When my husband and I were getting married, it was a very low-key affair. We rented a nice house, and rather than put a lot of money into disposable decorations, my husband suggested taking the money we would have spent on those and put it into the wedding quilt. It ended up being the focus piece of the wedding - we hung it from an upper balcony over the doorstep where we got married. My mom helped with it - she was the one finishing up the binding an hour before the ceremony, which makes it mean all the more.
The older ladies loved it, and still talk about it. They "get" it. They didn't ask about how much it cost, and didn't ask me to make them one.
That being said, most of the people my age (late 20's, early 30's) don't get it. They were... shocked... when they found out how much it cost, and how much I'd charge them. They don't get why I would spend that kind of money (close to a thousand dollars) and time (close to a thousand man hours, including all the steps), on a quilt. And if they don't understand, I'm not about to waste my breath. You can't make someone value something they don't.
What I suppose I'm trying to say is that some people will get it and treasure it. Others simply don't - and that's not really a bad thing, it's just a case of different priorities. I like quilts, quilting means something to me, so I made my own, and it was our gift to "us". So when I give a gift, I try to get a feel for the individual, and give a gift in line with their priorities. Normally, if someone wants a quilt for a big occasion, they start hinting about it early, and I just take the hint.