in everyone's scrap basket. I think I paid about $8 for those and still have over half a bag left. it only takes about 1/2- 1 teaspoon per tie.

Soldiers Angels sells them for $7.95. It's a good organization that I use a lot. It's especially good for donating to strangers when my man is home and/or I have no point of contact. Bakemeawish.com has a buy one and send one to an anon service member program and cookiesdirect.net has a cookie program for anonymous donations.

The real issues with cool ties/scarves are the chaffing and color. Once those are dealt with I can't imagine why anyone would be concerned with "looking better." That's kind of subjective and definitely disappointing. Sorry.

I hope this hasn't soured you on deployment related projects.

I just wanted to say a heartfelt "Bless You" to everyone here who has ever made or donated one of these!

When I was in a deployed location about two years ago, my unit got a box full of different morale things and there were some Cool Ties in the box. The guys I worked with didn't have a clue what they were about, but I grabbed about seven and took them out on the truck with us. A few hours later, after they'd been soaking in an ice cooler I handed them out and let me tell you, it feels SO GOOD when it it 130+ with humidity and you feel that coldness seeping in. So, serged, sewn, glued, they won't care, as long as they can make it cold!

You guys rock!