Date: Fri 28-Jun-1996

By Previous Employees

Published: Aug 11, 1999 12:00 am

Publication: Bee

Author: SHANNO

Illustration: C

Location: A-9

Quick Words:

Fraser-quilt-unusual-award

Full Text:

(Connie Fraser's latest quilt award, 6/28/96)

For This Quilter, Not Your Everyday Honor

Connie Fraser of Newtown has won some distinguished awards for her quilts over

the years, but her latest may not be one she brags about too much.

Mrs Fraser, who has won local and national quilting contests with her strong

sense of style and creativity as well as workmanship, has now been named

winner of the "Most Peculiar Quilt Award." The dubious award was handed out as

part of the second annual Worst Quilt in the World Contest, a quirky contest

with $6,548.20 in prizes which drew entries from nearly every state and five

foreign countries.

Contenders vied for prizes by submitting photographs of their most poorly made

quilt. The Worst Quilt in the World Contest was conducted by Mallery Press of

Flint, MI.

Ami Simms, creator of the contest, referred to Mrs Fraser's winning quilt,

"Mrs Montezuma's Revenge," as "attractive, but quirky.

"It's very pleasing to look at... especially from a distance," she continued.

Mrs Fraser earned her award for sewing sleeves to the back of her quilt.

Fabric tubes, or sleeves, are a common addition to wall quilts so they can be

displayed easily. However, Mrs Fraser took the term literally in creating

"Revenge" - she removed the sleeves from one of her husband's shirts and sewed

those onto the back of her quilt.

The "Most Peculiar Quilt Award" was a Special Recognition Award presented,

along with ten others, to entrants whose quilts were not bad enough to win

their entire category, but nevertheless exhibited memorable shortcomings.

Included in the group was the winner of the Knot On Your Life Award, a Texas

quilter who had hand-stitched an entire quilt without knotting a single thread

(not surprisingly, much of the patchwork fell off); the Seamed Like A Good

Idea At the Time Award, to a quilter from Dewey, AZ, who intentionally

stitched her quilt inside-out. Not only was the wrong side of the fabric on

the outside of the quilt, but unraveling seam allowances appeared there as

well.

A Millersburg, OH, entrant received the notorious Now We've Seen Everything

Award for binding her entire quilt in duct tape. Other awards included the

Pathetic Piecing Award, the Mangled Miter Award, the Inept Applique Award and

the Most Obnoxious Use of Three-Dimensional Embellishment Award.

Quilters who thought they had a shot at the prizes entered the contest

anonymously. Works were judged on general appearance, color, design and

workmanship - or lack of it.

Judges rejected quilts that did not prompt the majority of them to laugh,

cause shuddering, excessive tearing or blurred vision. Points were also

deducted if quilts were free of pet hair, dirt and major stains. Equally

suspect were designs which exhibited balance, harmony or forethought.

Judges commended entrants if their quilts included patches that were stretched

or chopped to fit. Particularly sought-after were quilts which were pleated,

puckered or otherwise distorted.

Kathy Larrieu of Nashville, TN, was awarded the grand prize for her "Square"

quilt - which measured 84 by 85 by 84 by 97 inches - earning over $2,600 in

cash and prizes. The award included the use of a Bernina sewing machine for a

year, a case of Mountain Mist quilt batting and a complete assortment of

Omnigrid rulers along with other quilting aids and supplies. The winning quilt

was judged the most poorly made and executed quilt in the world.

"Winning this contest was not easy," Ms Simms stated. In addition to the grand

prize winner, 17 almost equally inept quilters each received Abominable

Mention Awards and over $260 in prizes for producing the worst quilt in their

particular category. Those with strong stomachs can find photographs of the

winning quilts on the World Wide Web at http://quilt.com/worstquilt.

Quilters who may have inadvertently missed this year's contest need not be

disheartened. Entry forms for the third annual Worst Quilt in the World

Contest are ready for immediate distribution. For information, contact Mallery

Press at 800/A-STITCH (800/278-4824).

Fire Reports | April 28-May 4, 2026

Just Over The Border: Southeast Kitchen And Bath’s New Showroom

Police Reports | April 27-May 3, 2026

Silent Auction To Coincide With Garden Club Standard Flower Show

BOE CFF Discusses Itemized Estimates, Summer CIP Projects

Well that is some spin. The Democrats have a super majority on the LC and passed the Education Budget without serious consideration of if the voters could afford the multi million dollar increase. "Was the request justified?" rather than "is this needed?" and "can the voters shoulder yet another large increase?" The voters rightly sent it back. Then for some reason all the discussion around reductions to the increase seemed to be coming from the classroom, rather than administration and overhead costs. Is this a coercive tactic to manipulate parents into supporting the budget like tacit threat of cutting freshman sports was two years ago? Who believes the Democrats did not caucus privately before the meeting and came in with a number already worked out? This is the Dems budget, they own it.

Education Cuts: Who Voted For What

I think it is important that we do not villainize every black box seen around a home, business, farm, or municipal property. A black exterior station does not always mean rat poison is being used. These stations can hold a number of different products, including monitoring blocks, snap traps, non-toxic bait, anti-tick bait stations, organic salt- or cornmeal-based control products, and newer fertility-control approaches intended to reduce rodent populations without traditional poisons. The better conversation, in my opinion, is not simply “black boxes are bad,” but rather: what is inside them, who is maintaining them, and whether the rodent issue is being managed responsibly. Exclusion, sanitation, trapping, habitat reduction, and careful monitoring should all be part of a responsible IPM strategy. To be fair, on my own property I do use rodenticides, including Bromethalin and Bromadiolone, in secured bait stations. But that is a choice I make for my property, based on my circumstances and the risk I am trying to manage. I also believe property owners should understand the tradeoffs and be encouraged to use the least harmful effective method whenever possible. I support protecting Newtown’s wildlife. I also support giving residents accurate information and not assuming that every black box represents reckless or unsafe pest control. The goal should be responsible rodent management, not fear of the box itself.

Discusses Policy Against Rodenticides

Debora, thank you! I accidentally doubled the project prices by adding the bond to the appropriation. Thank you so much for catching that and pointing it out. With the corrected numbers, the voters approved a combined $1.32 million for a salt shed ($600k) and library pavement ($720k), while rejecting the $1.12 million replacement turf. Regarding the 80s, I truly respect the hurdle of 14% mortgage rates. My point is simply that the math has shifted: in 1980, while the rates were higher, the price of a home relative to earnings was significantly lower. We are facing a different, but equally crushing, financial wall. Ultimately, it is disheartening that voters who recognized safe sidewalks and parking lots as essential, dismissed a playing field in the exact same condition. The turf has passed its life cycle and is just as much of a liability as the library’s pavement, the only difference is that this safety concern affects thousands of children who, coincidentally, cannot vote. These are apples-to-apples needs. I was hopeful our community would agree that all Newtown residents deserve safe conditions, regardless of which facility they utilize. Again, I would be remiss not to mention that when 82% of residents don’t show up, we have to deal with the interests of those who did. Hopefully, the next referendum will have a bigger turnout.

The ‘Me’ Generation

Thanks for the reply. I meant the numbers you presented in your letter. I found one place where other numbers were listed: https://www.newtownbee.com/04232026/get-out-and-vote-on-the-2026-27-proposed-municipal-and-school-budgets/?q=\\\%22advisory%20questions\\\%22. In that article, the numbers were cited as: Treadwell field: $1,125,000 Library: $720,000 Salt Storage: $600,000 As one who started out in the early 80's when inflation was double digits, my 1985 mortgage rate was 14%, and child care costs were comparable (in present value), I shared your grief but never considered the voters ironic or shameful. PS. I agree college tuition is ridiculous. Thankfully, universities are offering (or considering) waiving all or most tuition for middle class families (upwards of $200,000 incomes). Hopefully, they'll also reconsider their need for those funds in the first place.

Sure! Child care costs: https://www.ffyf.org/2022/10/13/data-child-care-prices-continue-to-rise-ahead-of-midterm-elections-outpacing-inflation/ (also from 2021-2025 we had 2 children in a local daycare in Newtown and it cost us $3200 a month, so that's a number I am very familiar with) Home price / median price vs income source: https://www.jchs.harvard.edu/home-price-income-ratios Tuition increase vs inflation: https://feed.georgetown.edu/access-affordability/noting-a-decline-in-middle-class-students-colleges-provide-more-aid/ Hope this helps :)

<< May 2026 >>
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
26	27	28	29	30	1	2
3	4	5	6	7	8	9
10	11	12	13	14	15	16
17	18	19	20	21	22	23
24	25	26	27	28	29	30
31	1	2	3	4	5	6

Log In

Date: Fri 28-Jun-1996

Leave a Reply Cancel reply