In Response

Yesterday, I had this comment left on my blog:

Obviously, you've been crazy quilting for a while. Do you feel that crazy quilting isn't given the same "respect" (for lack of a better word) that sane quilts are? I am reluctant to enter any into local quilt shows for several reasons (they are always lumped into a catch-all category, judges seem not to understand the "rules" you've been discussing). I'd love to hear your thoughts.
I would like to address this comment each statement at a time. 

Obviously, you have been crazy quilting for a while.  I have been crazy quilting for about 10 years.  In the time the I have been crazy quilting I have learned quite a bit about the art and the ladies who crazy quilt.

The next question: "Do you feel that crazy quilting isn't given the same "respect" (for lack of a better word) that sane quilts are?"  As many of my closer CQ companions know I come from the sane part of quilting.  I have been enjoying quilting in its many forms for years.  At least since I was 12 years old and told my great-grandmother (God rest her soul.) that I was board.  She was working on a Pineapple quilt at the time and she handed me a block and had me hand piece it together with her.
    I belong to a group here in Bastrop, Texas and the majority of the ladies in the group are sane quilters they make beautiful quilts, but when it comes time to show what I have been working on for the month they show me the same respect and courtesy that everyone else gets shown.  They ooh and awe over my work just as much as they ooh and awe over the sane quilts.  In having this contact with the sane side of quilting I feel it is more of a lack of education on crazy quilting then a lack of respect for our art.  After all sane quilters put in quite a few hours of time in on their quilts like the crazy quilters put in on their work.  I feel that we MUST educate the sane quilters.

"I am reluctant to enter any into local quilt shows for several reasons (they are always lumped into a catch-all category, judges seem not to understand the "rules" you've been discussing.)"
     In educating the sane quilting world we MUST start entering our creations into quilt shows.  At least on a local level.  Yes, they will be lumped in a "catch-all" category.  Sane quilters don't know what to do with our quilts.  They (sane quilters) only concentrated on their quilts not Crazy Quilts when working on criteria and rules for the quilt shows.  Contact the local quilt show get a list of their rules and really read the rules.  There is nothing in these rules about crazy quilting it is all for the sane quilts.  These ladies have worked hard concentrating on the sane quilts that they do and getting the "main stream quilting" community off of the ground and fighting for the respect that they feel that they deserve and rightfully so, that they left out the crazy quilters.  The quilt shows are a product of that hard work.  Now here we come with our crazy quilts wanting to put them into these shows and whine and cry about how unfair the judges are that some in the sane quilt community think that crazy quilters are a pain in the back side.
    Ladies we have to unite and educate.  We have to do just like the sane quilting community organize and put in concrete our basic crazy quilting rules.  NOT there is "no  rules" but our rules as we see them and STAND BY THEM.  We have to do this as a Crazy Quilting  Community and we can't do this if we are fighting among ourselves or "preaching" "there are no rules".    Quit confusing the new to Crazy Quilting people with that crazy "no rule" stuff.  If crazy quilters as a community want respect from the sane quilters then we must fight for it and pay our dues.
    We get to establish an official list of rules that make sense to others and as a community stand behind these rules.  That is what the sane quilters did.  Why should we crazy quilters do less?  We love what we do don't we?  Well?
    Then lets start acting like it!  Lets start by stopping the whining and start by just entering our quilts in the quilt shows.  Look at the rules of the quilt shows and change your design to the minimum quilting for the shows OR just be a rebel and make your quilt the way you want to and enter it.  It won't win because the judges are just judging by the rules of the show BUT what you are doing by entering these quilts into these shows your way is starting to educate the sane quilting community.  If you chose to follow your own path and enter your quilts as you design them grow a thick skin because those cute little judges are going to pick it apart.
  Our next task as a community is come up with our own set of basic crazy quilting rules agree upon them and STAND behind them.  We will gain more respect that way.  We must do this if we want to be taken seriously instead of being a joke.   Would it not be great to have this respect and have our own category in a quilt show?  How about having a national or international quilt show all of crazy quilts?  It is going to take allot of hard work and it is going to take years to get the respect that we crave.

I hope that I have answered your comment as these are my feelings about our crazy quilting situation.

TTFN
The Lion