linhawk

same thing happened with dstepd

charity-crafter

My inlaws are like this. Handmade means you're too cheap to buy something. You don't honor them when you make something. A real gift has to be store bought and expensive to show that you really value them. DH just sends a check every year now and let them figure out what they want.

One of my family said about my aunts quilts , "it's their hobby, they don't have anything esle to do and they enjoy doing this and then they dump it on the family as presents." I've never given that person anything hand made when I took up the craft.

EmiliasNana

I, too, would have been upset.........and I am a HUGE animal lover. My husband and our DIL exchange gag gifts at Christmas (it's not the quality as much as the quantity, they joke) and this year she gave him an Oriental themed lap robe. Turns out it was a wedding gift, given to their neighbor, who had done missionary work in China. The giver saw the oriental markings on the fabric & mistook it for Chinese, when it was actually Japanese. The quality of the work was rudimentary, but obviously a gift of love. They were going to toss it out when my DIL took it as a gag gift. It broke my heart and I wasn't even involved in the whole process. Right now it is in our closet, with two matching pillows.
When our son and DIL had our first grandchild I made her a flannel baby quilt of 3" HST. It was my first FMQ and I took great pains to stitch perfect roses all over the quilt. It was often on the floor for our granddaughter to lay on, which also meant the dog would lay on it or walk all over it, as well. I was stunned at first, but quickly got over it. To this day, our 3 yr. old granddaughter loves that quilt because she was allowed to use it.
I made a friend of theirs a quilt for their first child. I wasn't sure if they would use it so I put the following label on it:
This ABC quilt was sewn especially for ............
It is made of 100 % cotton, sturdy enough to be used and hopefully loved,
Some quilts are folded and put away in closets, never to be seen again.
They might not match the nursery decor or the prints are too gaudy.
Or maybe they are considered too precious to use.
I hope this quilt will see peaceful slumbers and hours of play.
May it comfort "boo-boos" and dry tears,
get drug across the floor in pursuit of destinations yet to be determined,
see toys parade its borders,
experience green grass and gentle breezes in the shade of a tree, and /or
shield tender skin from winters chill.
Then it will be a happy quilt.
Who knows...............it may even teach him the alphabet !
I heard later that they LOVE the quilt and take it with them everywhere. That made me happy.
P.S. I backed it in a black background print so the grass stains wouldn't show : )

Wintersewer

Oh, that is TERRIBLE!! I am so sorry for you. That must have hurt. I wonder if you should speak to her about it????

jeanneb52

My younger daughter used hers to move furniture...put the quilt on the floor , put an armchair on it and slid it across her hardwood floor so it wouldn't get scratched!! My sister was present for this , took the quilt and walked out with it, saying it deserved better treatment than that.
Guess who doesn't get anymore quilts from Mama?! I know it is hers (WAS hers) to do with as she pleased but....
Baby sister has it now and loves it.

Wintersewer

[How ignorant and hateful!! WHERE do these ideas come from???? Quilting is a labor of love.


One of my family said about my aunts quilts , "it's their hobby, they don't have anything esle to do and they enjoy doing this and then they dump it on the family as presents." I've never given that person anything hand made when I took up the craft.[/QUOTE]

DonnaQuilts

I feel your pain. Some people just don't have a clue. Cross her off you Christmas list and move on.

nikki128

I found out a friend was pregnant and made a quilt for the baby. Spent hundreds between fabric and sending it to a LA quilter. After I gave it to them it disappeared. I only saw it once more when I was changing the baby's diaper. It was rolled in a ball on the floor stained with poop and who knows what. If it got stained I wish she would have let me clean it. I never saw the quilt again. The baby just turned 3. I vowed to never make them anything again.


I don't let it dampned my spirits though. Many of the quilts I give are displayed and used and loved. In fact, several of the baby quilts I made are in professional pictures with the babies

Chasing Hawk

Omg Bella........

"questionable relatives"!!!!

Chasing Hawk

I have no horror stories.

All my quilts are given to people who know the love and caring that is put into their gift.

My best story is......

The quilt I made my Aunt went with her on her journey home.