Entering quilts in shows is an interesting phenomena. It's always based on such subjectivity, which totally makes sense yet doesn't at the same time. The ones choosing certainly deserve to choose what fits, in their minds, the show they are creating, for the space they have to fill. On the other hand, from the outside looking in, there's surprise at what
didn't get it. One glance through the
#quiltconreject hashtag on Instagram, and you know darn well, there could be a whole 'nother quilt show of amazing and beautiful quilts. They just won't be at QuiltCon next year.
That said,
Yay or Nay made the cut. Honestly, it's the one I least expected to get in. But it's the one I'm most gratified to have accepted. It contains a real part of me that the other two I submitted do not... that part that struggled with whether or not what I was creating was worth doing... the one that is a reminder to me not to be afraid of getting it wrong. Ironic how that turned out, isn't it?
Baconrific was really the one I thought had a chance of getting in. The whole 'quilt inspired by bacon' odyssey was loads of fun and provided lots of laughs. I'm really glad I went out on a limb and gave
Bee Sewcial the bacon prompt, crazy as it was. It made me happy.
The final quilt I submitted was
Archipelago, which was made specifically for the
nine-patch challenge. Pretty much from the moment I heard about the challenge, what came to my mind's eye was pretty much exactly what it became. The Bahama blue background was such a nice change of pace, and sewing those wonky blocks straight from the scrap bin was, of course, fulfilling in itself. It was a good process for me.
So I'd say 1 out of 3 is pretty good odds, and considering there were over 1600 quilts submitted, I'm honored to have a quilt heading to
Savannah, and it'll be in good company. But even though that feels great, obviously, I'm remembering how it feels
not to have a quilt going..... and knowing that doesn't devalue the others one single bit. The space isn't big enough for all we entered. Let's just keep creating. Let's enter our quilts in other shows. Let's keep sharing on our social media venues where there's plenty of room. Note to self.
