One of my friends is a master at needle turn applique, and lately she's becoming extraordinarily good at piecing too. When I compliment one of her quilts, she just smiles and says "that's okay, I know where all the bones are buried." But I can't find the "bones", no matter how hard I look, and she doesn't point them out. I think that's a good way to approach compliments - offhandedly say that the piece isn't perfect, but don't catalog the problems.