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Old 10-21-2010, 02:13 PM
  #53  
e4
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: USA
Posts: 110
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Is good enough OK - maybe. I am a college professor and I always remind my students that nothing we do is ever perfect. We should try to do the best we can and attempt to make each thing better than we did before. In quilting we should always strive for the best (would that be perfection?) and be happy with whatever we accomplish if we have tried our best and had fun along the way.

At least that's the way I think of my quilting - I try ot make each one better than the one before. Either I learned a new technique, the colors work better, I'm happier with my points, the quilt pattern and the piecing seem to work better together, or whatever. Quilting is my relaxation, but I still learn something with every quilt I make (sometimes I learn I never want to make that pattern or use that technique again - LOL!). I don't have to worry about perfection, but I do hate it when it gets near the end of the quilt, I've pieced the same block 100 times, and I start to not care any more and get sloppy. That's when I have to step back and take a deep breath and figure out what is good enough.

I have taken out a few seams when the poor piecing was clearly visible from across the room, but I currently have one where the points don't quite match, but frankly I can't see it from 5 feet away so I'm not going to undo anything - its good enough!

One reason I think good enough is just fine is that I greatly admire the quilts I see at shows, but I find flaws in every one. One of the major prize winners at the Des Moines quilt show had some clearly visible unintended background showing between two pieces of the largest applique motif in the quilt. However, the judge obviously decided that the rest of the beautiful quilt outweighed that flaw. Another prize winner had skipped stitches right at eye-level in a prominent spot. Am I being critical - not at all - just couldn't help but notice that even the prize winners aren't perfect.
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