Believe it or not, the little things do add up. Like while walking through a store the $.99 items seem like nothing in the grande scheme but 20 small items means $20. Or like the leading company in frachising restaurants, McDonald's where they have thousands upon thousands of stores that send back only %2 of their daily earnings. If each store only makes a hundred dollars, which they probably make the first hour of breakfast, then that means that two dollars times thirty thousand stores equals $60,000 sent pack to corporate daily. DAILY! Can you imagine receiving that amount of money everyday. Where it is a chore to figure out what to do with it.
From a different perspective than receiving money like McDonald's, the little things add up, good or bad. In quilting there are many things that are deemed necessary and can increase expenditures pretty quickly. For a college student on a tight budget there is no money for these "necessities". Why are templates so important to quilters when we can just make our own just as good and for free. A template for an apple core quilt can cost ten dollars. RIDICULOUS! We are just adding to the wallet of the stores we frequent. Also, what is the use of the "quilting pen"? Why can I not just use a pencil to mark the back of my fabric? Before you know it your cart is full of different rulers for different patterns and templates for difficult pieces as well as quilt markers in three different colors! These little things is what has made this industry so large and keeps it continuing to grow.
When I am shopping for fabric inevitably the fun little things entice me. They draw me in and almost persuade me to buy them. Then I think, wait, can I make this on my own? Or can I make due without it? The majority of the time the answer is yes. I am not saying these things are not useful and that people shouldn't buy them because quite frankly if the money is flowing without a problem then why not? And if time is a constraint then the quick templates can help save time and make the process more efficient. I have no doubt that these items are fun, easy, and make things more accesible but is the emphasis put on them really necessary? Thimbleanna has a great self made template for the apple core quilt. I love this instructional post because it is so descriptive and adds pictures to help you understand. It is a great encouragement to try to make things on our own.
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The way the economy is today everything adds up. Any hobby requires money to fulfill it. This can be bad. People are shying away from hobbies because they can't afford them. Creative characteristics in humans are evaporating due to infrequency of use.
ReplyDeleteEvery little things adds up from needles to fabric even filling, it is a dollar here a dollar there. I do a great deal of yard sales looking for treasure and am constantly coming across items for quilting and other hobbies. Once, I came across a quilter's rack for $5.00. need less to day, I bought it and turned it for a bigger profit. Like gardening, quilting can nickle and dime you all day like but at the end of the day-as long as it makes me smile, it is worth it.
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