2014 state fair results

It feels just like yesterday that I went to the state fairgrounds to drop off my projects. In reality, it was near the beginning of August and over a week before the fair started!

This year I entered 10 projects and half of them placed. Oddly, I received one each of the 1st – 5th place ribbons – a complete collection, as they only go to 5th place! 😉

It’s always fun to pick up projects after the fair because the judges include comment sheets that can either be helpful, comical, or just plain confusing. They also include a score out of 100, which determines the placings. Some classes score out of 100, but sometimes it seems the judges use 99 as the top score.

So, starting with my blue ribbon winner: My Summer Stripes Socks. (Click on the title links to see my Ravelry project pages, and to find the patterns!) These were displayed in the “winner’s case,” as I like to call it. All of the sweepstakes/grand champions are displayed here, and most of the projects that place with a blue.

1st place in “Socks, Plain or Ribbed” out of 20 entries! Scored 99/100.

Second place went to my Chai Latte Pillow, which I tested this summer through a group on Ravelry.

2nd place in the class “Not Otherwise Specified, Not Wearable” out of 9 entries. Scored 98/100

Third went to my Nehemiah Pullover! This was also a test knit I completed this summer.

Unfortunately, they really have to squish in the knitting entries, since there are so many. However, my sweater still was displayed on a model form, even if it was at a strange angle! MANY projects are displayed in the back of the case, partially laying on top of each other.

3rd place for “Adult Sweater, Plain Pullover” with 6 entries in the class! Scored 94/100.

Fourth went to my (well, now my mom’s!) Briargate Jacket. This was also a test earlier this year, and is currently an unpublished pattern.

…It’s always interesting how those at the fair decide to display sweaters, as mentioned above. Usually – like this photo – they put a hat on top of the body form. And it doesn’t always match! 😉

4th place in the “Adult Jacket/Coat Outerwear class, out of 6 entries. Scored 95/100.

Finally, I received fifth place for the scarf I made for my mom for Mother’s Day, which I just wrote about. I was quite happy with this one, as there were so many entries in this class, and I received the lowest placing that still receives a ribbon!

5th place in the “Scarf, Medium Weight Yarn” class, out of 29 entries!! Scored 95/100.

The other five projects I entered weren’t too much of a surprise for not placing.

Below, my Sherwood Hat received no placing but a score of 92/100. There were 23 entries in the “Cap or Hat, Texture” class, so it was a large class, as were most of the others below! …Yes, this was a test knit. (See a trend evolving?)

Remember what I said about the hats displayed on body forms…? If they run out of room, the knit items creep into the other handicraft areas…

My Zappenin’ Hat scored 91/100, which was understandable, since there are usually so many detailed and fantastic Fair-Isle hats. My hat was pretty simple compared to the total entry count of 27 in the “Cap or Hat, Color Pattern or Intarsia” class!

And you guessed it, I also tested this pattern!

Well, it’s supposed to be a slouchy hat…so it looks funny all bunched up. But at least it matches the masculine-themed model 😉

Sometimes the displays get a little wonky (hey, I don’t blame the workers – I would probably do a worse job!). My Hootenanny Band of Owls headband was displayed upside-down…and hee hee, I didn’t bother to tell an employee. (I probably should have though, so they could have corrected it during the fair!) Read about this original design of mine here.

Can you see the owls? This received 90/100 in the “Not Otherwise Specified, Wearable” class, with a total of 26 entries!

My Diagonal Top didn’t place in the “Sleeveless Sweater or Vest, Plain or Texture” – there were 10 entries, and it scored 89/100.

I forgot to take a photo I didn’t take a photo since it was one of those sweaters that was hidden and not displayed very well. So here is a photo that makes it look a lot better “on” than displayed “flat”! Read more about how this test knit went here.

Although I think it looks nice, the judges focus on level of difficulty and construction – and this was not my finest seamstress job! 😉

Finally, my Sherwood Cowl (yes, a test knit) didn’t even score – ouch! Since there were over 25 entries in the “Scarf, Lightweight Yarn” class (29, to be exact), the judges only have to score/judge the top 25. So I all got for this one was a card that read those words.

Ugh, what a bad, folded-up angle.

Because that looks so bad, here’s a nice photo so you can see it in all its glory:

There, that looks much better!

Overall, I am very happy with my results, and already have plans for next year – they usually start as soon as I drop off the current year’s projects at the fairgrounds!

Bonus photo: I think this was my favorite knitting project I spotted at the fair! With some research I found it was ClaireABellKnits on Ravelry that made these. They remind me of this pattern from the Mochimochi genius Anna H.

Teeny tiny knit superheroes…what could be better??! Can you name them all?