Originally Posted by
NDQuilts
I my opinion, handquilting is still being done, but it is not receiving the attention that machine quilting does in shows. It seems impossible to place a hand quilted piece into a show. So many competition quilts have thread work, micro stippling etc that is doable by hand, but would take years to accomplish. These machine techniques are certainly difficult and artistic, but should not be judged alongside handquilting. Locally they are, and it does not make for a level playing field or promote the method. I also realize that all things come in cycles, so I hope to see a move toward the rewarding of handwork.
Granted, there aren't that many hand quilted quilts being entered in shows, but there are some quilters who do enter and win. Look at the quilts of Linda Roy - she's won multiple times at Paducah and Houston. Her hand quilting is beautiful.
You don't need to do lots of microstippling to win. The quilting needs to be well designed and appropriate to the top, but those are the same criteria that machine quilting should be judged by - more doesn't mean better. I would gladly compete against longarm quilters in local shows.
Janet