Gift ideas for a quilter?

[LovemyBoo]

My mom is a quilter, she's been at it for a few years now. I think she'd like supplies for Christmas but I've no idea what to get her. I could just get her a gift card for JoAnn's or something similar but she's not the gift card type if you know what I mean.

I live across the country from her so I don't know what she has already, I'm assuming she has all the basic stuff. I know nothing about quilting so I'm useless. I'd really appreciate any ideas anyone has for a quilter. Thank you!

[jyanla]

quilter blocks.
a really nice iron. (might be heavy to ship across country )

[seekermage]

Oh goodness there are all kinds of goodies you can get. I would go to the Joannes near you and look in their quilting section. You can get her some neat books, maybe you can bookmark a page for her and hint about getting something similar. Or there are all kinds of quilt squares and angles for cutting etc, a new rotary cutter or good scissors might be nice (a good pair of scissors can be really expensive). They even have premade quilt squares and kits you can get. Perhaps get her a kit to make a quilt she might like?

Otherwise see if there are any neat little quilter type stores in your area. You can find things like sweatshirts, mugs, etc for your favorite quilter. I know mine has a neat little mug that has a mini quilt kit that comes with it that makes a hot pad kinda coaster thingy. There is stationary etc. Oh....or you can look into having labels made with her name on them Made by .... etc.

The only other thing I can think of is neat little odds and ends like a nice thimble, neat pin cushion, hand lotion (working with fabric always makes your hands really dry) and other fun accessories. I know Joannes has lots of them. Just ask and maybe they can give you other ideas.

Good luck...I know I would love some new quilting goodies for xmas!

[SleeplessMommy]

What to get a quilter...

More more fabric! :-)

One option is machine quilting thread and/or hand quilting thread. JoAnn's has a plastic thread box (about 8 x 10") that holds 20 or so spools. Get one of those and fill w/ thread. Ask a small child to help pick colors, if available. Never too much :-) The newer polyester multi-colors are especially interesting.

Next, a magnetic knife rack (less than $10 at Ikea). Holds scissors, pins , needles, etc.

How about the armored glove for use with rotary cutter? "Fons & Porter's Klutz Glove" Having once sliced into my left index finger while using a dull blade, I can attest this is well worth the $20 price tag.

If appropriate, drop by JoAnne when the xmas cloth goes to 75% off or so. Get the less-christmasy fabrics. in 1/4 yard cuts each.

Another gift idea is a flat sheet. Find a new quality sheet, 100% cotton, on sale. Colors prefered, so stains won't show. THis can be used as a no-sew quilt backing. And if the sale is good enough, it will be even cheaper than buying 45" cloth and seaming it.

[gardenmom]

Fabric...you can never go wrong with a bundle of fat quarters, or thread assortment as mentioned above. Or maybe a thread rack?

Rotary cutter blades (I like the pp's glove idea) or a cutting mat.

A necklace/pendant or ring that has a little thread cutter on it, especially if she does hand quilting or travels with quilt projects (I've always wanted one of these, especially when they started scissor restrictions on airlines).

Books, patterns, kits, notions!

If you have a local quilt shop, they'll help you out, for sure.

[ZeldasMom]

Originally Posted by gardenmom

Fabric...you can never go wrong with a bundle of fat quarters

That's what I get my MIL almost every year. Sometimes I buy them from Keepsake Quilting. For example, this set of fat quarters from there is $15. This past year my MIL sent me a bunch of little scraps from a big project she is working on and asked me to get her fabric to match. I tool them to my local quilting shop and they helped me choose them. Good luck with your shopping!

[Hera]

Fat Quarters are a good idea. If she's very serious, I'd say skip JoAnne's and find a small quilting shop. The fabrics will be better quality (JoAnn's fabrics are often the first test runs done on poor quality cottons, to see if the printing process works) and there is likely to be a better fancy thread selection. Don't get pre-made quilt blocks.

How about a subscription to Quilting Arts magazine? You could send her the current issue in a gift basket with some fat quarters and threads, and have the subscription begin in the spring. Or, I just got this nifty thing kind of like a soldering iron for attaching swarovski crystals to fabric, it was about $25, but didn't include any crystals.

Good topstitching/machine embroidery/ embellishment threads: Metler has some nice metallics and good shiny colors, Sulky is a good brand, I love their Blendables series of variegated cotton thread. Good colors, and a random pattern so it doesn't end up stripey.

Something like a tackle box for holding random stuff? (I could use about 10!)

HTH

[gardenmom]

Originally Posted by Hera

How about a subscription to Quilting Arts magazine? You could send her the current issue in a gift basket with some fat quarters and threads, and have the subscription begin in the spring. Or, I just got this nifty thing kind of like a soldering iron for attaching swarovski crystals to fabric, it was about $25, but didn't include any crystals.

This got me thinking about Taunton Press--I love their stuff. They always seem to have gorgeous books on sewing and quilting, and frequently have sales on their books:
http://www.taunton.com/

[LovemyBoo]

Thank you so much for the ideas! I had no idea so I really appreciate them. I got her the QA magazine, some fat quarters, and thread. Thank you thank you thank you!!

[Hera]

Originally Posted by LovemyBoo

Thank you so much for the ideas! I had no idea so I really appreciate them. I got her the QA magazine, some fat quarters, and thread. Thank you thank you thank you!!

Can I be your mom too?