Monthly Archives: February 2023

Are Quilters “Too Hard to Shop For”?

You are so hard to shop for

People who have very specific hobbies such as quilting are often told “you are too hard to shop for”, no doubt because our hobby is confusing to others who couldn’t tell a walking foot from a fat quarter. That doesn’t mean you can’t still give a thoughtful gift to a quilter. Surely, they don’t need any more fabric, and sewing machines are so expensive. What can we do for our quilting friend that would be appreciated? Instead of a tangible gift, how about an experience? An afternoon at a quilt museum would be great fun for your quilting friend and you might even learn something, too. The New England Quilt Museum in Lowell, MA was a delightful experience for me for the beauty and craftsmanship of the historic quilts and there were so many looms and machines of infinite complexity that my husband was captivated.

A road trip to a far-off quilting shop could be fun for the both of you, as the destination does not have to be the only purpose. A scenic ride and a nice lunch someplace could both be part of the journey. I can always find a model train shop along the way to any quilt shop so there can be a fun stop for my husband, too.

If road tripping for quilts isn’t your jam, how about something that would make your quilter’s hobby experience better? I do not know a single quilter who does not get excited about storage solutions. How about a trip to Ikea for shelving?  A friend in my quilting group was ecstatic on Christmas morning when her husband gifted her a 5×5 cubicle set-up for her workspace. She posted photos of it before she posted photos of the kids!

The next time you are stuck for gifting ideas for that special quilter in your life, be creative and think outside the block!

The Couple Who Hobbies Together

Payback for last year’s Tri-County Quilt Show

I was recently asked, “where do you get your inspiration for By the Yard”? The interviewer was rather disappointed when I replied, “ripped from the headlines of my life”. I don’t have some kind of clever writing process. Instead, almost all the By the Yard® comics are based on real life occurrences. This particular comic is pretty much word for word based on a real event. Train Guy and I had gone to a train show where the organizers were indeed boasting about how many acres of model trains were on display and that the event consisted of five gigantic expo-sized buildings. I dutifully trudged to and from all five buildings, enduring the New England January snow and ice. We had a nice time. We even saw the actual steam train from a village in Maine where my parents live. Train Guy visited every booth, some of them two or three times. He acquired some steam engines he had his eye on, literally dozens of train trucks (for the uninitiated those are the little wheely things that go under train cars) and a bunch of other widgets that served some unknown purpose.

After this auspicious day, a quick Google search revealed there was a quilt shop nearby. Being more than two hours from the house, of course we had to stop in. After all, when would be the next time we’d be out this way? As if we were in some kind of 80’s sitcom, the very second that we stepped into the quilt shop an exasperated patron burst through the doors and shouted out at the top of her voice, “And THIS is for the train show!!”. Train Guy and I gave each other a knowing glance and had to struggle to control our guffaws. He proceeded to putter around the shop while I checked out the goods at my leisure. He then tried to convince me to buy four yards of a fabric instead of the one yard that I thought was all I needed. That would be the inspiration for another comic for another day.

Since then, we discovered there are a lot of quilt-loving/train-loving couples, maybe some more so than others. My advice to couples who must endure their other half’s obsessive hobbies – whether they be trains, tractors, trucks, fishing rods or whatever – just be gracious. Sure, I can’t tell the difference between HO scale or ON30 and Train Guy still thinks a jelly roll is some kind of wonderful dessert, but by going to these events together, we learn more about each other’s’ interests and most important of all, we spend time together doing things that we love.