”People don’t say thank you any more.  Or write thank you notes,” a friend mentioned the other day.
Is this you in your busy life?  In your quilting life or business?  Do you take time to say or show your appreciation for deeds done, words said, gifts received?
Even though I was taught, by a mother who sat us at the dining table to write thank you notes the day after receiving a gift, I find myself so caught up in a busy life that I must keep a “thank you note list” or “thinking of you list” so I don’t forget.  Even …read more

         Chloe, in her post, Tuning Up An Old Treadle Machine, at Tangled Thread, brought back memories of sewing and quilting with this machine in my childhood.
  Ah!  The old treadle sewing machine!  That’s what I learned to sew on.  My mother had one; my aunt and grandmother had one; my 4-H sewing leader, Aunt Mary, had one.  I spent many hours at the treadle machine in each of these locations sewing.
In fact, we have one today that someone gave us.  We don’t use it for sewing, but have at various locations used this as a plant stand or side table.  …read more

Cathy, at Tangled Thread, has a nice suggestion for a last minute Christmas gift for sewers, quilters, embroiderers, etc.  She pictures a collection of sewing gadgets, scissors, pin cushion and more.
What would quilters and fabric artists like?
*scissors
*pin cushions
*assorted basting pins with colored heads
*unique threads
*rotary cutters & extra blades
*assorted unique threads
*fat quarters
*quilting videos & DVDs
These are just a few of the items.  Browse through a quilting store or ask the clerk or owner what she’d like.  Put these in a basket, tie with a ribbon, and you have something to please any quilter.
                      

Gifts for quilters aren’t difficult to find and many enjoy books and magazine subscriptions under the tree.  However, you want to make sure they don’t already have the book or magazine you get them.  Also, it’s best when the book involves a type of quilting or fabric are they’re interested in.
My daughter makes a list each year of books she’s like to have and quilting gadgets she’ll enjoy and find helpful.  From this her husband and children go quilting at her favorite shop or look online.  This works out well because she doesn’t feel guilty about getting that new book or …read more

Collecting quilts fascinates many people, whether they’re quilters, enjoy this handiwork, or appreciate America’s cultural heritage.  However, quilts can be expensive and take up considerable space to store and display.
Why not collect quilting memorabilia or related items such as:
*Thimbles
*Pin cushions
*Calendars with quilt pictures
*Sewing boxes
*Needle books
*Note paper with quilt designs
Do you have a quilt related collection?  I’d enjoy hearing about it and how you got started.

This book, Sewing Tools & Trinkets, might give you an idea of sewing/quilting memorabilia you’d like to collect.

Sometimes a very helpful gadget can be very simple, so simple that we don’t even consider it.  I was browsing through the new autumn Keepsake Quilting catalog(www.keepsakequilting.com ) my daughter received, and saw…Glow-in-the-Dark Pins!
That’s what we need around here, I thought.  With three quilters in the family (my daughter, granddaughter, and me), our menfolk continually complain about the pins on the floor or on cushions. 
These 1 1/2-inch pins have white plastic heads that will glow in the dark.  Possibly these are commonplace to many quilters and other suppliers have them available.  Anyway, if you’re constantly losing pins, you may want …read more

Have you found some new products you consider very useful in your quiltmaking and fabric art creation?  So many new products are available from metallic threads and exotic fabrics, to ergonomically designed rotary cutters, computerized sewing machines, and kaleidoscope rulers.
What are some of your favorite new products?  Periodically I’ll post information about new items and gadgets for quilters.