A Different Friday Finish

Have you ever been disappointed in the direction a quilting project is going? Have you ever been frustrated with a technique and felt like throwing in the towel? Have you ever wondered why you thought a particular group of fabrics would look good together? Have you ever decided midway through a quilt that it is not your style? If you have been quilting any time at all, you probably have a few of these projects.

I have quilts that fall into all of those categories. Typically I tuck them away in a bin, rediscover them a few years later, then try once again to decide what to do with them. I am currently in a huge declutter, de-stash, Swedish death-cleaning mode and it is time to deal with some of these once-and-for-all.

It is such a dilemma though. On one hand, there is already a considerable investment of time and fabric in these projects. On the other hand, it will take an additional investment in both to finish. What do you do in this circumstance? Do you pitch the project or dive in and finish? Here are three projects I want to “finish.”

First, is this little homespun house wall hanging. I don’t remember what pattern this is, but it looks like a project from Jan Patek’s Girl Gang. It is an appli-quilt project. For this technique, the top is pieced, then the applique elements are fused to the pieced background. Then the batting and backing are added. As the applique is stitched, the three layers are simultaneously quilted. On this piece, everything has been fused down and most of the stitching is complete. There is even some stitch in the ditch quilting around the flying geese and trees. My estimate is that it would take 2-3 hours to complete, plus the time for hand stitching the binding. Is it worth the additional time? 

 

Next is this flannel flowerpot quilt. I’m not sure, but I think this may be a Thimbleberries pattern. It is complete except for quilting the borders and binding. Again, it would only take a couple of hours to finish it. This quilt is 62″ x 70″. It’s not a great size but could be donated. 

Third is “As the Crow Flies.” For this project, I tried the technique of quilting all the background before fusing the applique elements. It works well and eliminates stopping and starting around all the applique. This quilt would finish at 42″ x 53,” a completely useless size. Not only that, it’s been YEARS since I’ve decorated in this homespun/primitive crow style. This one would also take a little more time, probably several hours to complete since there are still four blocks to be appliqued.

Here are my criteria for “finishing” these projects.

• How much time it will take to complete?
• What additional supplies do I need to finish? Do I have some appropriate fabric for the binding? Does it take a particular ruler or other specialty notions? Is it worth setting up my Bernina to finish the applique (the Juki I sew on 95% of the time has only a straight stitch)?
• Do I still like the project? Is it still a style I would use or display?
• Do I have a use for the quilt? Is it one I could use, gift, or donate? I have to keep in mind that this house has very little wall space and I already have dozens of completed wall hangings

Those are all major considerations, but I ultimately it comes down to one big question: will it bring me joy to work on this project again? For all of these projects that answer is a hard “no”. I love quilting and I love the creative process involved in making a quilt. These quilts were started with a specific purpose; as a teaching sample, a shop sample, or a new technique. They all served that purpose even though they never made it as a finished project. I am happy to be finished with them to give myself more time to work on projects that make my heart sing.

Update: one of these projects has a happy ending. As I was photographing them over my back fence, my neighbor offered to finish the flowerpot quilt and send it to her sister who works in an assisted living facility. At that residence, they “raffle” (no charge for tickets) these quilts to those who are interested. Win-win on this project!