Quilt advise ... kinda long

Ladies and gents I need some advise on how to gently get out of a situation my neighbor has gotten me into.

My neighbor's brother has rental property and an elderly lady rents from him.

She decided last month that she wanted to start making quilts. She sent her first ever quilt to my neighbor and said she wanted 400 dollars for it.

My neighbor asked me to look at it and advise her.

Now the idea for the quilt is a good one. The elderly lady took embroidery transfers and imprinted them on white cloth. I think its poly and cotton. She next painted the transfers. The theme of the quilt is the hillbilly and his jug, fishing, his family, etc. The theme is cute.

The construction of the quilt is not very good. The white fabric is already raveling and the seams are not stitched very well and are starting to come loose. A couple of the blocks have scorch spots where the elderly lady touched them with a cigarette. The batting is the cheap fluffy stuff.

The quilt is tied with crochet thread and only in the sashing and I suspect the first time the quilt is washed the batting will wad up and become very lumpy.

How do I gently tell my neighbor the quilt is not worth 400 dollars but only worth the money already invested in it. I'm not an appraiser or anything like that and I told her so. I just quilt for my own enjoyment and not anything for sale.

I don't want to take on teaching someone to quilt because of my health, I just need to gently get out of this situation without ruffling feathers and hurting someone's feelings.

I don't want to discourage anyone from quilting but this quilt is not worth 400 dollars.

Any suggestions ??????

Kate T. South Mississippi

Reply to
Kate T.
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i'd send the quilt back and ask that it be well washed. if it falls apart, the quilt maker will see for herself its not worth beans. from the info you've just told us, i'd venture its not worth worry'n bout what to do if it withstands the washing. problem solved. other than that i'm at a loss. i surely would refuse flat out to pay anywhere near that from the description and the condition she received it in....scorch marks, that is disgusting, must stink of ciggy smoke as well. ewwwwwwwwwww. i could care less what the maker thot. she cant force her to pay for that. is there any quilt appraisers that live near enough to just ask for a quick thot on it, free of course, lol. no doubt all she'd need is a quick scan. jeanne

Reply to
nzlstar*

Honesty is the best policy prevails here. And as Jeanne said, suggest he have her wash it first and see what happens. There may be no worry after that.

Reply to
maryd

I would probably tell the person that since I am just amateur I wouldn't want to give an opinion on it but if it were me being asked for that kind of money for it, I wouldn't pay it.

Ew at the scorching on it. That is just a bit too "rustic" even for my tastes. And I also wonder at the smell of the quilt as well. Now I smoke, not in my house mind you cuz it stinks, but after I have a cigarette I wash my hands with soap and water before I pick up my projects again to keep as much of that smell off my fabrics as I can. Just me being anal about it all though maybe.

As for cheap fluffy stuff as batting, I am guilty of using that stuff too. Cost effective for me and my stuff is not of show quality, it is of use it till its threadbare quality. See? That would make me not a good person to price a quilt like that LOL

In the end, you have to do what feels right and say what feels right to be able to be comfortable with all parties involved. Usually gut feelings and first instincts are pretty darn close to an answer in my experience.

~KK in BC~

Reply to
~KK in BC~

So you aren't dealing with the maker of this quilt directly, but with your neighbor? I'd list exactly the points you mentioned here. Write them all down on a sheet of paper. Also mention the good things about the quilt -good colors? You said the theme was cute -original design? The problem is that the maker maybe did put in $400 of labor, if paid minimum wage for the time involved, it just wasn't labor to good effect. You might recommend her to sell it on Ebay, and maybe the neighbor would feel like helping her set it up. Roberta in D

"Kate T." schrieb im Newsbeitrag news: snipped-for-privacy@p77g2000hsh.googlegroups.com...

Reply to
Roberta Zollner

has someone asked you to teach them to quilt? I wouldn't worry about something that hasn't happened if that's not the case. You're also in a situation between neighbors that can get out of hand pretty easily in spite of your best intentions and efforts. Did this elderly lady make the quilt as a result of your neighbor hiring her? If so, the neighbor has made the mistake, not you, so just opt out of advising her because you aren't experienced at appraising. If she presses you, you can simply tell her that she has to decide this for herself. The less you express about your personal opinion the better. If there are hard feelings in the future, you can't be held accountable.

Musicmaker

Reply to
Musicmaker

~snippity snip~

You say......."The theme is very cute. I have absolutely NO experience or ideas about how to appraise a quilt so won't even venture a guess. The LQS would be your best bet to get a realistic appraisal, it's located at ____________ ." You now have no responsibility about what's going to be said, it's out of your hands. What the people at the LQS say isn't your concern.

Apparently nobody has asked you to give quilt instructions or help this lady so don't worry about bullets unless they've left the barrel. If it should happen that you are asked to help her you just be very honest and tell them what you told us. "NO, I can't because of my health." Period, end of story, you need no long excuses or detailed reasons, you owe nobody any obligation.

The less said, the fewer the reasons and suggestions the better. Be brief, be firm, don't get involved and don't waste time on something that really isn't your problem or obligation and get that quilt out of your house.

Val

Reply to
Val

If she chooses to go the EBay route though, she should reveal the scorch marks, the fabric raveling in spots, etc. I know that will probably squash the deal, but you would hate to have an unsuspecting buyer end up with an unsatisfactory purchase.

(I'm not really clear on what your neighbor is asking of you - is she asking you if the quilt is worth $400? Does your neighbor love the quilt? Perhaps it is worth $400 to her if she loves it? Or is your neighbor trying to gracefully get out of an awkward situation? In that case, perhaps "the colors don't suit her" or she just isn't a "quilt person".

Reply to
Pauline

Hi Kate,

If it were me, I say to the neighbor exactly what you told us. Tell her all the great points about the quilt, but then be perfectly honest about the construction flaws. Your reasoning on every point--raveling fabric, burn marks, not enough ties, etc--is perfectly valid. I'm sure if you point them out to her, she will be able to understand. Then I wouldn't even discuss the monetary value. After that it's a moot point. If she still presses you, (but I'd be surprised if she would after your explanation) just tell her you're not qualified to make that assessment.

Best regards, Michelle in NV

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Reply to
desert quilter

Reply to
pansylovr

Thanks ladies for all you help. I am not going to give any further suggestions, remarks about this quilt. As you all said don't get involved and I am going to take your advice.

Kate T.

Reply to
Kate T.

You've received lots of good advice here! Another thought, if this elderly lady is trying to get some income from her work, maybe she could simply offer her cute hillbilly painted blocks on eBay without going to the work and expense of assembling them into a completed quilt. It would save her time and maybe produce a better raw product that might be worth more to someone than the finished piece. I would still go over the scorch and poly/cotton issues, but it might make it a little easier for her. Also, I believe there is a site strictly for selling handcrafts,

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(nayy) that might provide her with an outlet if she doesn't want to to the eBay auction route. Good luck!! Lorraine in WA

Reply to
TwinMom

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