Encouraging guild members to enter quilts in local show

[dianaupp]

I am trying to find some way to encourage more of our local guild members to enter their quilts in our local quilt show. We have a judged show but it is a relatively small show and we do not usually have a "certified" judge but we do try to have someone who has judged other shows. Many of our local quilters seem reluctant to have their work "judged". I, personally, love quilt shows and the sharing of all that skill and art with the general public and other quilters. I don't take offense at what judges have to say about my quilts -- I, actually, agree with what they have to say. Do any of you have any words of wisdom to share to help me help others get over the fear of being "judged"?
djpbe

[dianaupp]

We are just in the throws of organising our judged quilt show for our group of 100 members. We have the same problem! We get round it by encouraging the members to hang their quilts and let them opt out of the quilts being judged if they wish to.
We also talk to each of the three groups about how fantastic it is to walk into a hall and see your quilt hanging there. But it is sometimes hard to persuade a member that their quilt is as good as any other and that deserves its moment in the limelight. Why are we such a modest lot?

We have just closed the entries at 105 quilts. I would say of that 105 only about 10 are in the not judged category.

We do not publish any comments that the judges make and keep the number of people attending the judging day to the minimum - usually 2 reps from each of the three groups the exhibition secretary and the president.

The judges usually write a general critque of the show for us which we then put into our newsletter - as long as it does not in any way identify a particular quilt or quilt maker.

As I say we have 100 members but I would say less than 10 of those members enter quilts in the NSW Quilters Guild annual show.


Its difficult to get people to display their quilts and show off their talents. Goodness knows why!

[dianaupp]

Our quilt guild, Friendship Star in Gaithersburg, MD holds a quilt show every April at our county fairgrounds. If you're in the area the weekend of April 28th, please stop by. We do an unjudged show which definitely encourages lots of entries from our local members. I'm one of those people who would probably not enter a quilt unless I could opt out of judging. BUT, I am getting better and I do understand the value of constructive criticism of your work by a qualified judge. So maybe, one day, I'll get brave enough to enter a judged show. We do have the public vote on Best of Show and favorites in different categories.

[RobinQuilts]

The Sinnissippi Quilt Guild in Rockford, IL is gearing up for its latest biennial show at the beginning of May. We will have over 350 quilts, of which about 160 are to be judged by certified NQA judges. I, too, wish that more of our guild members would submit quilts for judging - many of them do submit just for the display quilts - because having a quilt judged is a wonderful way to improve your skills. Not every judged quilt out there is perfect - many of them are far from it and even the quilts that win prizes are not perfect.
The judges we have used are always constructive in their comments; after all, it is in their best interests not to discourage quilters from continuing in their art. In the 3 1/2 years that I have been quilting, I have entered a couple of quilts in shows and I am always glad that I did. Even if a judge does not like my quilts enough to award me a ribbon, I KNOW that what I do pleases me, brings me pleasure in the process and I have learned how to be more discerning in both my quilt design and in my workmanship because of what they have said about my quilts.
Please do not be intimidated - no, we're all not going to become the next Ricky Tims - when we exhibit our quilts we are sharing with the world something that we love and who knows where that might lead.

[RobinQuilts]

One of the quilting bees which I belong has adopted a list of personal quilting goals. One of those goals is to submit a work to the local quilt show OR the county fair. I know several quilters who enjoy submitting work to the county fair and then made the jump to the local quilt show.

I know my guild show and county fair offer many different categories for work. It doesn't have to be a big item.
I also think offering a display category only is a good way to increase participation.

FW

[RobinQuilts]

I enjoy entering my quilts in shows, but I have a thick skin when it comes to the input of the judges. I have watched a judge go through the quilts to go in a show, she had only 8 hours to judge 400+ quilts. I saw her judge one of my quilts, and she did award it a ribbon, but she spent only 2 minutes looking at a king-sized monster. So, you have to take the judges' opinions with a grain of salt. Just enter for the fun of it, to support your local group!

Having said that, one thing that gives me pause in entering small, local shows: they have no insurance for your quilt! They want me to have it covered under my homeowners policy, which is just another phone call for me to have to make, and do I have to have the quilt appraised? Do I have to pay extra on my premium?

[Franceslovesfabric]

I am one of the co-chairs for our local show. Entrants can choose between display or judged. We charge $5 entry fee which covers insuring all quilts for $500 dollars. If your guild belongs to NQA, you can get insurance through them.
As far as homeowners insurance, your insurance will only cover what it would cost to buy a blanket. (This is according to a friend of mine who is an appraiser). I have all my quilts appraised then have a separate rider with my insurance company. I give my insurance agent a picture of each quilt and a copy of the appraisal. It costs me more, but I know that if something were to happen, I would have the money to recreate them or pay someone else to recreate them. As all of our quilts have sentimental value, sometimes replacing them won't take all the hurt away, but the insurance gives you the ability to replace a loved item. The other thing about the rider, many have no deductible.
Frances in Austin where it is sunny now, maybe rain later.

[WandaM]

Frances, when is your guilds show? I live a couple hours away and would like to come! WandaM

[Franceslovesfabric]

Wanda, It is the last weekend of September. It is listed on the Events page here.
Frances

[Franceslovesfabric]

I have entered quilts in several small local shows. The most recent was not a judged show like the previous ones, but was all viewers choice. It saved our guild a bunch of $, not paying judges!

I really feel more validated by having over 300 people vote saying they liked my quilts than by 2 judges. I helped one of the judges at our last show she spent a couple of minutes on each quilt and often didn't look at the binding or back and made comments like "nice colors, nice design, etc."

I know a judge has more knowledge about perfection in techniques, but I don't make quilts for perfection anyway. I make them to be pleasing to look at and although, I'm aiming for perfection, I don't think my quilts are perfect.

I don't know why people are afraid to enter shows, especially non-judged ones like this one. It's fun to see our quilts hanging like artwork and to eavesdrop on the people oo-ing and ah-ing!

Nancy in NY

[Franceslovesfabric]

I agree, Nancy, about the gratification of hanging a quilt in a viewer's choice quilt show, of which I have participated in several times, locally. Eavesdropping and hearing comments - that accidently happened to me! I've also participated in 1 show that had a professional judge, and she was able to provide quite a good critique on paper that had a lot of constructive criticism. It was very helpful! We all have room for improvement, no matter what our skill level. I admit the first time I displayed one of my quilts, it was a little scary. But once I took the plunge, it ended up being a positive experience. I appreciate the Quilt Gallery here on TQS website, and being able to show my quilts to a very large audience!

[BethMI]

My guild's quilt show is this coming weekend, and we have 205 entries. Those include quilted ITEMS (wall hangings, clothing, etc.) as well as traditional quilts, so I estimate that there will be over 150 quilts, per se, on display.

How many quilts makes a "good" show? I don't know how many quilts most shows have, but this seems (pleasantly) like a lot to me. I can hardly wait! I have 3 in there and my daughter has one.

This is viewer's choice, and my daughter is excited because everyone who has seen her quilt to date absolutely loves it. I hope she gets lots of great feedback. That is so important for a new quilter. (She just turned 21, and this is her second quilt.)

BethMI

[Franceslovesfabric]

Beth, sounds like a good show to me. Our guild is over 500 members and in 2008 we hung around 350 quilts. We limit our members to 3 quilts and one wearable. As you can see, many of our members don't enter anything in the show. Tell your daughter to walk around the show and keep her ears open.
Frances in stormy Austin

[Franceslovesfabric]

I usually post myself near by my quilt at a show... I like to hear the comments both good and bad about what I have done... I always try to take comments as free lessons and sometimes even learn something. My feelings are not easily hurt by rightful comments and spitful ones I just consider the source.

This year I am suppose to demonstrate making 3 dimensional flying geese like Ricky showed on the show. I have made a small quilt with them and have written up a pattern sheet with various sizes of geese. It took me weeks testing the sizing for my pattern. I am beginning to get nervous about doing the demo. I am not the best speaker.