WIP round-up

I was thinking the other day how I have long-term WIPs (I still refuse to call them UFOs) and then other projects that spring up like weeds, grow quickly, and are fully grown and out the door in a flash. What is it about some projects that cause them to languish in the back of the closet for weeks, months, and dare I say years? Are they somehow flawed and are filed in the 'too hard' basket or is it simply that they have lost momentum and need some fertilizer to get growing again?

I hate not finishing things and it pains me to think about lost hours of investment on works that are yet to be completed. I know that I have some good excuses recently - selling 2 houses, getting ready to move, a death in the family, a menagerie of pesky pets...

A few years ago after finding many UFOs in my closet (some more than a decade old) I set my mind to getting them all finished in a year. I was successful and so pleased with myself. But back then I was not involved with block swaps, groups, challenges, blogging, and so on. And I wonder if some of these distractions are stopping me from moving forward on these older projects. Or perhaps these fun virtual exchanges are an easy excuse for not tackling the big jobs.

Two of these lingering projects are still appealing and occasionally call me back. These are the green HST quilt and the blue snowflake quilt. Either one would reach full-flimsy stage if I dedicated a weekend to each cause.

The third is the butterfly hearts quilt which is a disaster and needs to be reworked. This was a case of me taking one step forward, not liking it, and then carrying on for another 100 steps before I came to terms with the fact that I really didn't like it. I should have trusted my instincts. Now I am faced with unpicking lots of machine satin stitch applique - not pretty.

My more recent projects are moving forward. The wedding quilt is 2 blocks shy of a quorum (I need 41 all together) and after coming up short (4 inches) and mis-purchasing a few fabrics for the sashing I have decided to use the fabric that I picked up for the back - luckily I purchased an extra yard. I have 3 weekends to get this one finished.

My tea towel challenge which was on track to finish this month has stalled. It's taken me weeks to attempt hand quilting (I needed a thimble and a hoop). My attempt last weekend was so demoralizing, I'm already thinking of alternative quilting ideas for the center panel. I just cannot hand quilt. It's uneven, it's crooked, and it takes me about 20 tries to take one stitch. Based on my calculations it will take me 59 years to complete at this pace. I don't have that kind of time.

Meanwhile, the round robin that I'm involved with is progressing. I just received the last round - a little flimsy in need of sandwiching, quilting, and binding. It just arrived this week and I haven't given it much attention yet. It will definitely have to wait.

Linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced.