Wednesday, June 10, 2015

Gifts for the Gift Giver

I adore giving gifts. Even when I purchase a gift instead of making it, the process often requires a lot of thought, research, and all-around sneakiness. And I’m known to square away a gift months before I’ll give it to the recipient. Why wait when the perfect gift presents itself? (The irony here is that I have two outstanding Christmas 2014 quilts to finish. Do I get points for having finished a different quilt that I won’t be gifting until this October?!)

My take on gift giving means that when someone puts in the time and effort to give me something extra special or something that’s 100% me, I really appreciate it. Two gifts have fallen into that category over the past few months.

My friend Miss L gave me this book and spool of ribbon for my birthday earlier this year. I’m a fabric geek who lives in an area once famous for its textile mills, so this volume on that very subject, copyrighted 1931, is super cool.


I have no idea when I’ll take my sewing shears to the accompanying ribbon. For the time being, I’m happy to pet it. : )

And Kim, of Leland Ave Studios, recently surprised the heck out of me by sending me this lovely mini for the one-year anniversary of my blog.


Eep! I barely know where to begin here. Her clamshell design harkens back to the Curves Class we both took earlier this year. The colors are straight out of my Penny Sampler. And the words are actually my exact logo, blown up and free-motion-quilted to the mini. So. Very. Awesome.

It took me a long time to realize that not everyone is a gift giver. It comes so naturally to me that, for a long time, I presumed others approached the process as I do. (Getting married, in particular, opened my eyes to the truth. Still, fifteen years in, if I ask my husband for ideas for, say, his father’s birthday, his solution is to call his mom for suggestions. Sigh.) How about you?  What is an especially cool gift you’ve received lately, and what made it special?

Linking up to Finish It Up Friday, Sew Cute Tuesday, and Let’s Bee Social ...

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14 comments:

  1. Karen NJune 10, 2015 at 4:01 PM

    What lovely gifts! I'm a bit smitten with that ribbon. Do you know the name of it or how I might find it?

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  2. Patch the GiraffeJune 10, 2015 at 10:49 PM

    Green with envy here! There is a book called the 5 love languages, and clearly you have the language of gifts mastered! I always like the stuff my students make in tech ed class, it's super rough and cheesy but so cute how proud they are of their creations :). Like you it's more the thought that counts.

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    1. Michelle @ From Bolt to BeautyJune 12, 2015 at 2:02 PM

      Ha! I own that book! I'm actually a service person whose acts sometimes take the form of gifts. My husband? He's a quality-time guy, like our older son. And our little guy's love language is physical touch.

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  3. Crafty CoffinJune 11, 2015 at 2:38 PM

    Awesome gifts - the clamshell mini is amazing! My husband is the fabulous gift-giver in my household - for my birthday 2 years ago I went downstairs to let the dog out and noticed my sewing machine had a bow on it. Oh wait, not my machine, a brand new Juki! I'm lucky he's so supportive of my quilting/sewing.

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  4. Sandra WJune 11, 2015 at 11:45 PM

    My grown children rattle their brains trying to find gifts for me. Occasionally they come up with a good one. But many times I just wonder--why don't they just give me a gift certificate to my favorite fabric shop? I can honestly say that I get the most joy out of buying fabric. Clothes, jewelery, and so on are okay, but fabric is what really does it for me.

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  5. audreyJune 12, 2015 at 8:51 AM

    These are glorious! I always feel like gifts like these are treasures. The gift itself is awesome, but to know that the person who gave it to you cares that much? Amazing.

    That being said, I'm *not* a good gift giver. I really really really wish I was! It just doesn't come naturally to me, and occasionally I stumble across something great, but not always. I'm trying! :)

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  6. JenniferJune 12, 2015 at 10:46 AM

    Congrats on one year!

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  7. JulieJune 12, 2015 at 5:25 PM

    Happy 1st Anniversary! I think celebrating the little things is almost better than waiting for the big ones. There are so many more! I am a lousy gift giver for special occassions. I have often given up, and given nothing while apologizing. I won't just give to give something. But when the perfect gift is found, I am quick to snap it up. Luckily, my family is understanding.

    Julie

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  8. lelandavestudiosJune 14, 2015 at 9:36 PM

    So glad you like the mini! I LOVE that ribbon! I'd totally just stare at it and pet it, too! Happy anniversary! You are a great friend and I'm so glad to have "met" you! 😘

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  9. Mary HueyJune 16, 2015 at 8:01 AM

    The little clamshell piece is charming, love that it's quilted with straight lines. A thoughtful gift for a thoughtful giver!!

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  10. Deb @ Frugal Little BungalowJune 17, 2015 at 7:23 AM

    Beautiful little clamshell gift!!

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  11. Terri Ann @ ChildlikeFascination.comJune 17, 2015 at 1:49 PM

    2 sweet gifts? What a lucky girl! I'm terrible at gifts, I overthink or under think and then give up cause I'm overwhelmed. My best gift ideas are usually the day after I give someone a gift I wish I'd spent more time deciding on but now that I'm out of my crafty closet everyone knows that when Terri Ann shows up with a gift bag, it's homemade gift time and they all seem excited about that so that's pretty awesome :)

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  12. Heather GravesJune 17, 2015 at 6:27 PM

    I'm not sure how many times I've looked at your little clamshell quilt, what a wonderful gift! My hubby just bought flowers for our anniversary... and he remembered that gerbera daisies were our wedding flower. I think I'll put it down as a win - only 11 years and he's catching on!!

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  13. Margo YangJune 19, 2015 at 12:42 PM

    What a lovely gift! Love clamshell design.

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