Keeping the Ideas Under Control

I know why “startitis” is such a common problem among makers, because I am fighting a bad case of it myself. I have a half-finished quilt up on my design wall. The block is called “Providence” and it’s based on a 5 x 5 grid—25 units total—but some of the units are made up of even smaller units.

I cut a whole bunch of fabric thinking I would make a much larger quilt. (Also, it is very easy to get carried away with that Studio cutter.) I’m doing a controlled scrappy layout, so even though the colors of each block are similar, the fabrics differ. Great idea in theory, nearly impossible to keep organized in practice. I have to pull all the pieces for each block before I start making it so that I know I have enough of each fabric. I can chain piece, but only one block at a time. This might have been better done a la Bonnie Hunter, letting the units fall where they may.

I had to put quilting aside last spring when gardening season ramped up. At that time, I had completed eleven 10” blocks. I had chosen a red, white, and blue colorway. I don’t usually make holiday-themed quilts, but it seemed like everyone was doing Fourth of July quilt projects on YouTube. I succumbed.

Did I get it done in time for Independence Day? No, I did not. And now it is October and I want to be working on fall and Christmas stuff. However, I cannot stand to have half-finished projects lying around; hence, the rule that I cannot start anything new until I clear out the queue. I got a good start when I finished putting those tumblers together the other day, so I pulled out the Providence blocks and stuck them back up on the wall.

Abandoning a project at the mid-point—even temporarily—is a bad idea. When it gets that far, the sunk costs of labor and materials are such that I feel guilty not finishing it. Enough time has passed, though, that I’ve forgotten what I was doing, so I had to spend an hour or so finding the materials and instructions and familiarizing myself with the steps required to make a block. At least I am smart enough now to put each project in its own bin.

This is also the point in the process where what is up on the wall doesn’t look anything like the finished vision in my head, so doubts about that vision abound. This quilt will have a dark sashing to set off the blocks. However, my design wall is a white flannel sheet. The blocks look weird on that white background. I have to keep pulling up the image in EQ8 to reassure myself that I know what I am doing.

I will get this done. I tied myself to my sewing chair yesterday and knocked out three more blocks. I have two to go. The idea has been pared back; instead of a larger quilt, I will finish sixteen blocks and call it good. With the sashing and cornerstones and, likely, a border, the finished quilt will still be a respectable size. (Think picnic quilt.)

Of course, my brain is in cahoots with my fabric stash and is churning out ideas faster than I can write them down. I picked up a remnant on my travels last week—it’s the top print in this pile—and before I knew it, these other fabrics had jumped out to join it.

I normally gravitate toward bright, saturated colors, but I am obsessed with this combination, and it’s a weird one for sure.

I’ve been playing around in EQ8, trying to come up with a design for these fabrics. I haven’t succeeded yet, but in the process, I knocked out two other quilt designs that are clamoring to be made up. Go figure.

I’ve got a couple of commission projects that are next up after I finish the red, white, and blue quilt. My neighbor asked if I would make two pillow shams for her. I am going to visit with her this morning about a few details and then get them done. My college roommate, Marcia, wrote me last month and asked if I could finish a Sunbonnet Sue quilt for her. Her grandmother had started it when Marcia was a child. All the squares are appliquéd; they just need to be assembled. She has a picture of a similar quilt that belongs to her cousin, so I have an idea of how I want to finish it. And the other day, I got an e-mail from someone I’ve done work for in the past, asking if I could make her a queen-sized quilt. I said I was booked up until Christmas, but she’s willing to wait. I haven’t said yes yet.

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My first batch of fire cider steeped for six weeks, so I strained it the other day and tasted it. It is potent for sure. I am going to dig up more horseradish today and make another batch. The dreaded S-word is in the forecast for this week. I’m not dreading it—I got my snow tires put on the other day so I am all ready—but some of the California transplants might be a bit surprised.