Last week I told the story of our granddaughter’s comforter and this week you’ll get “the rest of the story” 🤣.
My husband retired six years ago. I have recently been pushed into what I hope is temporary early retirement, from teaching quilting and grandchild daycare, by the pandemic. So Mike and I are spending a lot of time together. As with many people who are at our stage of life, we are experiencing some of the less than funny symptoms of maturity. Fortunately we enjoy teasing and laughing together.
That being said, Mike wasn’t laughing when we began pinning Hanna’s poofy comforter into the frame. Three extra-loft batts make for a really thick comforter!
I usually pin with 1″ bent safety pins, and even I struggled to get them to work along the edge of the purple fabric.
Mike struggled for only a few minutes before he threw up his hands in frustration, so I gave him the handful of 1 1/2″ pins I own.
That didn’t make him any happier and, after giving it a good try, he allowed me to finish pinning things together solo. I didn’t blame him a bit. I however did persevere and all went well.
Time went by, the quilt was finished and sent off to Hanna, and I didn’t give this situation another thought… until Christmas. Mike and I don’t typically exchange gifts (we have everything we need – praise the LORD). So imagine my surprise when he walks up to me with a smirk on his face and presents me with a Christmas present. I unwrapped it to reveal… 3″ long safety pins!!!
I laughed hysterically! Those pins are honking big!
I’m pretty sure my quilts won’t survive the size of the holes they would make!
I have a challenge – who can come up with a use for 3″ pins? I’d love to let Mike know that I like my gift and find them useful (tee-hee).
And now, the rest of the rest of the story…
I wrote this post shortly after it happened, in anticipation of sharing it with you this week, and I thought it was complete. Imagine my surprise when 3 days after Christmas Mike hands me a package that had just been delivered to our mailbox. What was inside?
The colorful 4″ pins that didn’t get delivered in time for Christmas!!!
This guy really makes me laugh. As I hugged him I glanced at my shelf only to discover I am also guilty of a pin addiction. At last year’s quilt Expo in Madison I found a unique “quilt hanger” I just had to have and, you guessed it, it’s the biggest pin yet!
It’s about 16″ long and it actually opens to slip a quilt on for display on the wall.
So I guess we were meant for each other!
Wishing you a week filled with smiles!
Kay Christian says
You are meant for each other. Love your smiles😊Miss seeing both of you. k
GloriaVolland says
Hi -pin a small border to the next quilt then pin the small border to your quilt frame using the large and extra large pins. Show your husband that his joke was handy after all. Happy New Year !!
Jackie Fritsch says
Loved the real-life story! The frustration sounds like something my husband would have, but you have a sweetheart that would then try to solve the problem. 3 and 4 inch pins! LOL
New Free Motion Quilter says
So back in the day, did he “pin” you? or did you meet later in life and just now got around to being “pinned”. I’ll let you explain “being pinned” to the younger generations when you answer my nylon clear or smoke quilting thread question. Will it get brittle and break in the dryer and over time? In my reading it is supposed to work well for stitch in the ditch for beginning free motion quilters. My errors will be noticed less.
clkquilt says
Hi Colleen,
LOL! He gave me a bracelet in High School, but we never got pinned – until now :-)!
As far as the clear thread question, I did a post about my experiments with it back in 2015. Here’s the link: https://www.chrisquilts.net/5239/
Debby Abe says
Love the pin hanger!
I use the those large pins to pin my quilt into my carpet because I don’t have a frame to use for pinning.
Stephanie A Olson says
May I ask where you found a purple flannel sheet? My daughter would like purple flannel sheets and can’t find them.
Wanda Kruger says
Love this story and the replies.
Sandra says
So funny, Chris! One of those sizes (3 inch, perhaps?) must have been what we used for cloth diapers back in the day!
Jodi Grzeczka says
Chris: Love reading your blog. This one was especially funny. I hear too often how couples struggle being together after a lifetime of “busy-ness”! Sound like you are enjoying each other as was intended! Keep on keeping on! Love you!