Ta-Da

Here it is. I may post more pictures later when I have Nathan's help to take them.
There are a few things I especially like about how it turned out. One, the quilting along the squares meant that the white spaces essentially became a little channel. The quilting distance of the whites (each edge of the white) is only .5 inch apart, so the white is held down tight, while the squares themselves are not, making the squares seem more poofy. I like that they stand out and the way it gives the quilt dimension. I also like my little label. It was nearly the proudest moment of the whole thing once I got to "sign" it. This is on the back in a bottom corner. With its inspiration. I pulled out the board and Owen exclaimed, "it looks just like that!" I like the look of the quilting on the back. It makes it look like so much work. (I plan on wrapping it so that Nathan Lindsey sees the back first and realizes quilt before he turns it over and sees what it really entails.)

Here's a close up of the back, well closer.

It's Finished

Last night I did all the final sewing. The border is on and there is nothing left to sew. I have to take out the basting (the "garbage stitches" that hold it together while quilting) and I have to clean up any loose threads from the underside that are peeking up in my seams. But I think I can take care of all that during Sesame Street.
Pictures of the masterpiece will be coming soon; this afternoon maybe. I'm planning on taking a ridiculous amount of pictures. Mostly due to the fact that I don't feel like I have enough pictures of the flip flop quilt and all its little quilted designs.
Essentially I'm glad to be done with it. I have been working on it all year. And now, despite my previous machine, vacations, two kids, pregnancy, and a horribly misguided but well intentioned plan of piecing the triangles, it is finished.

More Progress

I got two sides pinned last night. I expect I could have done more in that same amount of time, but I was watching Harry Potter special features and kept actually watching them talk about special effects and things. So no special features tonight, just pinning.

Quilted, Trimmed, and Ready to Pin

This is what I did yesterday while Owen watched Muppet Treasure Island and Lily made Christmas cookies with Dad, and occasionally came to stand in very inconvenient spots.

Next Step, Done

I finished all the quilting the other night. Now I've just got to finish it and get it sent.

Almost!

There are only thirty unquilted squares. I will totally get this done. The kids are pretty good about not climbing on me or the quilt during Sesame Street. Between that and quilting at night it's been moving along. But only thirty left. That means also that I can take a little breather from quilting this weekend.
Once all the square are quilted, there is still the matter of finishing it. It shouldn't be too terrible, but it is a king (CA king as a matter of fact) size quilt. Just that length of the sides means it will take a while to actually finish. A couple nights at least. I have to trim the edges and then fold and pin it all. Then sew it. With my new machine that part will be a breeze. The hardest part will be finding room on my desk to maneuver it.
Expect more excited updates.

Coming Right Along

I haven't counted lately, but I'm approaching done with squares. I just needed more opportunities to work on it, so the other day I asked Owen if he thought he and Lily could handle it if I quilted by them during Sesame Street. He thought they could and he was right. So that's an extra hour a day that doesn't depend on Number Three and I staying up late.
There has been definite progress.