I attended the reception for entrants in the Fabrics & Threads division at the Iowa State Fair last Wednesday & was a little disappointed that I didn't win any ribbons. Maybe I shouldn't have been surprised since the two items I entered were my first attempt at both techniques. What I was surprised about was that in the category that I entered the portrait quilt (you can barely see it in the upper right corner of this photo), the judge only awarded two ribbons, second & fourth places. Second place (red ribbon) was given to the quilt on the left side, the maple leaf. Fourth place (pink ribbon) is immediately to the right, the abstract circles & squares.
The director of the Fabrics & Threads department explained that a judge is not obligated to award all ribbons. Okay, if I were a judge I imagine there would be times when I didn't feel as though any of the entries deserved a blue ribbon, but I don't think I would skip a place. Seems a little unusual to me.
Anyway, no sour grapes here. I've had positive feedback from many friends & will just need to try, try again. There's always next year!
Keep on stitchin'
BTW, there were 2800 items entered in the Fabrics & Thread division this year, over 800 quilted items! Only 600 quilts last year so I'd say it's growing in popularity.
