What happens at Quilt Judging…..

Last week I linked to an article about the jury process for a big show like QuiltCon…..

How do you get juried into QuiltCon??

In comments on this post, several people mentioned that they were intrigued by the actual judging process so I thought that I would walk you thru this process for a smaller (guild) show.

I have been fortunate to be involved in judging for our guild show for a number of years. Please note that these photos range from way back in 2011 so if we start looking older really fast, you will understand why! Also, you will see several different judges during this walk-thru!!

There are a few rules for everyone who helps with judging…..

FIRST is confidentiality!!! The things that are said in the judging room must NEVER leave there!!

Secondly, is QUIET. Everybody must do their jobs as quietly as possible to not bother the actual judging process. Honestly, it is the ONLY time that I have been around quiet quilters!!!

So let’s get started…..

When the judge arrives. quilts are laid out on tables by category and, after giving instructions…..

….she dives into the first category.

The quilts are initially folded in half so that the backs are showing.

Once the judge has read the description for the category, the quilts are “fanned” by unfolding each one quickly back onto the table……

This gives the judge a quick view of all of the pieces that she will be judging in that category.

Then the hard work begins…..

She looks at each quilt individually, starting by looking at the quilt as a whole…..

……commenting on the design, including fabric selection, color coordination, etc.

Then, she studies the quilt up close and comments on the technical aspects of each quilt, including the quality of piecing, applique, quilting, etc.

As she studies the quilt……

….she is verbally giving comments that are written down by one of the scribes…..

These critique sheets are given to the quilter at the end of the show.

Sometimes she asks for the quilt to be held up so that she can better see the design…..

After she finishes with a quilt, she will do one of three things…..

Release the quilt which means that it is not in the running for a ribbon

HOLD the quilt for the category which means that it “might” get a ribbon

HOLD the quilt for one of the special awards (Best Quilting, Judge’s Choice etc).

When all of the quilts in the category have been judged the FUN part starts…..

All of the quilts that were held for the category are returned to the table, and as you can see, EVERYBODY in the room gathers around to hear the results…..

At this point, she may re-examine the “held” quilts……

….and she will release additional quilts until she has narrowed it down to the number of ribbons for the category.

Sometimes she asks that all of the possible winners be held side-by-side so that she can see all of them at once…..

It is always an exciting time as she names the ribbon winners.

At this point, there is a lot of scurrying around to make sure that everything has been recorded correctly……

And the quilts are returned to storage….except for the ones that have been held for a special ribbon. Those are kept separate for now……

And, all of the 1st place quilts are kept in a special area until it is time to pick the “BEST OF SHOW”!!

After all of the categories have been judged, the quilts that were held for the various special ribbons are brought out and the judge makes her choice from those.

NOW it is time for the coveted “Best of Show”!!

All of the 1st place ribbon winners are placed on the tables and the judge names one of them her “BEST OF SHOW”!!!

So that’s it…..the process from beginning to end!!

Our show normally has around 225 quilts and it takes the better part of two days to complete the judging.

It is always a fun two days, with food…..

….and fellowship…..

….and viewing LOTS of amazing quilts!!

So, if you are ever given the opportunity to be part of a show judging….say YES immediately and be ready for a wonderful experience.

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In this blog, I post stories about creativity, techniques, tools of the trade, and lots more about the wonderful art of quilting. If you are enjoying these posts, please subscribe to be notified of each new blog as it becomes available.

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A Little Help From My Friends

When you saw this title, I feel sure that many of you broke out into song…..

….but this post isn’t about a song, it is about a good friend (Seth) who finds quilts and inspiration wherever he travels. And the best part is that he ALWAYS sends it on to me!!!

This is the latest…..

He found these hanging in the Redmond Municipal Airport in Redmond, Oregon!!

What a great collection!!

Thanks, Seth for making my day!!!

I don’t know about you, but I LOVE to find art in airports!! It is always unexpected and can make those tiresome travels so much easier.

What is the best airport art that you have ever seen??

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In this blog, I post stories about creativity, techniques, tools of the trade, and lots more about the wonderful art of quilting. If you are enjoying these posts, please subscribe to be notified of each new blog as it becomes available.

Type your email…

Houston here we come!!

For the past week, the International Quilt Festival Facebook page has been posting photos like this one…..

…and even better…..this one…..

What does this mean???

It means that the Houston Quilt Show starts this week!!

And, I am SO excited to be going again. Last year’s virtual show was fun but it just wasn’t the same!!

My friend Linda and I are packed and hit the runway later this morning.

Be prepared for tons of quilt photos to follow in the next weeks!!

A New Adventure…..

Today I am off on a new adventure to help judge the quilts for the Georgia National Fair!!!

I am super excited and pretty nervous too!!

They use a checksheet scoring which should make it a bit easier and, hopefully, after the first 10 or so quilts, I will feel more comfortable with it!!

I have a long history with fairs!!

In Abilene, Texas (where I grew up), my favorite part of fall was the West Texas Fair. We would be released from school early on the first Tuesday of the fair and given free tickets so that we could attend!!

It was such fun to walk thru all of the pavillions, pick up free goodies from the advertisers, stroll thru the homemaking tent where the crafts and bake goods were housed, and then finally visit the barns. My Dad LOVED the barns so we spent an inordinate amount of time there….but it was fun to smell the farm fragrances and see the beautiful animals.

And then there were the rides!!! It is sad how much faith we put into rides that were hastily built and seldom repaired, but it is fun to remember the screams of joy as we whirled thru the air. Since I was an only child, Mom and Dad would often let me bring a friend, but if I was there by myself, I could always count on my Dad to climb on the ride with me!!

Back in 1971, I knitted a pair of houseshoes for a Girl Scout project and entered them in the fair. Naturally, my Mom kept all of the documentation and apparently, I won a Second Place ribbon…..

When my Mom returned to quilting in 1976, she immediately started winning ribbons at the West Texas Fair and she was SO proud of them.

In later years, she even helped to judge the entries…I guess that nut didn’t fall far from the tree!!

Her last entry in the fair was a quilt that she and I had made together…..

She had hand appliqued all of the amazing flower blocks and was just going to put some borders on it and call it done. I asked her if I could finish up the quilt and she happily acquiesced!!

She was SOOO excited that it won first place that year in the Applique division and I even have the ribbon that I purloined from her house…..

So Fairs seem to run in my blood.

I’ll let you know how this weekend turns out!!!

Rainbow Pineapple heads to Houston

Today I sat down to check my email after lunch and there was one from Joan, a quilting friend, asking if I was the “Frances Arnold” listed in the IQA “Finalist” list!!!

I didn’t even know what the IQA Finalist List was!!!!

I did a quick search and sure enough, I found out that my quilt “Rainbow Pineapple” has been juried into the “Celebration of Color” exhibit at the International Quilt Festival in Houston in November…..

Needless to say, I am PUMPED!!!!

I am also thankful that she saw it because it has to be delivered by August 20th and we leave on Friday for a month in China, only returning on the 18th. So, now I need to find time to get it packaged up and off to UPS before we leave!!