Grrr, Wanting Something for Nothing & No Appreciation for Fine Hand Quilting....A Rare Speckledhen

[Gumiho]

I'm the same way, I love to sit and just look over the details of a handmade piece. I collect vintage linens and doilies. I love looking over the cross-stitch and embroidery and use them as an example on how I can improve. My favorite item is an intricate doily done out of *sewing thread*. It blows my mind to sit and marvel it, the attention to detail and quality is amazing to me.

I actually have a "Treasure Chest" filled with hand made things and found items. And am looking to get a nice antique (handcrafted ) Tallboy for my linens. Because thats what these handmade items are, treasures.

 

[speckledhen]

I'm the same way, I love to sit and just look over the details of a handmade piece. I collect vintage linens and doilies. I love looking over the cross-stitch and embroidery and use them as an example on how I can improve. My favorite item is an intricate doily done out of *sewing thread*. It blows my mind to sit and marvel it, the attention to detail and quality is amazing to me.

I actually have a "Treasure Chest" filled with hand made things and found items. And am looking to get a nice antique (handcrafted ) Tallboy for my linens. Because thats what these handmade items are, treasures.

I love to hear someone say things like this. These arts are dying, I'm afraid. Everybody wants a quick fix, instant gratification, so they buy mass produced junk. If someone doesn't care about something handmade that I worked on, took time creating, thinking about the design of it, hurting my fingers over, suffering through carpal tunnel with to give them, I'd rather they just hand it back to me and let me give it to someone who truly does appreciate it.

 

[mother hen 13]

What a wonderful piece of work i love it
i once made a hand quilted cushion not half as nice as this and very small - it took hours so i can see why you would be soo fed up.
i used to do some sewing for people but my husband persuaded me not to do it anymore as they often didn,t want to pay.
i cant understand why people think that work you do at home is worth less.
I once made a wedding dress for a girl i knew really well - i did it for almost nothing and showed her the fabric bill so she could see how much it cost me - her mother asked me if i had needed to buy the large size spool of cotton - i felt as if i had tried to defraud her of half a spool of cotton. Thats when my husband said just stop doing it, ask yourself would they work that long for so little.
Now i just make stuff for us, as gifts or for charity - they are the losers as had made stuff is so much nicer

 

[speckledhen]

What a wonderful piece of work i love it
i once made a hand quilted cushion not half as nice as this and very small - it took hours so i can see why you would be soo fed up.
i used to do some sewing for people but my husband persuaded me not to do it anymore as they often didn,t want to pay.
i cant understand why people think that work you do at home is worth less.
I once made a wedding dress for a girl i knew really well - i did it for almost nothing and showed her the fabric bill so she could see how much it cost me - her mother asked me if i had needed to buy the large size spool of cotton - i felt as if i had tried to defraud her of half a spool of cotton. Thats when my husband said just stop doing it, ask yourself would they work that long for so little.
Now i just make stuff for us, as gifts or for charity - they are the losers as had made stuff is so much nicer

Thank you! Welcome to BYC. I see that you completely understand where I'm coming from. I'm going to a family dinner today, which is the once a year time I see my husband's relatives, usually. I'm taking some crocheted beanies, fingerless gloves, washcloth and nubby face scrubbies I made as there "Happy One Time a Year Visit" gifts. At least those don't take much time to do each, though collectively, it does, but you still want the time appreciated because it does take time away from other things you could be doing. Quilted stuff, they don't get, period.

I made one exception a couple of years ago, an actual request for a quilt from a grown niece who truly loves quilts and says it's one of her most prized possessions. She offered to pay me whatever it took, but I didn't take anything. I told her to consider it all the birthday gifts I couldn't give her over the years. She was in tears when I presented it to her a couple of years later. That is enough for me, that it is loved and treasured, and she really understands the value of a handmade quilt

 

[Dreyadin]

Well.. not all things are made the same.

By that I just mean somethings are sentimental crafts and some is pure art/ craftsmanship.

Then there is just flat out torture. My Grandmother was German. To Germanize us.. almost every summer when she came to visit she made us dirndls. We looked like a demented cross between the Brady bunch and the Sound of Music. I can't begin to tell you the dread of being dragged out to the mall looking like Heidi sans goats. Meanwhile.. the wool socks she would knit for us we would fight over.

Your quilts are something we would have fought over Speckled. Mother hen 13.. you definitely are selling yourself short. Part of it seems to be perception.. they're ordering custom made pieces. A wedding dress.. that's a HUGE deal.

I wish I could sew something more than a straight line. (Well, it's straight depending on what angle it is viewed.. and if you aren't sober.) I have a serger sitting in the box- for not quite 20 years. Just knowing what stitch to use for what fabric is important. (Like I'd love to machine sew organza bags for my squash flowers.) Just cutting the pieces for a quilt is too tedious for some. Or how about reading crochet patterns? Omg.. if I stop crocheting for a length of time I swear I need a rosetta stone program to figure it out again. lol So envious of those who have these patterns and techniques down that they are like second nature.

 

[HereDucky]

Thank you so much. It's true on so many levels. One of my business partners in Blue Roo Creations found this on the web-I don't know where it came from so I'm sorry I can't give credit, but I love this so much. My own disabled veteran husband has gotten back into his oil painting after 20 years. I'm hoping he'll be producing some paintings in the future for Blue Roo. And they won't sell for $9.95, either. Here is one he did as a gift for Ladyhawk for a gift for her. It's her special rooster, Lancelot. Because this one turned out well, I made him do one of my Delaware rooster, Isaac, and it's coming out spectacularly. That one is mine, mine, MINE!

That is amazing, and a perfect description of craftsmanship and artistry. I'd like to share a little story: a few years back I decided to jump in and try my hand selling my own crocheted designs at a local craft fair. I designed and made, among other things, some little thread crochet drawstring bags. It took me many hours to design the intricate pattern, and I made up a bunch of brightly colored bags, thinking they would appeal to the younger set for holding little treasures like marbles and trinkets. Sure enough, one of my first customers was a little girl, who excitedly pulled her grandmother over to my booth to show her the bags. The grandmother took one look and remarked "those are just little crocheted bags", and she herded the disappointed little girl away. That experience still hurts to this day. But I will never give up my love of creating beautiful handmade things. It brings me such joy to create!

 

[speckledhen]

I'm resurrecting this thread because I'm almost done with a semi-big project, first quilting I've done since way before summer. It was made to fit a square dining table, my own being 42" square, common size these days I've noticed. It fits almost the entire top of my queen bed up to the pillow areas so could be a bed topper as well. I'm not really thrilled with it, overall, but it is hand quilted. I'm doing a tiny bit more quilting in the center of the corner pieced hearts, then will have to make a trip to Walmart for some blue fabric to make binding as I do not have enough of the blue in the center left to do so (story of my life).

This is approximately 60" square. On a 42" square dining table, the pieced hearts on each corner nicely drape off the four corners of the table. Will be thinking about the pricing as it will go into our Blue Roo Creations web store. Guess it could be for Valentine's Day or 4th of July, having both hearts and stars.






A photo of it before all this quilting was done, on my table to see the fit. It sure is "patchy", isn't it?

 

[wyoDreamer]

Your latest creation is beautiful! I like your choice of colors.
When you use it on the table, do you scotch guard it or protect it from spills at all?

 

[speckledhen]

Your latest creation is beautiful! I like your choice of colors.
When you use it on the table, do you scotch guard it or protect it from spills at all?

Thank you. I wasn't thrilled with my choice of blues in it, but I guess it is what it is. I don't use a lot of blue or red, personally. Yes, it can be and I would suggest it, certainly. I made a custom tablecloth for Ladyhawk (Cetawin on BYC) and I believe she did ScotchGuard hers. Here is the one I made for her, pre-quilting:



Next ones awaiting quilting, a table runner to be sold and my own spring queen bed quilt for moi:


I've had this bed quilt pieced since pre-house fire back in March 2013. Had to wash the pieced top to get out the smoke smell.

 

[speckledhen]

Well, she's finished and on Ebay for a very short stint (3 day auction). They want you to give things away so if no one bids on it, I'll remove it and put it into our Etsy shop (at a slightly higher price, of course).

Here is the listing. I listed it as a bed topper which can also be used on a square dining table as tablecloth.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/271708671782?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649


Finished FINALLY.