I finally spent some significant time in my sewing room, sorting through containers, documenting projects, getting rid of scraps and leftovers.  There is still lots more to do, but I don't feel quite as overwhelmed as I did.  It's my overcutting problem that is causing all the trouble; once I'm through with a project I want to move onto the next thing straight away, but there's a mountain of leftovers to deal with.  I just shove them in yet another container and start the next quilt, but eventually the dozens of unlabelled boxes containing who-know-what drag me to a halt.  I'm not a tidy quilter, but there's a chaos level that even I can't work with.  Actually, I think my problem is that I don't take the time to label those containers, and collect all the bits from one project in a single box for sorting out later.  I just shove them out of sight.  From now on, I need to leave myself a note about what is actually in the box of bits.

There were 4 boxes of Dear Jane bits and pieces, so I decided to get the blocks sewn together this weekend.  I'm not excited to be working on it, but it's something that I will be glad about later.  I know as soon as it's in one piece I'll start obsessing about the border (I refuse to do those ugly triangles, so I'll have to come up with my own solution), but I'll deal with that later.

 I spent HOURS last night adding another 5 strips to the four that were already joined. 9 rows all in one piece!

 It took an episode of Foyle's War to get me through it; when it finished I just hit the play button again and kept on sewing.  Yes, I'm glad I'm working on it and it's getting closer to completion, but sometimes I feel quite hysterical about sewing something I'm not enthused about.  It takes a lot of willpower to just keep plugging away at it.  Especially when you sew the blocks in the wrong order, and have to rip them apart......

I'm not using cornerstones in the sashing, and to keep the blocks aligned properly I mark the long lengths of sashing, using my acrylic ruler.  The blocks are 4.5" and the sashes are .5", so I work my way along the sash drawing those marks in.

I make sure the edge of the sashing strip is lined up with the lines of the ruler, so I'm making marks exactly opposite each other.  S'cuse the lousy photo, but the light flared on the ruler so I had to place it above the strip; it's actually over the strip when I do the marking.

Then when I sew the blocks on I just have to line up the marks with the seams.  It works really well to keep all those seams aligned properly.

So, if it took a marathon effort last night to sew 5 strips of blocks to each other, how long will it take today to construct 4 rows of blocks, and then sew them into one piece?

Lots more DVDs will get me through it. And the thought of what I can sew next.

I'm thinking of revisiting these blocks, from many moons ago.  Tutorial here.  I have scraps to use up, and I need an ongoing project for that.

It's supposed to reach 36° here today, so I have to run out and water everything before I tackle the sewing chores.  When it's hot and nasty outside, I'll be inside at the machine, sewing my way closer to a finished Dear Jane.