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It Was Fun!
Ruth & I recently got back from the fair. We saw the quilts that were entered for judging. The quilts were quite beautiful. We both loved it, because we love the art, techniques, and technology that goes into the creation of each quilt. And, I think that it is somewhat like in the "Music Man" where everyone involved in the creation of the individual parts should feel great, whether they won or not!
Can you believe that I didn't take any pictures to share with you? I mean, 20 years ago I would have had an excuse, because I had forgotten my camera. But, today, when our smart phones are cameras, I have no excuse! I guess this proves the point that as phones become smarter, we become dumber!
The Porter County Fair offers prizes in each of the 21 categories for the top five selections in each category. There was a category with only one entrant! Talk about an easy prize! When I said that, one of the officials looked at me and said that an unopposed entrant did not necessarily, automatically receive first place. I don't know about you, but it would be devastating to get second place in a field of one! However, the quilt did earn first place.
It was interesting that there were categories that didn't have enough entrants to award all five ribbons. Also, there were no hand quilted items. [Can you imagine a longarmer concerned about not having hand quilted items?] There were also no hand pieced items.
Next year you may consider entering one of your quilted items into the County Fair. There are plenty of ribbons! And, even if you did not win one of the five, you can be sure that your entry will help beautify the fair!
I was blessed to be able to be sitting in my wheelchair, right next to Ruth. So I got a very good look at the quilts. It was nice, because I love to take pride in my fellow sisters' works of art. Some of the recurring observations that I had follow. I make these observations, not as criticisms. but as things that you may want to keep in mind when you make your works of art even better, if applicable.
So, here goes, and only in the order that I saw them and not in the order of importance:
1) It became apparent to me how the importance of a pinning is to the finished quilt. Have you ever cut out the same sized blocks, and yet when they are sewn together how the points and corners did not meet? A lot of that has to do with the two fabrics not traveling at the same speed under the presser foot. Over these 20+ years I have noted that as quilters get proficient, they often think that they are too advanced for pinning.
Ruth has been making beautiful quilts for well over twenty years, and she pins everything profusely .... Everything! . .
After marketing Ruth's "Perfect Corner Ruler" for 10 years, I have been used to looking closely at star points, square-in-a-squares, snowballs, and the like. However, when really looking a quilt as a whole, it becomes apparent that corners of squares, rectangles, and the like, must also line up.
I believe that having a standard [equal between parts of a quilt], consistent [equal within a given seam], 1/4" seam allowance is key to achieving that goal. I never had any reason to consider it otherwise, as I have only spent time examining Ruth's quilts or national show quilts, up to this time.
2) Having the same size binding on the front and the back can help in a couple of ways. First, it helps in the making of good looking corners. Second, it is important in attaching binding using automation: using your sewing machine in machine binding - on both the front and the back.
It is also important that the binding remain the same size throughout the quilt. In other words, if it is 1/4" on the top right hand corner, then it should be the same size everywhere on the quilt. Also, this really helps with finishing with machine binding.
3) When working with plaids, and other stripped fabrics, take time to fussy-cut the strips so that the lines are straight with the cut edge of the fabric. Then, sew them together maintaining the straight line appearance.
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