Evening Star quilt show 2011

On Saturday, November 5, 2011 I had the chance to spend time with my great Quilting Friend, Christine, and look at quilts. The show was in Mineola, NY, by Evening Star Quilters. It's so much fun to go with Christine. We take our time, and discuss the quilting process, the designs, and yes, the errors. There were many blue ribbons in this show. I personally think the quilts shown last year were a better quality, and talked about this with Jessica, who had shown quilts last year, but didn't have any entered this year. Her perspective was different, and I can see both points. Since it was a juried show, and an annual show, completing projects is just as important as completing them well. I wish the "Winners List" had pictures of the quilts, so I could really see why they won. I loved some of the designs, but noticed some "issues" that could or should have been corrected before they were quilted and shown. Maybe some of the quilts should have been left on a design wall for a few days before they were pieced into a top. It wasn't obvious until I took a picture, and noticed it on the camera. Maybe a few should have been a little more careful about matching. I don't think many of these would have been judged the same if in a national competition, or a larger one. That said, I haven't entered any of my quilts for competition. I am not a member of a guild at this time, and feel many of my quilts and finished projects are almost worthy of a smaller competition. I do feel that looking at the ones from this show help me learn about the issues with mine. I'm getting better, and learning all the time about different aspects to competing in quilt shows. I don't feel quilts need to be perfect. They are made by humans. We aren't perfect. But I do feel we need to show our best. Here are some of the quilts from the show. What's your opinion?