 Portland's weekly "Spectator" said it was "the most interesting and instructive exhibit ever given at the museum".Hoffman believed the Arts and Crafts Society of Portland could help improve the lives of blue collar workers and their families, and she sought a wide variety of accessible venues to sponsor activities and exhibits — "fairs, schools, libraries, department stores".Her daughter Margery Hoffman Smith wrote that her mother "felt strongly that there is a creative impulse in all human beings that needs outlet... for such impulses to be expressed was essential for the well being of the individual".