Ethical question about quilt shows

No, Kathy, I am going to grow it for her. Do you want to comb it
out? Who would like to spin it???

We are the group.

Piece,

Marsha

Good Taria! I was feeling a bit alone in that respect. Thanks!

--
Kathyl (KJ)
remove "nospam" before mchsi
http://community.webshots.com/user/kathylquiltz
"Taria" wrote in message
news:stITi.9140$c_4.6200@trnddc05...
That is me too.
Taria

KJ wrote:
I buy some kits when I'm particularly attracted to all its
features...pattern, fabric selection etc. Then I work it up when I'm in
the mood to sew "mindlessly". Sometimes I don't really want the
challenge of picking out my fabrics. The actual sewing can be relaxing.
I'd never enter them in a quilt show without carefully recognizing the
fact it was a kit, where it came from, etc. But I DO like to have some
kits on hand.

Howdy!

LOL

"making a quilt from scratch"-- you have to choose all your fabric yourself,
and then it's okay to put it into the quilt show as your own quilt-- is that
it? Or call it My Quilt only if you do it all yourself?
(that's gonna' shake up a few quilt worlds for those who piece but do not
quilt the product themselves g) And all the judges must be aware of
all the "kits" that have ever been put together so they'll be able to
distinguish The Kit Quilt from The All Original Quilt...? LOL

But if a quilter "concentrates on other skills", and therefore leaves the
choosing of fabric to someone else, this isn't really the quilter's own
choice(s) and should say so on the quilt label?

Some people just don't do colors. My mother was an excellent handcrafter;
she could sew, piece, embroider, cross-stitch, even paint the wooden
critters my dad made & sold. But she can not pick colors that "go
together." My dad was color-blind. g But the man was an artist w/
wood and w/ the things he painted. Are their works less worthy because
they depended on someone else to choose the colors in their medium?

Btw, the people who work in quilt shops are there to help. Many, many of
them are more than happy to choose fabrics, pick out colors, suggest
patterns, offer their opinions. Do their names go on the credits line(s)
of the quilt label? "Mary, we're gonna' need a longer form for these
quilt show entries!" VBG

Ah, c'mon, if someone gets some fabric & batting & all the other stuff that
goes into making a quilt, then makes that quilt, and then has the
courage to enter it into a show, GREAT! Doesn't really matter who
chooses the fabric, who coordinates the colors, it's Finishing the thing
so that it can be entered in the show that matters. ;-D
...beauty...eye of the beholder...personal preference...

As for the quilts that don't get Finished, aw, well, that's something for
the next generation of quilters to learn from, to Finish, or not.
Maybe they won't get stuck on little words like kit. ;-)

Cheers!
R/Sandy-- there's enough room in the Big Wide World of Quilts for all of us


On 10/24/07 10:21 AM, in article , "Pati C."
wrote:


Cindy, you are a "real quilter" if you say you are. BG I think the big
topic here is that when kit is used for a quilt that is entered into
a show, that fact should be noted, and clearly, for both the judges and
the public. There is a difference in difficulty between making a quilt
"from scratch", ie. using a pattern then selecting all the fabrics for
that pattern, cutting and constructing the quilt, etc. and making it
from a kit where the pattern and fabric selections are done for you.
It is similar to making a cake from scratch, using a recipe then the
flour, sugar, etc. versus making a cake from a mix. You are a baker, and
"make" both types of cakes, but one takes additional skills. BG You
could even equate the icing with the actual quilting of the quilt. Some
people make/do their own, some purchase it. BG

You are a perfect example of one reason why kits are so popular.VBG
And there is nothing wrong with them or you. I think one of the keys is
a bit lost from the OP's question...... evidently there were a lot of
fabrics in the quilt mentioned. The success of the finished quilt
depended, a lot, on the selection of the fabrics. The fact that it was
made from a kit was *not* noted in the info provided about the quilt.
Once the info was obtained that a kit was involved, the OP felt "let
down" about the skills of the quilt maker....... in that she didn't
select the fabrics, evidently quite a few of them, which made the quilt
pattern "sing".

I love choosing fabrics. I love helping others "shake things up" by
sneaking in some unusual fabric choices to spark a quilt. BG Not
everyone does. It is a skill that can be learned, but not everyone wants
to learn it, or has time to learn it. That does not make them less a
quilter, just a quilter who concentrates on other skills. G
Historically many quilts were made of just 2 fabrics, or 2 colors. Think
of all the red-and-white, and blue-and-white quilts that are so well
known. Or the red, green and bit of yellow on white applique quilts. Not
a lot of "thinking" that goes into selecting those colors/fabrics. But
they are still classics. (I am not downplaying those quilts or others
like them. G Just using them as examples.... )Of course in the past
there were often a lot fewer choices of fabrics too. VBG

This has gotten a lot longer than I intended, sorry. VBG There are
lots of skills in making a quilt. Most of us are better at some than
others. All of us who make quilts are "real quilters". It is just the
matter of disclosure and "truth in advertising" that is the problem I
think. G Giving credit where credit is due and all that. And not
taking credit for something someone else did. VBG

Have fun, make quilts, and enjoy it.
Pati, in Phx.
http://community.webshots.com/user/PatiCooks


teleflora wrote:
Wow! I didn't know that. Guess I'm back to being "not a real quilter"
again.

I am paralyzed by fabric choices. I am color-challenged when it comes to
more than 3 fabrics. If I had to wait till I made a decision, I'd never sew
a stitch. And the sewing is the favorite part for me. But I do make sure
people know that my little quilt sometimes come from kits. I also use
coordinated charm squares for many of my mini's. Would that be considered
cheating as well? What about the kits that are made up of particular fabric
lines. I see lots of quilts made from only Moda or RJR collections.

I just don't get when I will be considered a real quilter. Maybe if I hand
dye the fabric I've woven on a loom, made up a brand new pattern, hand
pieced and hand quilted the thing, that will be good enough.

Cindy

Leslie & The Furbabies in MO. wrote:
I am a tiny bit bitter here- when the fabric store where I taught closed up,
I sold all my class samples. One 'lady' bought a log cabin quilt top that
was my original design, then she had it machine quilted and entered it- in
HER name- in a fairly large regional show and won a blue ribbon. She did
not acknowledge that I made the top, but she did acknowledge the machine
quilter. She did nothing but spend the money to BUY a top and BUY the
quilting. Now, how can she be called a quilter? That is where I really,
really draw the line!
I hope you reported that to whomever was in charge of the show.

Julia in MN


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I know where we can get a bathtub!!

Val


"Sunny" wrote in message
ups.com...
Polly, I'm on board for that f ield trip. BG

Sunny

I don't like the idea of entering kit quilts into shows either. I was
very surprised the first time I noticed a 'repeated' quilt in a show -
there were two or three versions of this Christmas sampler, in almost
identical colours! Thing is, I really like the design and fabric
selection part of making a quilt, and I think that buying a kit, while
great for some, takes a lot away from your role as a quilt maker.

I would like to see shows were we display not only workmanship, which is
obviously very important, but also creativity in the design. Hence, I
have recently joined an 'art' guild, where members strive to be
original. Not that I am at their level yet, but I try. Like one of the
more accomplished members who nudged me to join said, anybody can
join... which I guess means that not everybody in it is an artist.. )

I am sure many people will disagree with all this, as with most things
posted in the ng, and that is OK..

Sunny wrote:
I was admiring the gorgeous quilt that won the top prizes at this
year's local guild quilt show a few weeks back today. It was made by
one of the owners of the LQS here. I opined that picking the fabrics
must have been really a hoot when she said that she hadn't picked any,
it was a kit.

OK, I understand somebody entering a kitted quilt if they are just
getting started, but ...... this struck me as just a bit unethical.
The show is viewer's choice and the quilt is stunning. It's paper
pieced and the design just seems to glow. But she didn't really make
those fabric choices.

What do you folks think? Am I just being rude and snitty, as my DH
suggests?

Sunny


--

Dr.Quilter
drquilter at gmail dot com
http://community.webshots.com/user/m...host=community

Hadn't thought of that aspect of it Taria, thanks for bringing it up. I
like doing that too, and I guess when I do that I am not choosing my own
fabrics, and I do intend to enter some of them (if I ever finish them)
into my guild's show.. of course I would acknowledge the provenance. \

Now that I read the original question again I realize it was not about
entering these quilts in the shows or not, but more about recognizing
that the maker had not made the fabric and design choices.... a separate
category would take care of that, as someone suggested.

Taria wrote:
Sometimes I like to finish old quilts that someone may have started
and not been able to finish.
--

Dr.Quilter
drquilter at gmail dot com
http://community.webshots.com/user/m...host=community

On Tue, 23 Oct 2007 20:56:47 -0500, "teleflora"
wrote:

Wow! I didn't know that. Guess I'm back to being "not a real quilter"
again.
snip
Cindy

Oh, no you don't! There is no such thing as an unreal quilter. You've
been here longer than I have and I have plenty of tips saved that you
wrote. Face it--you're a quilter and it's too late to change your
mind.
Debra in VA
See my quilts at
http://community.webshots.com/user/debplayshere

But then she had help, and it's not a real quilt. ;-)

--
Kathy A. (Woodland, CA)
Queen of Fabric Tramps

http://fabrictramp.typepad.com/fabric_tramping/
remove the obvious to reply


"Meandering" wrote in message
oups.com...
No, Kathy, I am going to grow it for her. Do you want to comb it
out? Who would like to spin it???

We are the group.

Piece,

Marsha

Yes, I realize the OP said it is Viewers Choice. I am
not discussing judges. Viewers Choice voting is how ALL
our guild show and challenge winners are determined.
There can be more than one Viewers Choice prize. We
often DO have a few categories for the voters he
wall quilt, large quilt, wearable, etc. That is why I
mentioned a kit category. So, yes, if the show allows
kit quilts, viewers are free to vote for those, however
the committee organizes categories. I don't find that
confusing, which is not to say I am not confusing.
PAT in VA/USA

Marcella Peek wrote:
There seems to be some confusion here (at least for me)

Sunny wrote that the quilt in question won VIEWERS CHOICE. So, why all
the discussion about categories, and judges and such? It was the quilt
the people attending the quilt show liked the best.

If the show allows kit quilts to be hung then of course it would be hung
and eligible for the attendees to choose it as their favorite.

marcella