Gettin' Quilty: Works in Progress

It's been a while since I posted about my quilty progress. I still get hung up on my poor photography and I haven't been able to get outside to take decent photographs. You'll just have to bear with me, because there's a lot to document!

Right now I have five different projects in the works. That's a lot for me. I'm a finisher: I don't have a closet full of unquilted tops and I have only one orphaned block. I sew a lot--most weekends and some during the week--and have averaged one quilt per month for the last two years. I like to get things done, and having too many ongoing projects can get me down.

Two things I've learned about my sewing personality are that I do like to have a few projects going (ideally in different stages) to keep me motivated and inspired, and I like to work in stages (i.e. get all of the piecing done before starting the quilting on any one thing).

When I started my marathon sewing session last weekend, I had one top ready for basting, two tops in the piecing stage, four placemats in the quilting/binding stage, and one stack of scraps needing to be pressed. I made progress on everything except the scrap project--a scrap vortex quilt that will likely take me months to finish. I finished ALL of the piecing (scrap project not included) before attaching my walking foot and starting on the quilting. 

1. Greatest Hits Quilt -- I re-pieced the backing and basted it.

 

I had a little help with the basting.

 

 

2. A quilt for Elise -- A dear friend is a family photographer and generously agreed to a trade. I pieced the whole top and pieced the backing (minus a border requiring more fabric)! Pattern is Welded by Art Gallery Fabrics. I mixed Kona white and steel with prints by Anna Maria Horner, Carolyn Friedlander and Tula Pink. 

 

 

 

3. A quilt for a baby girl -- I pieced the strips together and pieced a backing. Now it waits for basting!

 

 

4. Placemats --  I finished the quilting on two, and starting binding this set of four. 

 

Whew. I'm hoping to make a little more progress this weekend, and to get all four of these projects done before Christmas (although technically only one is a holiday gift). I think I can do it if I resist the temptation to start new projects!

Happy weekend, all!