Leavin' On A Jet Plane

I too am one of the lucky heading off to the Fat Quarterly retreat in London this weekend.  Needless to say, I can not wait!  In my nutter excitement I have started to gather the goodies that will come with me on the flight.  Want to see?

I pulled out this "old thing" and dusted it off.  Yes, the Community Quilt has returned to the living from the land of UFOs.  I started this quilt in spring of 2011 and fell in love with it from day 1.  However, it turned into quite the monster (at 96x96 inches) and became completely unmanageable.  You can read the summary of this story here if you'd like.

I tried to quilt it myself, but failed.  I had it layered and did a straight line quilting diagonally across the Irish Chain.  I was just over half way through and realized I hated it.

I loved the dense quilting, but it was not doing anything to enhance the design of the quilt.  It was completely uneven too as I had to shove it through my machine.  Anyway, the last 5-6 nights have been spent UNPICKING all of that quilting so I now have a separate top and back again.  Whew!

You would not believe how many thread "tails" are hanging off of this quilt.  It's quite fuzzy right now.  I'll have a go at it with a vacuum and lint roller before it makes the journey.

I have also gathered together all of my bits and pieces for the four classes I will take.  They're all piled high on the spare bed.  Quilt top - check.  Class stuff in little baggies - check.  Camera - check.  Business cards, cutting mat, flight information, pouch (made by Di) with scissors, rotary cutter, 6.5 inch ruler, etc - check.  How will I ever fit my clothes in?  No one knows.

I still have a sewing machine to get organized and packed too!  I'm sure it will all fit somehow.  Or that's what I'm telling myself anyway.