Over the years I have tried just about every craft known to human kind. I have diligently made and given so many hand made items that I've lost count. And I have also spent many hours shopping for ready made gifts for family and friends for every occasion you can think of. Here are my thoughts, and mine alone, on gift giving ( whether the gift be hand made or store bought). Once I give you a gift, it is none of my business what you do with it. It has been given to you with thought, with heart, and with you in mind. This is my part in giving my gift. If, by chance, you don't care for it,then your reasons are your reasons and your reasons are valid for you. I don't need to know them, in fact, I'd prefer if you didn't tell me. If I expect recognition or praise or accolades, then the reason I've given you a gift is lost. My gift is to honour you as the receiver, not me as the giver. But then, as I said, these are my thoughts.

I would NEVER make a quilt for someone unless I knew their preferences VERY well & KNEW they wanted a quilt! It is way too much work & $$ to give it to someone who will stick it in a closet never to be seen again! I would rather give it to a charity or a homeless person who would at least appreciate the warmth & won't care about what it looks like!

when i made my grandson's quilt (before he was born) i took my daughter in law the my lqs, and let her pick out the pattern, and the main fabric. then i picked the rest of the fabrics, and bought enough to make the bumper pads to match.

she loved it..and he drags it around behind him (he's 2) that is my new system for gift quilts...then i know the receiver will love what they get, and will use it.

I ,love pink It would be great in my bedroom. Could I be your sister

From the above responses I find that I am not alone in gift giving quilts lack of appreciation. As i was hand sewing the back binding on I proudly displayed a quilt to a friend expecting oohs and aahs. She said tht the colors were very pretty. I am beginning to think that only those who sew/craft are the only ones who can really appreciate the thought, time and work put into a project. Let the others go to Walmart.

soannesew aka Anne

I love it!!! Let the others go to Walmart!!! Right on, I'm with you.

Knowing the work that goes into a quilt, I don't believe any quilter would tell someone they didn't like it. We ALWAYS appreciate the work and time it takes to make such a gift.
As far as giving a quilt as a gift, if the quilter doesn't know the color preferences of the recipient, they should stick with neutral or softer colors. I usually know the color scheme/preferences of the people I have made quilts for in the past. My current quilt is for my DIL, and I have no idea what her color preference is. Just starting out, their apartment is a mishmash of colors, so I will stick with the colors I see her wear most often.

Making a quilt for someone is a wonderful gift of love. BUT
BUT, take patterns you are comfortable with making and take the person with you to pick the colors or do a drawing with colored pencils.

If you include the person in the selection process you are personalizing the quilt to meet THEIR NEEDS, NOT OUR OWN.

The reason I say this is because most people have difficulty visualizing what a quilt will look like. Many beginning and even advanced quilters have issues with colors (sometimes bcuz what u want isn't out there when u want it).

I found that there is even more excitement when the reciepient is involved.

And, there always some people who aren't going to be appreciative, like my brothers. So I simply asked them to keep them for their children in the storage and wrap I included. I am not encouraged that they will ever refold or give any care but
felt everyone else had a quilt as a gift, I should make one for
them.

I made theirs out of flannel and much to my surprize they are being used all the time.

I have a mild form of autism that makes me see things alittle differently. If you don't like what I've made for you tell me. There are others who would dearly love to have it. I'll happily give you a gift certificate so you can get something more to your taste.

I made a quilt for my daughter that took me forever and has original designs hand embroidered in every other 12 in block. She took one look at it and tossed it aside. It hurt it still hurts. I wish she would have returned it to me and said it wasn't in her style although she appreciated the work that went into it. I loved that quilt by the time I was done with it 14 years after I started. Everything is hand done on that quilt.

It doesn't hurt to ask others for help choosing colors especially those whose work you admire. I recognize that many others have a better "eye" for the finished product that I do.

I only make things I like, and I do it because it is what I like to do. No one could ever pay me the amount of money that the pleasure of creating gives me - - priceless.
I would do what I do even if no one liked it ... I do it because I like doing it, and I would create without electricity, if I had to!
It is just the way I am wired ... so, when/if someone doesn't like a quilt as much as I might, I can't really get all upset about it - - most of them don't know what it takes to produce the product!
If someone didn't seem to appreciate my gift to them, then I probably wouldn't be gifting something like that to them again. Fact is, I made it for them because that is what I wanted to do, and once I have given it to them, their response is irrelevant ... it has to be that way, or else it would seem that I was trying to "buy" them by my actions ... and, I wouldn't want them to have to bear that burden. <wave>