A Little Yarn On The Side

So in spite of Theo's help, the quilt is progressing and the decorative stitching is almost done!!!!! I don't know if you can see this, but there are only two rows of solid blocks still needing decorative stitching--and they aren't even the longest ones!  Whoo hoo!  And since I've found a way to get Theo off of the quilt while I'm trying to sew I really could finish it this week!!!!!!!!! (Unless Theo catches on to my strategy first, that is......)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/theroyalfamily/7069612/Prince-of-Wales-leading-wool-fashion-comeback.html Unless the drop in the English wool market really did start 2 1/2 years ago...........like when I stopped buying wool......................................

All the actual quilting has been finished without a single swear word.   Now normally I would know better than to provoke the Quilting Gods by uttering such an obvious boast, but I've already been flattened by them this morning, so I have been properly chastised already.  Now I'm doing the decorative stitching on the red & green squares, and just did one in the wrong direction and had to pick the entire thing out, so the Toni-Quilting equilibrium has been reestablished.  Still--there could be a finished quilt THIS WEEK!  I thought I should prepare you, just in case the shock might be too much for anyone.... There is a calendar hanging in my sewing room, which I see every day, and finally it occurred to me that March is almost over.  (I'm quick with these things....).  In December, I started a sweater for Andy's birthday--which is in July. In one of my deeper, more insightful moments, I have just realized........ The sweater will only be finis...

Ms. Sutton jumped out of bed early today, excited to start work on the quilt again today, because yesterday went so well for her. Will the aliens who took the REAL Ms. Sutton please return her?  Er.....just as soon as she finishes this quilt??????

....but definitely a "progress" Friday. First, the attack of the coasters!!!  Here they ALL are--in their little desperately-trying-to-rack-up-projects glory. Now....what did I do today? Remember this quilt from.........well, not recently?  I thought it was time to get at least one of the quilt tops at least a little closer to being finished.  Not to mention someone really likes quilting. First, we added the green pieces to the two remaining sides-- (first managing to sew the strips into right angles before the caffeine kicked in) then we cut out the backing (and just in case you were wondering, that was an extremely crooked cut), but there is BIG news! Look at that!!!!!! NO BIG FREAKIN' PUCKERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh yeah.......kicking some quilting but & taking names!!!!!!!!  Well, until It seems that the Quilting Gods are both fierce and fast.  Smugness over the lack of puckers will automatically qualify you...

Okay--I now have 5 sets of Christmas coasters:  4 sets of 6 and 1 set of 4 because that's how it came out when I cut them.  I have some leftovers that can be made into rectangular packages, but I've had enough!!!!  28 of these coasters is enough for any sane person......or relatively sane, depending on how you want to look at this whole "100 Projects in a Year" thing. 

Okay, knitting will always be my first love, but when I need a cheap, meaningless fling sewing is pretty hard to beat.  I'm up to 3 sets of finished coasters & probably 2 more in progress.  The fact that I should be at 25 projects by March 31 to stay on track and I'm only on project 19 might have something to do with this sudden fascination..... To be fair, the ostrich plume scarf is getting some attention: I used the ostrich plume stitch pattern once for a mohair shawl, and it is gorgeous, if I do say so myself.  Ostrich plumes is a lot like feather & fan (a series of yarn overs compensated by a bunch of decreases) except that it regularly shifts the pattern over and then back, rather than remaining in columns like feather & fan, such as on this from a blanket I did a year ago: or the reverse stockinette rows that may or may not be on feather & fan.  Now that I have contributed to the world-wide knitting pattern confusion, I'd probably bette...