WIP-too many projects

I don't know what your personal tolerance for unfinished projects is.  Mine is pretty low.  I start to get all twitchy like I'm going to turn into my mother, who has a house full of projects she hasn't even started.  Hi Mom, I love you!

My problem with quilting is that I enjoy all phases of the project until the part where it transforms from a pile of raw edges into a useful and finished item.  So I told myself no new projects until I clear up some of the back log.  This April has been so nasty, cold, windy and rainy I haven't been able to get outside to spray baste things that need basting. On top of that I'm working a few projects that I don't consider much fun, so I haven't been doing anything.

1. Lily's Quilt along

 These photos are totally washed out.  The colors are much brighter in person.  I'm completely amazed at how nicely these are coming together. I had to make my own templates because I couldn't get them to print out in the correct size.  Somehow, everything is the exact correct size.  I haven't had a pucker or had to rip a seam yet.  They are super fiddly, though.  I'm pinning every inch or so and only have the patience to do one at a time.  I have 2 more to do.  I haven't decided about a border yet.  I'm thinking maybe a border around all 4 blocks.

2. Disappearing Nine Patch

 This one is pretty much done.  I'm washing it right now and have some threads to clip, but that's it.  Quilting it was a total PITA.  I tried a new cotton thread and it just kept breaking.  There were some places I wouldn't even get to back to the break before the thread would break again.  I got about half of it done before I gave up and switched back to my usual cotton ploy blend.  When I started this quilt, I liked the color combination, but then I felt like some of the yellows were too orangey and some of the blues too dark.  I finished it up anyway and now that it's all done, I'm really liking it again.  There's something about quilting your top that can really take it to the next level.  This is just straight line quilting.  I really need to take a class or something.  I need to get over my dislike of quilting.

Here is the back.  I had used some charm packs plus a bit of yardage for the front, so I didn't have much leftover fabric for the back.  I just used blues and yellows from my stash.  When hubby saw the back he called it my signature backing.  For lap quilts, I cut a piece of yardage the length of the quilt then cut a piece off the side of that yardage, sew a contrasting stripe in lengthwise and sew the piece of yardage to the contrasting stripe.  Here instead of using yardage, I sewed a few quarter yard pieces together until I had the right length.  Sometimes in my contrasting stripe I do some piecing as I did here.

 
3.  Place mats for Meals on Wheels

 All I need to do is the back on one, baste, quilt and bind.  Easy peasey, so why has it been sitting around for 2 months?

4. Rainbow Boston Commons

 This is a batik jelly roll that my mother bought.  She wants a Boston Commons.  It has to be symmetrical and in rainbow order.  Sigh!  This isn't my thing, but it should be easy enough.  If only I could remember how to put together a Boston Commons.  I just can't visualize how the squares go together.

5. Framed Squares

This one stalled out while I was forcing myself to finish some other projects.  Then I forgot which blocks I needed more of and made the wrong kind.  Then I had to make more.

6. House warming quilt

The house warming party came and went while I was waiting for the weather to settle down.  I finally gave up and sprayed in the unfinished section of the basement.  I'm going to echo the seams and keep the focus on the concentric squares.  I can't even express how much I LOVE this quilt.  I'm not usually an orange fan.  I just love the way this came together.  I think I'll use the same technique for a couple other projects that are in the planning stages.

7. A special project
There's another quilt top that is now sandwiched and awaiting quilting.  I made the top a year ago.  It's special, so it deserves it's own post when I'm ready.