What I do think would be a good idea is some sort of sensor on the quilts in shows so that they can not leave the building without authorization.[/quote]

I remember those clip on sensors at clothing stores, that had to be removed at the check stand, and think this practice would help keep quilts from getting "lost". I was going to put one of my quilts in a show, until I was asked to sign a 'waiver of responsibility' for the group holding the quilt show. If they can not be responsible for my quilt, I can't let them show it. IMHO.

The microchips range in price from $5 to $25, depending on how many you buy at a time. The scanners are anywhere from $100 to $500 when new (and are often available used for much less).

A group of quilters such as a guild, could buy the chips in bulk and one scanner to share. If you don't want to buy the scanner, most animal shelters, vets and municipal shelters have a scanner and are more than happy to scan anything you bring in.

To me (and a few other crabby old people), a smartphone IS special equipment! A scanner is cheaper than smartphones seem to be (when you include the price of the accompanying cell phone contract).

And smartphones have that pesky telephone feature. I have one telephone and that's bad enough. Imagining carrying one with me everywhere makes me shudder. LOL.

they should have chips that make alarms go off it taken out the door of what ever building they are shown in. it would help but will never happen.

Microchips were designed for a wet environment. Under the skin of a dog (or any other mammal) is essentially a wet environment. Microchips are encased in a tiny glass tube, so they are waterproof. The tube is tiny enough that it is nearly impossible to break them; during a demo, I got a chance to hammer at one with a 16 oz hammer and the microchip survived.

I think you're probably right about the alert devices. They can be removed but it would be more obvious to onlookers.

What deters most thieves is the sense that someone is watching them; I'm not just theorising this, research supports it. Even a poster of a face with eyes that appear to follow you around as you move will reduce theft.

In theory it sounds like a great idea, but I tend to agree with a lot of quilters, that a thief is always a thief. When they want something bad enough, they just go for it

And smartphones have that pesky telephone feature. I have one telephone and that's bad enough. Imagining carrying one with me everywhere makes me shudder. LOL.[/quote]

I used to feel the same way until my DD kept having the police do a "welfare check" whenever she didn't catch me by telephone. She was in Washington, and I was in Texas. :oops:

Interesting idea but I think that as someone posted if someone stole a quilt, they aren't going to offer it for scanning. It probably would stay in their house.

Question, and maybe none of you can answer it--goes along with the microchip thread.

Do quilt theives steal quilts for personal use or do they steal them for resale?

Quilts are so personal, it seems to me it would be difficult to sell a stolen quilt. I don't know, lord knows, those of us here wouldn't steal one for any reason.

A couple of years ago, there were some magazine articles about microchipping quilts, but I haven't heard anything about them for some time. I think there were even some ads in the magazines for the chips and their service.

Well, I believe you are a rare breed. Smart phones are becoming more and more common, and I'd wager that within a year or two, that's ALL that cell phone companies will be selling. And if you don't have one, that's fine - there are plenty of other people around that can read the QR code on my quilt. Smart phones are not "uni-taskers", either, meaning they can multi-task, unlike RFID readers. So I can buy a smart phone which will make phone calls, receive texts, emails and alerts, keep my calender and remind me of appointments, let me surf the web and play games while I wait at at the doctor or dentist, AND I can read QR codes - instead of paying the $100 to $500 for something that can only read RFID signals, and that's IT.

Also - how do you address the fact that a police officer or non-quilter who might find the quilt would probably not even think about taking that quilt someplace to see if it had a microchip? They would simply see it as a blanket, and wouldn't consider the fact that someone might value it enough to microchip it.