WIP Wednesday - Getting back in line

This has definitely been a "continuing on" sort of week which is just fine by me! As anyone who's seen my UFO / WIP list can guess, I certainly don't need to start any new projects! But there are plenty of other folks who do have new projects they're sharing, linked up to Lee's blog Freshly Pieced, for WIP Wednesday!
WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced

Making Progress
Lock 'n' Bolt
In the process of getting the binding on my Lock 'n' Bolt quilt.

Jewel of Friendship
Quilt top is complete, just need to get to the next step!
(talked about in much more detail in this post.

placemats
FINALLY stitched up this second set of placemats left over from a project I did last summer. Now it's just a matter of binding.
(please excuse poor quality photo, taken by the light of the TV and maybe a second glass of wine was involved, too).

Completed
another pot holder pair
I'm slowly restocking these guys

Friends + Fabric bee blocks
Spiderweb blocks for Lee, using Heather's tutorial at {House} of A La Mode.
(though admittedly, I still have to package and mail these off! On my list for Thursday, I promise!)

No Progress
Quilting the Nubees quilt
Batik W/C QAL
Medallion quilt
Could be a Quilt...
Purple/Green Asian sampler
Seams Perfect Sampler
Lee & Glenn's quilt
red/brown/green I-Spy
girly hourglass
Judy Neimeyer double wedding ring
broken dishes
Trip Around the 9-Patch
Halloween Stack 'n Whack
leftover I-spys from Hopman quilt
tote bags

So, the final tally estimate (I always write these posts when I am actually at work and have no access to my sewing projects!)
New - 0
In Progress - 17
Completed - 2
Tops awaiting quilting - approx. 16 give or take

Making the same decision twice... or thrice?

Sometimes it's MUCH easier to piece together a quilt backing from random scraps, bits and pieces left behind, rather than try and find that PERFECT backing. For example, I have a quilt that I pieced, oh I don't know, about 5 or 6 years ago:
From a pattern in a Judy Hopkins book, Big 'n' Easy: Super Sized Quilts for Queen Beds

and it took me another 3-4 years and at least 2 false-start purchases to find what I believe to be just the right backing:
tents, by Brandon Mably (available at The Quilter's Studio)

Now that THAT'S off my chest (but still on the shelf!!), I'm going through something a little different. Thank goodness for deadlines! I finally got all of my Friends + Fabric blocks pieced into a stunning quilt top. Just under the wire for the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show submission.

However I now need to figure out what to use as the backing... within the next day and a half!
HELP!!!

My first gut feeling:
an Anna Maria Horner print... lovely color match and complimentary motif, but generally a bit more purple than I prefer...

My first fabric purchase:
a PERFECT compliment with all the right colors and energy, by Terrie Mangat for Free Spirit, but I'm wondering if it's just a bit too busy?

Some Kaffe Fassett shot cotton possibilities (because the quilt top is so darn busy already, and I do love how those guys quilt up):
within comfort zone for Linda:


and then...
not so much one of my go-to colors, but ruled the WOW factor next to the quilt top, don't you think?

Will I regret going with the Wow, but using a basically solid fabric in a color that doesn't exist anywhere in my world?? I welcome any input, but the prewashing must begin by this Thursday...

Plugging Away

First of all, I have to say that we got lucky with the weather today. It is a beautiful, dry, mostly sunny day here in Portland, and my boyfriend and I had the day off, so after a morning errand (which included a filling breakfast out), we returned to the house to do some yard prep. He took the hoe to the veggie garden area while I was working on weeding around the flower beds, so we should be ready for a trip to the nursery in the next couple of weeks!

That said, it's supposed to return to the usual rain by tonight, so back to the sewing studio tomorrow. The week to come is going to be one of those "just get things done" sort of weeks. No surprises (hopefully!), no special projects, just finishing tops and working on quilting.

Last week I basted and started quilting another of my "monochromatic" (or more accurately "analogous color") quilts.

Planning to finish this guy up in the next couple of days, hopefully... I'm so confident of that, I'm about to baste another quilt:

I don't know if this will be next in the quilting queue, but I also managed to get borders on the green and aqua curved-piecing quilt this Sunday. I didn't expect to put borders on it, but after adding sashing
it just felt unfinished. I definitely feel this brings it more completion:

Next week I'll be heading out to Montana with J to visit with his family... which means staying in the room just next to his mom's long-arm! Trying to decide which quilt to take with me just in case I get some practice time in. I'll keep y'all posted!