Paper Piecing: A Test of Patience

Things are a little out of control over here:

No, I'm not talking about the state of my stash, though it is growing.  I mean I'm in the middle of a thousand projects, all more important than the last!  I don't like having open projects, but the highest priority, that is really making me nervous, is my February do.Good Stitches blocks.

do.Good Stitches is a charity bee run on Flickr.  I've seen a lot of great quilts come from it, which is what made me want to join in the first place.  It's also a great way to give back: all ten quilts made each year go directly to a local charity.  I belong to the Haven group, which was started last month.  Our quilts benefit a domestic abuse shelter in upper New York state, where the host is located.

I'm a quilter in the group, along with four other quilters and five stitchers.  Quilters have to design a quilt twice a year and then quilt it once the stitchers and other quilters send back the blocks.  The host designed the first quilt, and asked us all to make paper-pieced blocks with motivational words for the children in the shelter.  We used Elizabeth Hartman's Refrigerator Magnets pattern, which was donated to us, and stitched up our blocks.

I cannot say this was my favorite project ever.  In fact, I've put it off until the last weekend of the month because I wasn't looking forward to paper piecing in the least.

Alas, I got one of my words done: strength.  And it took no less than 90 minutes.

Tiny pattern pieces

Block layout

I have one more block to make, which will have to wait, though not too long: I think I have to have my blocks in at the beginning of March (read: in like three days).  So this was a lesson of procrastination and of patience: I do not like slow-moving projects, and I hate putting them off even more.  The "strength" block isn't quite done yet; I need to add a border so the Quilter can piece everything correctly.  However, I will say that I really like being part of a bee that supports a good cause, and I like being able to use up some of that ridiculous stash you saw above.

I will also say that my months will consist of HSTs.

What'd you stitch this weekend?