Peer Judging - What is it?

When we were creating Innovations, we wanted to create a different type of quilt show.  Have you ever heard (or made) the comment “I put my quilt in a show and the Judge didn’t even notice _________! (Fill in the blank with your own experience.)”  Every quilter “sees” a quilt in a different way. Every quilter has a different set of criteria for judging a quilt. By having a Peer Judging Event every person can look at a quilt in their own way, use their own judgment and then make their own choice for the best in each category. 

Most of the quilts entered in the Innovations Quilt Show are quilted on longarm or shortarm quilting machines and are quilted by professional quilters.  Many “regular” quilt judges have little knowledge about how a longarm works and what its capabilities are. Most people attending Innovations are (or want to become) professional quilters. As professional quilters we know the capabilities and limits of quilting machines and we will be able to use this knowledge when we make our choices for the best quilts in each category.

As you enter the Quilt Show at the main entrance, you will be handed a Peer Judging Ballot.  Look at the quilts on display (all the quilts in each category are hung in the same area) then make your choice of which quilt YOU feel is the best quilt in that category.  Write the quilt’s number on your ballot for that particular category. Move on to the next category and make your selection for that category. !

After you make your choices for the best quilt in EACH category you will take your completed ballot and place it in a designated container.  The votes will be tallied after the Peer Judging Event and the quilt with the most votes in each category is the winner.  There will be First, Second and Third Place ribbons presented in each category. If there is a tie between two quilts in any category, the Quilt Show Committee will make a choice between the two quilts.  The decision of the Quilt Show Committee is final.

As professional quilters, we feel it is important for both the creator (piecer/appliquér) AND the quilter be acknowledged as a winner.  With only one ribbon, there is sometimes a conflict of who gets to keep the ribbon.  Innovations is presenting the winning quilts with two ribbons - one ribbon for the quilt top’s creator and one ribbon for the quilter.

During the year we talk to many quilters who have attended Innovations.  One quilter, who has won many awards both locally and nationally, received a Blue Ribbon at Innovations last year.  She told us that of all the awards she has won with her quilting, the Innovations Ribbon was the most meaningful to her because it was awarded to her by her peers.