My how time flies...These photos are from September! And its nearly the end of December! We did "the Puyallup", except it's now the Washington State Fair. I don't now if I'll ever call it that - it's been the Puyallup Fair for forever.
One of the best things about the fair are the quilts! There are HUNDREDS on display. They vary from tied quilts, to intricately quilted. The piecing varies from simple to complex. They are hung from the ceiling in the second floor of the Home Arts building. I entered several pieces in the fair this year. It's a tough show - the judges are really looking for high quality in whatever category the piece is entered in. I've always been intimidated by the amazing work that is hung there every year.
About 8 years ago, I entered 2 quilts, and one of them won 2nd place in its category. Of course, there were only 3 I could find in the large, non-traditional category, so 2 out of three ain't bad?
I'm fortunate that a friend works the fair each year. She messaged me with something to the effect of "You can bring your quilts in today or tomorrow or the next day. Do you want to bring them down, or should I?" Love that. No excuses. I gathered some work from around the house, and off to the fairgrounds I went. On the small one, I ripped out the machine stitched binding, and hand-stitched it down. I may have gone a tad bit overboard - I took 5 items! I entered them, and then didn't think much about it for awhile.
We usually go to the fair as a family, so getting it to schedule out can take awhile, or a few weeks in this case. I'm so lucky, my friends and guildmates love that section of the fair as well. I heard from a friend at church that she thought I'd won a ribbon (WooHoo!) but she couldn't really describe the quilt. And, I had one hanging at the top of the entrance stairs. That's where the ribbon winners land! And did I have a small one, maybe in a case? At this point, it had been almost a month since I turned them in, and honestly, I couldn't really remember all the pieces I turned in! Then at the TacMQG meeting, a guildmate came to me and asked if I'd entered a pillow. Um, Yes? She thought that she'd seen it at a guild meeting during Sew and Tell. Then she pulled out her phone, and showed me the pics she'd captured. Yup, that's my pillow. I was so excited! (Envision Snoopy and the twinkle-toes happy dance!).
Finally - the family was able to go to the fair, and I could see them in place! My husband is very tolerant/encouraging of my sewing, and doesn't mind just letting me roam for an hour or so by myself upstairs. You can see how thrilled the kidlet is about this.
Actually, this picture is the one I take each year, so that if I lose him (or Dad and I get lost...), I can show someone what he's wearing and what he looks like. This pretty well captures his happiness at being drug to the fair. More time at the fair means less time on-line gaming at home
Our family tradition is to stop and get a "Krusty-Pup" and a drink. That's not just a corndog, mind you - it transcends the genre! Of course, for $4.50, it better. Then, it's off to the quilts. And this is what I saw at the top of the stairs when you come in!
In a place of pride, and a ribbon! Then, knowing I had 4 more spread out and about...off I went.
Four ribbons! I was so excited. My husband laughed and said "I'm married to an award winning quilter." I can't even describe how thrilled and delighted this made me. His comment and the ribbons.
I don't know how I got so lucky! The judges commented on the variety of pieces that I could work on my piecing accuracy. Yes, yes I can. Their comments were spot on. I do need to make sure the corners and edges match like they should. Yes, Yes I should. But, was thrilled regardless.
I hope that you all had a wonderful Halloween and Thanksgiving!
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