Well, that's taken care of
Jul. 29th, 2008 08:36 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
altivoGot through the judging stuff at the fair in about three hours' time. As in the past, there were a few very well-executed pieces and a few really horrendous ones (not so much the workmanship as the "Why would you bother to make this?" issue.) Of course I never tell them that. This is the third year I've done the judging, and it seems that some of my written comments are being taken seriously. I found far fewer loose ends and knots this year, for instance. On the other hoof, they're still using that cheap, stiff acrylic yarn from the discount stores, even for items that deserve much better. The best of the afghans were really well done and would have been heirloom quality if they had used wool or even cotton.
The knitted and crochet scarves were the most entertaining category and had the largest number of entries. It seems that the fad for "fashion accessory" scarves is still hanging on, as more than half of them were that sort of thing. You know, that women are expected to wear as an "accent" with their cocktail party dress? They are usually made of so-called "novelty" yarns, things with nylon eyelashes sticking out or feathers or other such absurdities. Often they make me think of dead birds waiting to be plucked or something. In addition to those, this year there was a Dr Who scarf. Remember Tom Baker as the Dr and the scarf he always wore? There was also a long scarf presumably made by mom for her teenage son. It was soft and warm but was also all black except for the white skull design stitched at each end. Yeesh. For anyone curious, the goth scarf got second place, and Dr Who got sixth, not for the design but for the quality of work. Only the first place scarf impressed me with its design: it was knitted lace in a natural off-white, narrow enough to wear as an accessory piece but probably warm enough to use in chilly weather even if not for wintry blasts.
Once again I wrote dozens of comment cards urging the entrants to try using natural fibers, which is probably hopeless. Unlike last year, though, there were no entries of such high quality that I urged the creator to consider teaching classes.
The knitted and crochet scarves were the most entertaining category and had the largest number of entries. It seems that the fad for "fashion accessory" scarves is still hanging on, as more than half of them were that sort of thing. You know, that women are expected to wear as an "accent" with their cocktail party dress? They are usually made of so-called "novelty" yarns, things with nylon eyelashes sticking out or feathers or other such absurdities. Often they make me think of dead birds waiting to be plucked or something. In addition to those, this year there was a Dr Who scarf. Remember Tom Baker as the Dr and the scarf he always wore? There was also a long scarf presumably made by mom for her teenage son. It was soft and warm but was also all black except for the white skull design stitched at each end. Yeesh. For anyone curious, the goth scarf got second place, and Dr Who got sixth, not for the design but for the quality of work. Only the first place scarf impressed me with its design: it was knitted lace in a natural off-white, narrow enough to wear as an accessory piece but probably warm enough to use in chilly weather even if not for wintry blasts.
Once again I wrote dozens of comment cards urging the entrants to try using natural fibers, which is probably hopeless. Unlike last year, though, there were no entries of such high quality that I urged the creator to consider teaching classes.
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no subject
Date: 2008-07-30 02:50 pm (UTC)Though admittedly the fact that I could say I made something with muppet pelt amused me.
no subject
Date: 2008-07-30 03:33 pm (UTC)However, in the last couple of years they've been selling like mad according to my neighbor who has a large yarn shop.
Nerd alert :P
Date: 2008-07-30 07:16 pm (UTC)Heh, I always liked that scarf; Baker was always my favorite Doctor.
Re: Nerd alert :P
Date: 2008-07-30 07:34 pm (UTC)I was horrified when Peter Davison as the regenerated Dr unravelled Baker's scarf.
Re: Nerd alert :P
Date: 2008-07-30 08:20 pm (UTC)Re: Nerd alert :P
Date: 2008-07-30 08:41 pm (UTC)Peter will always be Tristan Farnon to me, though, from All Creatures Great and Small. I've seen him in a BBC series where he played a sort of intellectual detective dude, and the acting was good but the writing was, well, dull. He also appeared briefly in the BBC production of Hitchhiker's Guide where he was the face on a talking roast at Milliways, the Restaurant at the End of the Universe.
Re: vintage Nerd alert :P
Date: 2008-07-30 08:53 pm (UTC)Re: vintage Nerd alert :P
Date: 2008-07-30 08:56 pm (UTC)Re: Nerd alert, aside :P
Date: 2008-07-30 08:25 pm (UTC)Re: Nerd alert, aside :P
Date: 2008-07-30 08:43 pm (UTC)He was at his best though when improvising lines as the Dr. Paws down best.
Re: Nerd-turned-geek alert, aside :P
Date: 2008-07-30 08:55 pm (UTC)Re: Nerd-turned-geek alert, aside :P
Date: 2008-07-30 08:58 pm (UTC)Re: Nerd-turned-geek alert, aside :P
Date: 2008-07-30 09:14 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-01 08:15 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-01 10:46 am (UTC)Hmm. This seems unusually heavy. Well, time to wash the yarn before dyeing it.
*hauls heavy basket to laundry and dumps the contents into a tub of sudsy water*
no subject
Date: 2008-08-01 12:02 pm (UTC)