I used to enter apparel just to get a free fair pass. With 5 children, it was worth it to able to come and go without paying. I always won enough to buy at least one pair of school shoes. Over time the judges got more picky - I was marked down for serging an inside seam in a shade of green thread that wasn't the same as the rest. It was very similar and didn't show, for Heaven's sake.
I'll have to stop out the fair to see what's being entered.