Setting first quarter goals

I'm really happy to be signing up for the first quarter of the 2013 Finish Along.  It's both motivational and inspiring.  It can also be a bit intimidating when I see those long lists of projects people hope to complete. That goes double at the end of the quarter when I see how much they accomplished.  I'm no where near that productive.  Mind you, I don't really have a lot of unfinished quilting/sewing projects to finish up.  Maybe what I really need is a start along--something to get those ideas out of my head and made up.

On the other hand, I noticed that some participants include non-quilting/sewing fibre related projects.  Maybe I should include some spinning or knitting or needlepoint finishing goals.  Or not.  Maybe next time.

For the next three months my goals are simple.

1.  Finish my Modified Mystery Quilt.  I think that I had this on every quarter in 2012.  Turning it into a skill-building exercise--specifically a paper piecing skill-building exercise proved more challenging than I expected.  Here's where I'm at with it.

All four quarters are done.  No, it's not exactly like the original, but the four blocks in the top right are.  And so are both borders--tippy canoes and jaggy points. And the Mariner's compass and the 3 smaller star blocks.  So, really, there are only the two large corner blocks and the two small white stars that aren't part of the original.  The only thing is, I'm not really thrilled with square quilts, or at least not with asymmetrical square quilts. I know that Sheila didn't design it this way, since she balanced the whole thing with asymmetrical borders, but I'm not a big fan of borders either, so I'm not going to use them which means that I'll need to add another row of blocks to the bottom.  That's okay.  There's still one foundation pieced star I want to try, and while I'm about it, maybe some English paper piecing or geese.  Or both.  Whatever I decide to do, it will be done by the end of March.

2.  I was looking for the perfect way to show off the terrific Half Moon Modern charm packs I was hoarding when along comes Christa and her Sea of Squares do-it-yourself quilt along.  Perfect.  I don't think that I'll have any problems finishing this one (touch wood, cross fingers) because I love this fabric so much and can't wait to see it as a finished quilt. 
 

3.  This one is definitely one for the history books.  Whilst tidying some boxes in the basement, I came across an old baby quilt that I started in the early 80s (maybe late 70s) and never finished.  These are 1.5 inch hexies.  The fabric is a mix of cotton and poly-cotton blends.  The batting is polyester, and not particularly high quality.  It all hand quilted.  I really dislike the bits of quilting on the white background, so my goal is to pick out the quilting and machine quilt it for durability, bind it, and give it to the girls for a doll quilt. 

I decided not to include my vintage dresden plate this quarter.  I know that I'm not going to finish it this quarter, so there's not really any point.  I plan to keep working at it here and there, but I'm going to focus on getting the first three finished and, just as important, starting on some of the new projects I've been thinking about for too long.

Now, it's time to link this up to the 1st quarter link-up which is being hosted by Leanne throughout 2013.  Thank you for taking this on, Leanne.