A great finish and a poor start

I have quilted and bound my 'Roll, roll, cotton boll'! Here DD is holding it up as best she can. Although it's only five eighths the size of the original (20 blocks instead of 32) it's still a big quilt!

I am so pleased with this quilt. Not only was it great fun to make, but the whole top and binding was made from my stash. I didn't buy a single piece of fabric specially for it. Of course, it hasn't seemed to make any dent in my boxes and boxes of stuff, but it's a great feeling looking at all those different fabrics which play together so nicely.

I had to buy yardage for the backing, but I used a tip from Bonnie Hunter when I found I hadn't bought enough. She cuts unloved fabric (you know, the fabric you bought in those 'stash builder' bundles when you first started quilting, and which has lingered at the back of drawers and in the bottom of boxes ever since!) into 10 1/2" squares, and joins them into strips to make backing. Since the squares finish at 10", it's easy to work out how many you need. Plus, they make a nice feature on the backing too. And now for my poor start. I've started making some 'Dear Jane' blocks and here are my first two. I'm using cream and blue for my colour scheme - lots of different fabrics in each. I'm working from the centre out, and then, if I run out of steam (or skill, in this case) I can use what I've made as the centre of a medallion quilt. (Nothing like planning for failure!) The first block, on the right was G7, Indianapolis. It's turned out to be a fraction too small! The other one, G8, Justin's Comet, has turned out a fraction too big! Only two blocks in, and I'm already going to have to fudge. What a surprise!