Slow going...

...but I persevere. I knew this wasn't going to be a "quick" quilt but I did think I'd be farther along by now. In fact, I was quite disappointed at the end of yesterday, thinking I'd at least have all the binding sewn on and be ready to do joins and top stitching today.

I found that I really can't effectively "assembly line sew" because I'm making design decisions as I go, arranging blocks as I did cut-outs and choosing binding accordingly. Couldn't grab a stack and sew one after the other. Consequently, there was a lot of "aerobic quilting" going on yesterday and today, getting up and down, up and down as I sewed a piece, got up to return it to its place and grab the next. The legs sure felt it today! I also caught myself getting tired of doing the same type of sewing, so switched to joining the bound cut-outs to the other side of their block. Today I began by top-stitching the top binding down over the join. Then it was back to cutting and sewing on binding.

I also thought I'd have all the binding cut out yesterday, but this is a bit like the fishes and the loaves in reverse. The more I cut, the more I seemed to need. The more I sewed on, the more cut-outs I felt I needed to make, (and subsequently, the more binding I needed). I'm scrounging again, and by this afternoon, caught myself pulling short discards out of a pile and piecing them to make lengths long enough. Of course, this would all be easier (and faster) if I weren't trying to make do, trying to use up what's on hand. At least, that's what I'm telling myself. But I have to admit to feeling virtuous when I work this way instead of running out and buying exactly what I might need in fabric.

I still like this method, by the way, but am glad I'm not making a big quilt. The actual sewing goes quite easily without much concentration, and I found myself wishing I had some company while I sewed. This is the perfect sort of sewing project to do with others around. Cindy, LeAnn, Judi...where are you when I need you??? In lieu of that, I loaded up the CD player with motivational music. Yesterday was a mix of some older ones I haven't listened to for awhile. Today was really quite fun listening to all five of my Leon Redbone discs, one after another. It was hard to restrain myself from getting up and dancing around the room!