In September, Leanne of Devoted Quilter launched a 100-day WIP challenge. There were three projects that she wanted to wrap up before the end of the year, and she decided that if she worked on them bit by bit over the course of 100 days, she’d likely accomplish her goal. After solidifying the schedule and lining up some prizes, she invited other makers—not only quilters, but anyone who stitches—to join her.
I’m pretty good about not letting projects linger. There is one, however, that has become the crafty albatross around my neck: my Gypsy Wife quilt. I started my Gypsy Wife project back in 2018 with a group of guild mates. It’s not the most straightforward of projects—following the instructions requires more brain power than I expect to devote to a pattern, far more than I’d ever ask of people making my own patterns—and after a few focal blocks, I lost steam. Then, in 2019, I joined an online quilt-along and tackled many other blocks until the lack of a design wall, a problem that has since been remedied, hampered my ability to make smart fabric decisions. Could the last quarter of 2021 be the time I finish this beast of a project once and for all? I hope so!
One of the reasons I’d like to wrap up this quilt from my WIP list is that I’m using my stash of Bonnie and Camille fabrics to make it. B&C has a signature palette, and homing in on a subset of those colors makes the task of selecting fabrics more manageable, especially in a quilt top that requires many, many choices. I would like to make other quilts with all those B&C fabric, though. Gypsy Wife is the logjam.
As a first step in restarting this project, I arranged my completed blocks on my design wall and was pleasantly surprised to learn that I was further along than I had remembered. In fact, I started adding the long vertical strips to some of the completed blocks and already have 4 of the 10 sections fully pieced. This process has been so much fun that it’s been hard to return focus to the deadline-driven projects I have on my to-do list. Who would have guessed I’d be looking forward to chunks of time I can devote to Gypsy Wife?!
Thanks, Leanne, for the motivation to return to this project!
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I hope you can conquer this one! So many pieces go into it - Yikes! I do love the B&C fabrics though - it will be stunning when you get it finished.
ReplyDeleteI love that you are excited about the progress on the Gypsy Wife quilt. Leanne's 100 day challenge seems to have been a sweet idea for so many!
ReplyDeleteYay on your Gypsy Wife!!! Love your colors! You're really steamboating now! It's all too familiar to me!?!
ReplyDeleteGood job making forward progress on Gypsy Wife. It looks like you should finish the top within the 100 days especially if there aren't too many deadline projects that creep in. Love the colors of these B & C fabs.
ReplyDeleteI have heard so much about this WIP challenge. I am working my WIPs my own way, but it is a great source of inspiration even from the "outside". I am glad you found so much joy with your old "Albatros". xo
ReplyDeleteLeanne really hit a home run with her idea for getting WIPs finished, didn't she? So many quilters have UFOs that are near to being complete, so her idea was just the motivation quilters/stitchers needed. I'm happy for you to have pulled this one out again. Doesn't it feel refreshing to work with that project again?
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