UFO Sunday – Still Getting Back on Track

It’s UFO Sunday and I’m still in the process of getting back home, getting myself back in gear, and on track to finish many unfinished projects I had to set aside through January and now most of February.

It seems the train analogy of getting back on track is running through my head a lot. I was literally derailed on Duchess Reigns and had to roll her up and stuff her in a corner for 6 weeks, promising myself I’d find the time to finish outlining the lion / feather section later.

free motion quilting | Leah Day
Can you tell what has been quilted with regular thread and what hasn’t? I sure can’t!

Returning to this project feels a bit like a train wreck. Where am I? Where do I start? I had developed a good flow through this complicated area, but now I feel lost in a jumble of stitched and unstitched spaces.

I can’t count the number of times I’ve had to flip her over to the back to check the stitches. What is secured? What spaces aren’t secured? Argh!

free motion quilting | Leah Day

I guess it’s just generally good advice to not stop in the smack middle of a section. If you have to stop a project, complete an entire step before rolling it up and putting it away. Don’t leave it half stitched in a confusing mess of water soluble thread and pen marks.

But returning to this project is exactly what I want right now. 4 years ago I was finishing up on the original Duchess, stitching on miles of lace and thousands of beads by hand. This quilt will likely take much longer to complete. I have many miles of thread yet to quilt over surface. I haven’t even reached the filling stage yet!

So here’s to long projects in the depth of winter, with snow actually on the ground (amazing for my area of NC). While I’ve definitely gotten off track and will suffer a slow restart, ultimately there’s nothing I’d rather be quilting right now.

Now what have you picked up to work on / finish this week?


Let’s go quilt,

Leah

P.S – I spy with my little eye….a new machine! Details coming soon!

LeahDay

Leah Day has been teaching online since 2009. She's the creator of the Free Motion Quilting Project, a blog filled with thousands of quilting tutorial videos. Leah has written several books including 365 Free Motion Quilting Designs, Explore Walking Foot Quilting with Leah Day, and Mally the Maker and the Queen in the Quilt.

5 Responses

  1. I loaded a link full of UFOs, but I am unsure how one qualifies as a UFO. I have unfinished objects all over my sewing room!!!

  2. Jessim says:

    Leah your feathers are beautiful! I still haven't gotten the hang of drawing them…

    I think the best quilts are those that are not done quickly- this one is sure to be a masterpiece!

  3. I've actually picked up my UFO (2012 Craftsy BOM with Amy Gibson) this month and sewed the borders on each block to get ready to learn Free Motion Quilting with your Craftsy Class (Free Motion Quilting A Sampler). I've got a few more batting blks to cut out before I can begin to sandwich the blks and move on to the next class. My Pinmoors arrived the other day and I'm just waiting on the flower pins now. Feels good to be working on this UFO but it will take me a while to complete it I'm sure.

  4. Kelly Vetch says:

    Hope you settle in after your trip. I always feel disoriented for days after being gone awhile form home.

  5. diana wright says:

    Wonderfull article on How to get Projects back-on-track How to get Projects back-on-track .Beautifully written.Thanks for sharing

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