Welcome to Needle and Thursday, friends! I have some bittersweet news to share with you today. After next week (at the end of March), I will be retiring Needle and Thread Thursday. I've been thinking about this for a while, and I know it is the right decision for me. I started NTT almost 13 years ago- way back in June of 2013, which makes it one of the oldest continuous quilt link parties (it even may be the oldest?). It has never taken more than a holiday or vacation break, and it has never had another blog home.
It was started when link parties were THE way to connect with other quilters and to keep your finger on what was happening in the quilty world. It was before Instagram really took off, and those weekly parties were huge, averaging about 70-75 links per week! It was also a time when blogging was the primary way quilters shared their work.
But of course, things are always changing. I still love the detail I can put into a blog post much more than the short posts of Instagram, so I will definitely continue to blog when I have something bigger to share, but I'm going to try to be more intentional about posting more frequently to Instagram, since it seems that's where everybody is most often these days. If you're not already following me on Instagram, I'm myquiltinfatuation there, and I hope you'll join me.
As I mentioned, this change is bittersweet, and even though I have struggled with letting go of Needle and Thread Thursday, I know it's time. Just FYI- I will continue to pay for the link service through June 2027, so you can continue to look back at previous parties if you like. Unfortunately, once I discontinue paying for the service, all of the links will disappear. :(
So, without further ado, let's make these final two Needle and Thread Thursday parties amazing! And let's start off with some of my favorite highlights from last week. This lovely quilt is from Something Rosemade-
😢 Thanks, Kelly, for all the years of quilt parties. See you on the gram.
ReplyDeleteThank you for hosting the party, I'm not a huge fan of IG but I will try to follow. Hugs.
ReplyDeleteI remember the early days of this link party! I think it’s great you kept it going all these years. I find it a little ironic you’re shutting it down now particularly because you want to move to IG more because I’ve been making the switch back to blogging this year. I get to see a lot more a lot more quickly on IG, but the connection is not the same and it’s too consuming, so I’m taking a break to see how I like blogging again. Blogging isnt the same any more either, but it’s fitting my personal needs for how I interact in the quilting world right now. All my old friends are either not sharing at all anymore or are only on IG, but I’ve made a few new ones as I’ve been back to blogging. Good luck with all you’ve got going on wherever you are sharing it!
ReplyDeleteKelly, I don't know how much cost of hosting factored into this decision. Have you looked at the free option from InLinkz? https://fresh.inlinkz.com/pricing. It maxes out at 50 link ups per party but that should be plenty based on current participation rates -- and if not, it encourages folks to link up promptly! Instagram is great for eye candy and for keeping tabs on folks you already know, but it's not really a way to get to know people or share process or techniques. My IG usage is the opposite of what you're planning -- I might upload a pretty finished block or quilt to IG occasionally but normally I am an IG lurker, scrolling "design porn" in odd moments here and there. I record my thoughts, my process, and my project notes in my blog where I can search and find information again in the future, and the fact that others stumble onto my old posts and find them helpful is just a bonus. Even if no one ever visited or commented on my blog posts, I would keep writing them for myself. I do enjoy the smaller community you've created on the big, wide Internet of quilters who link up with you every Thursday and I will miss that. How would you feel about someone else taking over hosting NTT for you, if it's becoming too time consuming and you just feel finished with it?
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kelly, for hosting the NTT link up for so long. I'm not on FB or IG, but I'll continue to follow your occasional blog posts. I've kept blogging for myself, and as a means to share tutorials, etc. with the quilting community.
ReplyDeleteWishing you all the best in your future quilting and posting endeavors, wherever you land.
I sure understand your reasoning for discontinuing Needle and Thread Thursday. I seldom have a linky to share because either I have few quilt finishes, or I'm making things besides quilts. I still enjoy reading blog posts, and writing my own, which I have no intention of letting up on. If anything, I'll write more blog posts than Instagram posts. My blog is where I can truly elaborate, show, share, and inform. Instagram is too random and too "short" for a meaningful chat with readers and commenters. I hope to continue to find posts from you.
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