I have found, in my three short years of quilting, that not every quilt I have given is valued like I would value it. Some people appreciate my time, effort, and money, that I put into the special quilt they have received. While this is true, I have known others who treat my quilt, given as a gift, as though I had given them a blanket. No thought of returning a Thank You card seems to annoy me the most. Is this typical for quilters who give gifts?

Well I think some people don't actually know the value of a quilt...eitehr teh work put into it or the cost of it..quilting is not a cheap hobbie so I guess it is our job as gift givers to know whether a person will actually value a gift from us.
But as I always tell my children when we give a gift there is no expectations of anything with it..so when I give something is it pushed out of my mind as to whether they will treasure things the way I treasure them...so I guess it is up to you as to which pholosophy on this you will side on.

Charisma is right, many people do not understand the time, effort, and money that goes into a quilt. I became very frustrated by this many years ago and found a great solution. It involves a bit of effort on my part but it was amazing how suddenly my quilted gifts were no longer being dragged out to use as a picnic or beach blanket. I bought a timer from WalMart, one of those that you push the button and it acts like a stopwatch in keeping time. It cost about $5. Any time I work on a particular quilt I will keep track of the time spent on the quilt. Once it is done I will add the hours to the label. Many people are shocked when they see the hundreds of hours that go into a good sized quilt and suddenly it is no longer just something to throw around & treat recklessly.

Nothing spins me faster then walking thru the park and seeing a beautiful quilt thrown on the ground, usually in the dirt, with kids running back and forth over it with their dirty shoes. I've sworn to DH I'm going to "rescue" them, at which point he hurries me past because I'm usually saying something naughty just a bit too loudly. It usually goes like this... "I cannot believe they would treat something that took hundreds of hours to make like it was a cheap WalMart blanket. How thoughtless..." I'd spout off about how quilting fabric is $8-$15 a yard and what a waste on people who can't appreciate what they have, but usually hubby has drug me past by then. I know I shouldn't, but it just really bugs me to see something like that treated so poorly.

Some peoples quilts ended up being used as moving blankets, used for animal beds, stuffed in car trunks, used, abused, misused. Other's were afraid to use them...they were too beautiful, afraid something would happen to them. Yet other's used them and treated them with love and respect.
Quilts are not everyone's cup of tea...be selective over who you give them to, or be willing to turn your head to what happens once they are in the recipients hands. Maybe ask if they would like a quilt, how they would use it, and then decide how much time, effort and money to put into one for them :wink:

Believe me, you're not alone. I also know people who have gifted quilts with the same result as you. Maybe, what we should do is make a little card to go with the quilt, saying how much time goes into just making the quilt, I don't know if that would really help or not though and some people just have no manners about thank yous.

This topic has been discussed on several boards I'm on. It boils down to this. Some people are 'quilt-worthy', some are not.

I make graduation quilts for my kids' friends (close friends ONLY!) If I don't think they will appreciate the time and effort that has gone into a quilt, I will write them a check for graduation. So far, I'm batting 100 on the quilts being taken care of by the kids (or protected by the parents!)

I really like the idea of keeping track of the time needed to make the quilt and put it on the label. I also piece and watch tv, make dinner, do laundry, help the kids with homework, so this might be interesting. When I quilt, I'm in my own world and don't have all the distractions of the house, and I still have a hard time keeping track of things. Certainly something to think about! Great idea!

A friend of a friend made a cat fabric quilt for her friend. The friend thought the maker of her quilt would be quilte pleased that her cat had kittens on the homemade quilt. :cry:

:shock: Oh no! That is so sad. I'm sure the kitty didn't think so and was probably thrilled to have such great bedding. I think I would have cried.

Oh, ewwww!!! I hope she recovered from that shock!!!

I used to do a lot of cross stitch and embroidery. It's a much discussed subject among those groups too. It's especially discussed about divorced couples and whatever happens to the wedding sampler that was made for them. The time and materials and add to that the cost of professional framing.

My SIL was going to sell at her garage sale an embroidery I did for my brother long before he was married. For one dollar!! My girlfriend rescued it and it now hangs in her home.

Now only my mom and charities receive my quilts.