Slow start

New Year's Eve I felt myself taking a cold. Not a big deal in the realm of things, but it had its way with me for better than a week: a couple days dragging around, 1 whole day in bed, a couple more days dragging around. On the fitness front, I hadn't the energy to exercise & I craved carbs & fats not fruits & vegetables. (Please tell me I'm not alone here!) So, some catching up to do there.

In spite of being puny, I managed my first 2 finishes for the year: I put the last stitches in the binding of a veeeerrrry late milestone birthday quilt. A green Irish chain with 3 inch 9-patches -- simple, clean & fun. I did straight-line, walking foot quilting diagonally through the 9-patches & free-motion diagonals with little shamrocks in the white squares. There's room for improvement, but I like how it finished up.

Then I quilted & bound my scrappy-trip-along top. I'm not sure why I made it so small -- it's only 48 inches square. The top was finished early last year at the height of the Scrappy-Trip-Along Fever. I think I lost steam because I wasn't loving mine as much as I was loving what other people were making -- comparison is the thief of joy! But it is amazing what the distance of 12 months can do -- now I wish I had made it bigger. It is the 4th quilt I've quilted using a manipulated programmed stitch on my machine: a multi-stitch zigzag that looks wavy & curvy when you increase the stitch length. I love how it looks & especially love it after washing & drying. A delicious little cuddle quilt!