Wednesday, August 16, 2023

What the Judge 👩🏼‍⚖️ Said, 2023

We just had our county fair, August 7th through August 13th! Having grown up in 4-H, I still get the urge to enter my projects when fair time rolls around!!! 🎡
This year I entered 7 quilts and 1 crocheted item. It was the same judge as last year, who had a lot of comments. The judge has scribes that do the writing for her. Below I list the category it was entered in, the ribbon it received, the judge's comments in quotes, and my response below that. We don't get to talk with the judge personally and we don't see the comments until we pick up our items at the end of the fair and take them home.

I'll start with my crocheted selvage rug--although it's crocheted, it's made from selvages I cut off of my quilt fabrics all year round! ⤵️ Here it is in a display case, folded into fourths. The finished size is 24" x 41".
1. Rugs--Crocheted: Award of Excellence & Blue Ribbon/1st Place--"Very pretty--great use of those selvage edges. Corners may need an extra stitch to keep from curling."

The judge said the same thing last year--add another stitch in the corners, so I did. I also steam pressed the corners beforehand, but those corners just have a natural curl to them.

Here's a tutorial on how I make these rugs: Crocheted Selvage Rug. Each August I finish up one for the county fair and then start one for the next year. I work on it a few rows at a time, as the fabric has no "give", like yarn does, and it can make the hands sore very quickly. I always have one finished by the time the fair rolls around again!

2. Large Bed Quilt, 60" x 80" or larger,  Pieced, Machine Quilted by Entrant: Red Ribbon/2nd Place--"Good placement of fabric colors. Exemplary piecing. Curved quilting is good for geometric blocks. Well done binding. Long seams, borders well done."

This is my Chilhowie quilt, the latest Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt. A red ribbon is 2nd place and means some improvement is needed. But I didn't get that vibe from the comments. I'm not sure why this quilt got a red, other than it's one of the largest categories in the fair and she ran out of her blue ribbon quota.

3. Scrap Quilt, 60" x 80" or larger, Pieced, Appliquéd or Mixed, Using at Least 40 Different Fabrics, Machine or Hand Quilted by Entrant: Red Ribbon/2nd Place--"Variegated quilting thread enhances polychromatic piece. Piecing is well done. Excellent binding. Variety of fabrics is interesting and fun to explore."

This is the first and largest of 7 Rainbow Scrap Challenge quilts I finished in January. Not sure why I got a red ribbon here, either--all positive comments.

4. Quilt less than 60" x 80", Machine Quilted by Entrant: Award of Excellence & Blue Ribbon/1st Place--"Floating triangles & directions add interest. Precise piecing at intersections. Curved quilting pattern is nice contrast to angular blocks. Well done binding." 

This is my Katrina quilt that I made from GE Designs' virtual class. I wasn't too crazy about the off-white background when I finished--I think the white background on my Zoe quilt, made from the same blue fabrics, looks better so it's interesting that I got a super ribbon on this one!

5. Wall Quilt, (249" or less perimeter) Pieced, Machine Quilted by Entrant: Blue Ribbon/1st Place--"Striking bright piece! Quilting motif well done, enhances entire top design. Excellent binding. Yellow flower centers add unity."

I made this during the Strip Twist SAL, hosted by GE Designs--this is Strip Twist, version 2.0. 

6. Wall Quilt, (249" or less perimeter) Appliqué, Machine Quilted by Entrant: Blue Ribbon/1st Place--"Nice variety of fabrics. Most blocks have good contrast. Match stick quilting adds texture. Binding fabric direction could be more straight. Makes piece appear distorted. Binding well done."

This is my Lucy Boston summer homework that I finished last December. There is a change in the binding print where it's pieced together, but it's not noticeable to me. 🤷🏻‍♀️

7. Wall Quilt, (249" or less perimeter) Mixed Techniques (pieced and appliquéd) Hand or Machine Quilted by Entrant: Blue Ribbon/1st Place--"Very "tasty" looking piece. Fun and appropriate fabric. Beading is secure and adds texture. Piece is somewhat off square. Tension issues noted on back. Excellent binding."

This is my Ice Cream Cone Summer Homework quilt. Here's the back, where the judge mentioned the tension:

8. Table Runner or Two Placemats: Red Ribbon/2nd Place--"Excellent piecing. Strive to reduce some bulk in block intersections. Quilting design adds movement. Excellent binding." 

I made this table runner and another just like it from my leftover Zoe Quilt blocks. It's the same blue sashiko prints as my Katrina quilt, number 4 above, with a white background, rather than the off-white prints. I do like the white background better! I quilt all my table runners very dense so that bulky seams are not an issue when placing things on top of it, like a vase of flowers.

I received 2 Award of Excellence ribbons, 5 Blue/First Place ribbons and 3 Red/Second Place ribbons this year. The three that I thought were my best all got Red/Second place! It's based on one person's opinions, and she is rather busy and rushed with so many quilts to judge! My premium check was $29.

Now, here are a few photos of the quilts at our county fair this year:
I thought this crib quilt was especially sweet!!! ⤵️
Here are the two Grand Champion quilts, chosen from all the quilts. One is from the 18-64 year old class and one is from the 65 and over class.  ⤵️
The two Reserve Champion quilts are on the bottom shelves of these showcases. ⤵️
My niece, Gretchen, entered one of the loom knit hats she makes and was thrilled to receive an Award of Excellence ribbon!!!  ⤵️ She has knit 1200+ hats since the start of the pandemic! Gretchen's hats mainly go to Jack's Basket, where babies with Down Syndrome are celebrated. 
That wraps up the county fair for this year! We enjoyed going through many of the buildings--crafts, photography, foods, woodworking, 4-H, rabbits, goats, and the county parks building, as well as had some fun fair food! Are you attending a fair this summer? Are you entering your quilts?

30 comments:

  1. Brave you to enter all those quilts, Nancy, and be open to the judge's comments! It looks like you did really well! Wouldn't you like to be able to talk to the judge and tell her why you did what you did? Congratulations to Gretchen for hat award, too. She's amazing!

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  2. I used to enter quilts at our county fair but haven't in many many years. I do know at our fair, the judge is only allowed 1-1st, 2nd, 3rd in each class. Your projects all looked like winners to me! Thanks for sharing!

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  3. I agree with Diann, you are brave to submit your quilts to the fair. I almost submitted some this year to ours, but decided not to. You did well, despite the red ribbons that should've been blue! I'm so glad Gretchen won a ribbon - she certainly deserves it!

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  4. All your entries are very inspiring! Congratulations on a job well done. It was fun to hear what the judge had to say about your entries. Keep up the good work and I will look forward to seeing what you enter next year. Maybe I will enter something too?






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  5. Lovely quilts! Thanks for sharing your Country fair with my weekly show and tell, Wednesday Wait Loss.

    https://www.inquiringquilter.com/questions/2023/08/16/wednesday-wait-loss-341

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  6. Wonderful job sharing and entering your quilts. I love that the comments are similar from the prior year, just the ribbon is different. Congratulations to you for all your hard work and excellent eye for colors and patterns. Please give a special congrats to your niece, Gretchen!

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  7. A gorgeous quilt show all in one post!!! Congratulations on your wins. They are all so well-deserved!

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  8. Amazing to have so many entries, and so many wins! I'm sure it is hard to get through so many--just one judge? A friend of mine is always pushing me to enter something in our county fair but I've never done such a thing. I keep saying Oh, maybe next year? I came across a sheet that judges use so I've printed that off so I'd know what they look at exactly. A first step I guess.

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  9. Congratulations on all the great results for your entries in the fair.
    It is lovely to see each item and to read the comments.
    Well done.

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  10. i don’t enter quilts or handwork into our county fair. If I could just enter without the comments I be more inclined. Our fair is small. I have lots of friends who enter and win. Your quilts are purple ribbon ( the best of the best in our fair) winners in my opinion! Thanks for sharing!

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  11. You did great on the Ribbons. I was so disappointed in the show I entered in May that I withdrew my entries in the SA show in September. Same Judge will be there and they did not appreciate all the hard work I did on my quilts. Especially the one I designed myself. BUT I am a traditional quilter and there are very few of us out here in the quilting world. I was so disgusted with how my quilts were judged that I will not show anymore. I showed every year from 2005 - 2014 (then family issues prevented me from participating in Shows). Your projects are very worthy of those ribbons, but I agree, the Judges comments really do not match the ribbons. One of mine had absolutely perfect scoring and only got an Honorable Mention - go figure. I am happy for you because it is a lot of work to make a quilt! I always entered to get the Judges comments, but will not enter a show that is so bias toward the traditional quilter. Hugs and you keep on making those quilts for your County Fair!

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  12. I haven't entered a quilt in a quilt show or county fair in many years, but I enjoyed the experiences when I did so. Your quilts are wonderful, and it is very interesting reading the judges remarks! :)

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  13. I too, agree with Diann, you are brave to enter your quilts to the fair, and to read the judge's comments. It's a bit of a pity you can't chat with her, and for me all your quilts deserved a blue ribbon. Great job to Gretchen too!
    Thank you for sharing your wonderful quilts, and linking up.

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  14. Congratulations on your ribbons, Nancy. Your quilts are so gorgeous and your rug looks amazing. How wonderful that you and other quilters share your love of quilting and needlework by exhibiting at the county fair. I wish our fair had such exhibits. Have a great weekend.

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  15. Congratulations on all your ribbons! So the judge can give out more than one blue ribbon in a category? More than one red ribbon? That's interesting. I used to enter the Iowa State Fair every year, just as you do with your county fair, but only one of each was given in a category, so very stiff competition. I always love fairs - miss attending them - but it's always a shame that quilts and afghans can't be displayed in a way that's more visible. Seeing just a big of a quilt, folded-up, isn't sufficient, is it? Though at the Iowa State Fair, the winning quilts are shown flat/on a wall. In any case, I think it's great you entered and did so well! And I love that you crochet a rug each year. You make me want to pull out all my selvedges and make another rug! (I make mine by peg loom weaving, or braiding.)

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  16. Congratulations on all of your wins! What a lot of work. I grew up in 4H as well so we were always entered items in a local fair; always fun to see where you land. I'm helping a friend with the quilt corner of a fair that she is involved in so I might just add one or two of mine to the entries as well.

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  17. Congratulations, you must be so thrilled!

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  18. What an amazing show of quilts in this fair! Judging is a hard job especially when the level of participation is this outstanding. So glad there are still quilters who are willing to share their work with the community so we can all enjoy the visual delights!

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  19. Congratulations on all your winnings! The first place entry in your category that you earned a second must have been extra special. I often enter a few items in our county fair; but, this year, I missed the pre-entry deadline. I always enjoyed looking at all the entries and whooping for the entries that were stitched by people I knew!--TerryK@OnGoingProjects

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  20. Ah the fun of reading comments. I entered 2 quilts in the state fair last year. I won a 2nd place. The only way I knew that was I got a check in the mail. I never got the ribbon which I would have much preferred. Your quilts are gorgeous in my eyes. And the amount of work you put into your projects shines through. Thanks for sharing all of them.

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  21. Super job on all of those entries! I haven't entered a quilt in the fair since we moved to a different county - 17 years ago. Every year I think about it but then time gets away from me. My cousin is a volunteer at the MN State Fair each year. She helps check in entries, usually needlework. She often shares some photos of the exhibits with me once the fair begins. The SD state fair will begin in a week, but so far I don't have plans to attend.

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  22. Wow, look at all those ribbons, Nancy! Great job on all of them! I agree those seconds should have been firsts, especially with the very positive comments. I've entered once at our county far and did receive a blue ribbon. I was going to enter last year and the fair was cancelled. It broke my heart. I always loved the county fairs growing up...especially the exhibits. Thanks for sharing with us at Monday Musings!

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  23. Congrats on the ribbons! I have great memories of my quilts in the fair. Someday I hope to get back to entering.

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  24. I enjoy reading about all your quilts and how the judge reviews them.

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  25. Congratulations on your ribbons! There is really stiff competition at your fair. I think every entry in all catogories got a 1st place. There were lots of blue ribbons! Our judges don't make many comments. Out of 5 entries I got two words, "good color". It is fun to enter and see all the other entries show up.

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    1. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Dove! Yes, we've had judges who make no comments in the past, also, which is pretty mysterious. The judge we have right now make a lot of comments, which is helpful for the participants! It's more fun to enter when there's feedback!

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  26. What a lot of beautiful quilts, I'm sure the only reason for the red ribbons was that they'd reached a quote of blue ribbons, there is no other explanation! Being a brit I actually don't know what 4H is, I've tried googling and got details of a youth organisation pencils and a local bus service !

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  27. Congrats on the success of the fair. :) Thanks for sharing in my Sew & Tell party.

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  28. Thanks for sharing this post and the comments given by the judges. I've never entered a quilt in a show so this was really interesting. Congrats on all your ribbons!

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  29. Wow! You did so well to enter so many quilts and well done on all the ribbons you brought home! I think they were all just gorgeous! Thanks for joining in on Monday This and That! xx

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