I love quilt shows! I walk away with dozens of quilts on my bucket list! I study how other people quilt their quilts...I like to get inspiration from other quilters! We all can't make blue ribbon quilts, but is that really why most of us quilt? I think we quilt to make us happy..at whatever skill level we are at...99% of the quilts out there will never see a show or a ribbon, but they are winners to us...try to look at it that way...don't be so hard on yourself...even the most basic quilt can be a well loved quilt. All we can do is plug along, try to improve..but be happy with your accomplishments..even the winners at quilt shows started with simple, basic quilts...but I'd bet that they love them! I love my first quilt..and I made every single mistake in the book!
I came from a sewing clothing background and just could not grasp the idea that a 1/4" seam would hold anything..so I made it with 5/8" seams! I also thought "all white is white"..so my blocks have many shades of white backgrounds!
The backing has ripples galore...but I just love it...I have improved greatly over the years from going to quilt shows and looking and learning, and from on line forums and tutorials...but do not be intimidated by the quilts at shows...it's like everything else in life...that's how we get inspired and learn! Look at the shows through different glasses!