The 2011 PhD Challenge !

So when Ms. Sarcastic Quilter mentioned she was joining Myra's PhD (Projects Half Done ) challenge a few days a go, I thought smugly  "Well I dont need to do that because I dont have that many WIP's".

You know how this story goes. You start a quilt . It holds so much allure. And at some point - you stall. It might be because nothing is going right, you might move onto something you love better, you might realise that the colours are all wrong. Whatever . The  project that started with such promise languishes in a drawer, on a chair , or somewhere dark and nasty where you can't see it- but it remains unfinished.

So, I sat down and counted my works in progress (and I use that term loosely ) I have four. There is no way I'm finishing that many WIP's before New Year right? Not even if I started now and didn't go to work for the next two and a half weeks. Yes I know -it's mega scary because there's less than 3 weeks left of 2010 and some of that is Christmas. 

So I hightailed it over here and decided to sign right up. Myra is hosting the challenge which runs from January 1st to June 30th , and you can decide how many PhD's you want to finish. And while it's important to commit, and give it your best shot, nobody is going to crack a whip if you don't get all of  your PhD's finished  because this is about motivation and fun.

The genius of my plan is that  now I can ignore the quilt that must not be named until at least March because I officially have until the end of June to finish it. Nothing like buying yourself a little more time to finish something that's been lurking round so long it could almost legitimately be called vintage.

So to keep it all honest , I'm posting my PhD's  here (with pictures ) so I can celebrate when I get things done. I'm thinking Tequila shots might also be a nice way to mark the end of each finish.  Who's up for that?

First off is the Windmill quilt, which until immediately prior to this photo being taken had been living on my sewing room floor for the last three weeks.

and was coincidentally being used as cat bed. Nice.

The much maligned Windmill quilt needs many seam repairs, the back needs to be finished, and it needs basting, quilting and binding.  I am ashamed to say I started making this quilt in January 2010. I've decided I'm going to love this quilt and give it the finish it deserves. Or possibly bitch and whine about it for a bit more then pretend the cat ate it. It'll be fun  to see what outcome I choose.

Sadly Christmas is upon us and this quilt will not be finished in time to be part of the celebrations. Sorry half finished quilt - there's always next year.  I started making this in August 2010.  It needs a pieced back , basting , quilting, and binding.  In re-looking at this quilt , I think  it really needed green instead of spots. But finish it we must...

This Shoo Fly quilt has been sitting around since Christmas 2009 when Mr. P bought it for me as a gift. The top came finished (it's apparently vintage) and the back is ready to go. (I made that up)  So  all it needs is basting,  quilting and binding. I actually really like this top which may be why I have avoided it - I dont want to stuff it up. But it's no good to me sitting there like this ...unless I want to use it as a tablecloth , which I dont. At least if it's a quilt it wont get gravy all over it - although in this house anything is possible.

And these little bits are part of a Snowball Quilt Challenge that  I think started in about May 2010. These fabrics are really sweet and I think it'll look darling put together but I just ran out of the motivation to get any further than this. So  a fair bit of work to do on this one.

So if you have PhD's, WIP's ,UFO's or anything you hate the sight of  but desperately want to finish , please come join us at the PhD (Projects Half Done ) challenge. There will be lots of other people like you trying to finish leftover projects. I'll be one of them...

P.S. If you want to see my Christmas shopping/handmade/thrifted gear it's over here. (unless you're family then you're banned ) It's so cool being able to ban your family from your secret blog...I'm giddy with the power.