This is one of my works in progress -- it's a 36"x 36" Monkey Wrench lap quilt done in beige and blue, and it was supposed to be a Christmas present for DH's brother and wife.

Christmas 1998, mind you. Erm. . .I got sidetracked?

Seriously, I do intend to finish it -- I've added applique to the border and I'm currently hand quilting it (got most of the central medallion done). I like this quilt a lot because it's a mix of scrap fabrics from UFF, a secondhand store chain in Sweden, and new calico from the local crafts store (my ragpicker soul thrills at the chance to mix and match mystery fabric with something specially purchased for the occasion, don't ask me why), and because it's my first attempt at internal borders. I think it's turning out rather nice.

I love it when I finally finish a project

Normally, hand-quilting something like Winter in Sweden, even with the rather complex pattern I used, would only take a couple of months at most. Hahahahahaha.

I, on the other hand, would do a little quilting, then get busy on something else, then remember it and do a little more quilting, then get busy on something else; rinse and repeat for close to eight years. Yeah, well, I never said I was fast. In any case, I pulled it out from its storage place early in 2007 and realized that, holy crap, everything was actually done except for the outer border.

So, I decided to get serious and finish the mother while I had the time. First step -- quilt the open spaces on the outer border in an interlinking heart pattern. Next, do a simple outline quilt for the appliqués. Finally, sew on the steel-blue border, smear all the pencil and pen marks with a liberal dose of Shout, and pop it in the washer. Unfortunately, the quilting in the center follows 8-year-old penlines, and they aren't coming out all that well. I already washed it about 4 times, severely bleaching the blue lattice from royal blue to sky blue in the process, and the lines are still evident. Next step -- ink remover. If that doesn't work, then I'll learn to live with visible lines.

And with that, my friends, the quilt is finally finished and ready for hanging. Whee!