County Fair Entries (2013)

Are you ready for a parade of projects? I have 18 entries in the fair this year...

 Knitted pullover: My just-finished Scarpetta.

 Knitted coat or pullover: Lace Coat.

Knitted vest or shell: the bulky cable vest knit from raveled cashmere. I sewed up some of the holes in the back cable work and reblocked/washed it for the fair.

Knitted scarf, hat and/or mittens set: my Cowl with a Point and matching hat (personal design).

Knitted other: Jaywalker socks. Socks have won in this category the last three years, I think. It's about time I entered some. (Oh, wait not quite right. My skirt won last year. But I think some socks got second.) I reblocked/washed them and am going to submit them on my wire sock blockers for better display.

I had my sock choices narrowed down to four and then had to have Troy help me. We both wanted to chose my Malabrigo socks, but they looked a little too worn. They really frown on worn stuff--it's got to be "like new" to do well.

Sewing-comforter, tied: the NHH tshirt quilt. (Notice that the tied quilts aren't even a subcategory of quilting; they're in the sewing department. I find this interesting.)

The quilt block for the raffle quilt "The Birdhouse"

Jewelry: knitted bangle. At the very end of all the other categories there are some very general and miscellaneous categories. They have one for jewelry. I'm throwing this bangle in the ring to see how it does.

And my first canning entries!
1. Spiced pickled pears. They will go into the "other pickled" category so you never know what they will be up against.

2. Pears. They have a beautiful light colour so I think they may do well.

3. Green beans. Yes these ones were done last year just for the fair. See how they're long and all even? No one does beans like this at my fair, but my sister told me that at her fair they are much more picky (stylish?) about their canning. No one would win with cut beans. So I am giving it a try. We'll see what the judges think. (Although I know I will be marked down some because my liquid level is a little below the lid. Mine always are.)

And I'm entering even more in photography this year. While going through the fair book, I was surprised to see a change. They used to allow any standard size including panoramic. So they had pictures from 16x20 to 4x6. It made them difficult to display. This year they are trying something new: Any size picture that will fit into an 8x10 frame.

I like the idea and I hope it will make for a nicer display of pictures, but I wish I had known before I got the 11x14 developed of Squam Lake and went and paid for the framing of a large panoramic mountain view from our trip to Alberta! But no regrets because I can enjoy these pictures in my home and will be spared lugging them around!

I did have to scramble to have enough 8x10 frames, but a couple of friends helped me out and I didn't have to go out and buy any. But now I'll know for next year and keep my eye out!

This year, I'm entering my first black and whites. They have the same categories as the color pictures, but I haven't really been interested in taking black and whites. I happened to have taken a couple that I like when my family was in the UP (Michigan) on the shores of Lake Superior.

Seascape:
Two of my nieces walking the shore. (I cropped it a little better when it was developed, and got rid of those crocs in the lower left corner!)

Head or figure:
Another niece. I love her piercing look and doubtful smile.

Landscape:
Since my huge panoromic from the top of Sulpher Mountain wasn't going to work, I picked another shot from our Alberta trip. This was taken in Jasper. I love trains and mountains.

Seascape:
I think I've shown this one before. Squam Lake, taken early in the morning, moments before I had to leave. It was a multiple exposure shot blended later to bring out the best lows, highs and mediums. (Look at me sounding all photographer-y!)

Head or figure:
Same niece as picture 2 above. This was a walk in the woods last November in the very northwest corner of Indiana. It was a chilly day so this snake wasn't moving much. She finally got the courage to hold it when her mother asked her what Nana would think. I think she liked the idea of surprising/shocking/scaring her Nana! (She even faked kissing it for another picture.)

Still life:
This was taken two years ago on a walk through Fernwood with another sister and niece. We had a nice trek through the wood. I set up this little tableau on one of the foot bridges. My own little leaf rainbow.

Animal:
I never have much really "animally" to enter in this category. I guess I mean I don't have pictures of mammals. Last year I did well with a picture of a turtle. This year it's a frog. I found it tucked into a fold of our garbage can and got as close a closeup as I could. Then I cropped in right down to the frog. The high-quality digital cameras make this so easy these days! I printed this 8x10 so it is much larger than real life.

And I think that is all of them! I will be checking them out Monday night before my shift starts, and I will report back as soon as I have a chance! :fingers crossed!: