Finish or Fling? - Christmas Patchwork

This is probably another project from my time on the South Coast - I was unhappy and I think it showed in my lack of stick-to-it-ness with projects. I had plans for a lap quilt size project from a selection of scraps, but like the Advent Calendar, the fabrics I've used already are a mix of cotton and polycotton, and there is one block finished and one block cut out.

Pros:

• Cheerful
• Uses fabric scraps

Cons:

• Bad fabric choices
• Lot of work if I stick to my original plan
• The Hermit hates Christmas, and another big project hanging around could tip him over the edge!

So - finish or fling?

Verdict: finish, but only these two squares. I might make them into something small, like potholders or a couple of scissor pouches.

Finish or Fling? - Advent Calendar Wall Hanging

I started this - oh, 1992? 1993? Sometimes around then. So this makes this project one of my oldest UFOs. It came from a magazine - now defunct - called Needlecraft. I used all sorts of oddments for this, so it is a mix of cotton and polycotton fabrics - a mistake I wouldn't make now, but as I'm unlikely to ever want to wash this, I don't suppose it will really make much difference. It's quite big - about half the width of my double bed here.

When I unwrapped this, I noticed some of the pins holding the felt hair on had rusted - but there's no rhyme or reason to which ones had gone. I think I'm going to have to cut some more shapes out - I don't think I have the templates, but I can draw round the other shapes.

Every single stitch is this is hand sewn - the blocks are pieced over paper. The appliqued faces, hair and quilts are all hand stitched, not fused on. And all those stockings are oversewn by hand. When I took them out of their bag, I was amazed at how fine and regular my stitches were, and how much work in general has gone into this.

Pros:

• I've done a lot of work already
• It will look amazing
• It would free up a lot of space in my stitching box

Cons:

• There's a lot of hand sewing to do
• There's a lot of quilting to do
• The Hermit hates Christmas so won't appreciate this
  

Finish or fling? Oh, definitely finish - I want to display this next Christmas!