Need Help Looking Up Gift Ideas
Hi,
I am going through my stash of Threads magazines (over 60 issues… complete since late 1994… with a few added through garage sales and ordering from Taunton) looking for quick gift ideas for the holiday season.
I tried the online index, but the search on the key word “gift” gave one article on boxes, and the search for “quick” was not enlightening either. I know that there have been several articles with a little box that said “Try it out!”… but I am having trouble finding them without going to plan dreamland (“Oooh! That looks interesting, perhaps I’ll try that with such and such in my stash”. sigh).
What the website needs is a list of articles that go a certain theme. Themes like “Holiday gifts”, “Designer Profiles”, “Trim Creations” (I also did a check on how to make fabric roses and came up with the Dior roses of issue 34, which I have… but I know that there are other flower instructions — like one that used grosgrain ribbon).
Thanks
Replies
Chris, I'm afraid I can't help you with the "try it outs," since they have never been indexed as such (though a very good suggestion for the future--I'll pass it on to our indexer). However, Taunton has recently published a book called "Quick to Make," which is a compilation of a number of projects from the magazine's "Quick to Make" department. That might give you some ideas for gifts.
Carol
This just in: in the about-to-be-published index to the past year's issues, we'll be indexing Quick to Makes under that heading. Other departments, too, will be indexed by department for ease of searching. I wasn't aware of this till you mentioned it and I asked around here.
For now, no plans to index by "holiday gifts" and the like, as it gets tricky to sort out all the many possibilities in each article; indexing space is somewhat limited, so we try to hit the major techniques or materials. We have been rethinking both the printed and online indices, in the hope of making them more helpful to users, and appreciate your comments.
Carol
Oooh... that is cool, and just fine.
The "Quick to Make" index in and of itself would be incredibly helpful. So far last evening and this afternoon I found a ribbon stocking, felt cat-nip mice, felt trivets, lots of scarves and the winner: the pie bag of issue 87. I have some orange camo duck that I will use for a gift for my dad!
I think a "gift" index would be difficult since it would be difficult to figure out what would be a "gift".
Thanks a bunch!
Oh, yeah, that pie bag is very cool. Extremely multifunctional, I should think. I've always thought that with some elastic retainer straps added to some of the sections, it would make a nice diaper/bottle/assorted baby things bag, and an interesting change from the ordinary. Or makeup and accessories bag for travel; change if from a drawstring to a flat, zippered top for that.
Let us know what you end up making. We all need more ideas!
Carol
I just was made aware of a really great Web site, http://www.sewingmuse.org, which includes a database of Threads articles. Check it out--it's a great complement to our online index, and represents a large amount of work. Hope it helps...
Carol
Woo Hoo, way cool!
Who are these folks who do this!!! You must love us Threads junkies!!
THANKS!
Yes, we do love Threads junkies. After all, we are all former and current junkies ourselves. I'm just very impressed that she has the time to do projects like that database!
Thanks for posting that site, Carol. Mamof (middle-aged mother of four) has done a wonderful job.
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