Utah State Fair Update

[Meli]

I spoke with "Miss J" at the Utah State Fair Home Arts department today. She was very kind, listened to what I had to say. She let me know there really is a rule stating quilts should not be washed, but she doesn't know why. She also promised to email me the link and/or screen shot of the rules where it says that. I let her know I had been back over the rules several times and could find no mention of washing. In fact, the only thing I found was that it needed to be clean and that "Soiled items would be disqualified." She's going to continue to look into this and also said she'd try to get that particular rule changed. She is not a quilter and not a judge, but she understands they do get washed once they're complete. She's also going to make sure the rules that were posted and the rules the judges were using are the same.

I thanked her for her willingness to look into this for me and assured her I'm not one of those sore losers who thinks they were cheated. I didn't see the competition this year, but I know it's always pretty stiff. I just want to make sure I'm following the rules in future competitions.

[irishrn]

I think you handled that very well. Perhaps she will be able to get it straightened out for future quilters to avoid this pitfall!
Well done!

[songbird857]

Glad someone is looking into it for you

[Midge]

Glad you followed through. The person you spoke to sounds reasonable. That will be interesting if the Judge's rules and the posted rules for entrants are different, won't it? Like I said before, it is more than for clarity for you. It's also for future contestants' sakes too. Good job!

[rebeccas-sewing]

Thanks for the update. I'm glad you brought it up to her. I'm sure there were others in the same boat as you but weren't willing to confront the situation. Good for you, Meli!

[ellietow]

Hope you get some clarification here...sounds strange.. I'm guessing they probably made a mistake.

[bakermom]

Glad to see you got a response. Not familiar with our State Fair rules, but our county fair has no rule on washing. They do state it is the exhibitor's responsibility to see that their entry is in the right category, should be simple but the wording is very vague. Sometimes I feel it is a real gamble 'cause if you don't do it right your entry is DQ'd.