Bear the WIPs

Well, that certainly was a productive quarter. I'm almost embarrassed to admit the only quilting I got done in the last three months was not on my WIP list... a quilt for brand new baby Braden, who made his grand appearance on Mother's Day.

The quilt top took me two nights; sandwiching took another night. I thought I could have the quilt finished by June 12, a month late, but work and life got in the way. I finally finished on June 30.










After washing the finished quilt, I couldn't wait to get it in the mail! I hung it on my rack and picked loose thread bits and lint off the front, then turned it around to repeat the task on the backside. I was utterly horrified to see stains in the solid blue fabric Lizard picked up for me so I wouldn't have to go shopping. He was horrified when he came up behind me to look over my shoulder after I gasped.

I tried washing the quilt again with three different stain removers/detergents, all with no success. Of course! I had set the stain when I dried the quilt. I never saw the stains until after I'd finished cleaning the quilt. The stains are on the solid blue only; there are no stains anywhere else on the quilt. We deduced the fabric must have come stained, and neither of us noticed until it was too late.

Initially I wondered if I might be able to send one of the ungifted quilts I finished last year instead, but I free-motion-quilted the musical notes on this one free-hand. I was so proud of them!

During the final unsuccessful attempt at washing, I wondered if I could cover the little spots with needle-turn appliqué using leftovers from the binding, which was the same fabric. I pulled the remnant triangles out of my HST leftovers, which occupy a spot on the below WIP list and discovered spots on a couple of those tiny pieces, too. This batch had not been through the washer and had minimal handling. Once again, I marveled that I did not see the spots while I was cutting the binding. I checked the roughly half-yard of remaining uncut fabric, and there, too, were more stains.


A patched quilt is better than a stained quilt, and a finished stained quilt is a reminder to check fabric closely before piecing. After two quilts with non-intentional sun-bleaching, you'd think I know that spilt-milk drill. 13 tiny little patches later, the quilt was on its way to new mom with no explanation. If she ever asks, I will give her the scoop. I hope, though, she's having too much fun with her new little baby to notice quilt flaws...


In the meantime, two nieces announced new bundles of joy, and I have been able to make contact with three more of the grands! So now I have to decide if any of my already finished but ungifted WIPs (and there are a few, thankfully), would be suitable for a 13-year-old, a 10-year-old and an 8-year-old for Christmas, and if not, if any of my WIPs below might work. I'm also hoping I don't have to start new projects for the next two babies. If the babies are girls, I might be okay... Thank heavens I have seven or eight months to complete those!

Here's my unchanged Summer WIP list from the Spring Quarter:


1. Hawaiian Punch


2. Welcome to the Jungle


3. Lizard Toes


4. Hexie Booboo


5. Tickled Pink, the Sequel


6. Teal Shadows


7. Goodbye Hollyhock Road


8. Snowflake Strip Bar


9. Green Floral Batik Postage Stamps


10. Lavender Sunrise


11. Giant Dahlia


12. Showcase


13. Snowbike II


14. Autumn Splendor


15. Citrus Whip


16. Time for Me to Fly


17. Venetian Squiggles


18. Moda Blockheads


19. Tiny Triangle Leftovers


20. Matthew's Quilt

Linking up with Busy Hands Quilts and Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

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