The 2019 Lake County Illinois Fair is over! Although the judging in the Textile Department is skewed, here are all my entries with ribbons!
For my jams I received:
Apricot - First place, perfect score
Raspberry - First place, perfect score
Peach - First place
Blueberry Lemon - First place
Strawberry Rhubarb - Second place
Cherry Vanilla - Second place
Salted Cantaloupe - Second place
Cranberry no ribbon
Apricot - First place, perfect score
Raspberry - First place, perfect score
Peach - First place
Blueberry Lemon - First place
Strawberry Rhubarb - Second place
Cherry Vanilla - Second place
Salted Cantaloupe - Second place
Cranberry no ribbon
For my needlework:
Blue Towels - no ribbon, judges remark: Beautiful handwork, towel look like they have been washed (well what else would you do with towels!)
Band Sampler - Third place (this is the one where the judge was overheard saying the fabric was dirty - it was hand dyed fabric)
Dreaming of Tuscany - Second place
Cloister Garden - First place
Hardanger Runner - First place, grand champion
Cross stitch ornament - First place, grand champion, judges remarks: beautifully done!
Blue Towels - no ribbon, judges remark: Beautiful handwork, towel look like they have been washed (well what else would you do with towels!)
Band Sampler - Third place (this is the one where the judge was overheard saying the fabric was dirty - it was hand dyed fabric)
Dreaming of Tuscany - Second place
Cloister Garden - First place
Hardanger Runner - First place, grand champion
Cross stitch ornament - First place, grand champion, judges remarks: beautifully done!
I am thrilled with the results for my jam, this is the first time I entered in the Culinary Department. I will definitely enter some more jam next year!
As to the Textile Department, where do I begin? There are less and less entries each year, and when people are asked why they didn't enter, they always state that the displays are not good and the judging is terrible! That is my opinion too. No matter how many complaints they get regarding the judges, they still have the same judges each year! Judges who don't know the difference between cross stitch and needlepoint, judges who don't know what hand dyed fabric is, judges who like beads so anything with beads on it gets a higher ribbon. Judges who think bigger is better, so larger pieces have an advantage.
I have entered this same fair a number of times, and have always received a ribbon, until this year, my towels didn't get a ribbon at all. Oh well. John loves them!
Will I enter again next year? Probably. As long as I plan to take some jam, I might as well take some needlework also.
