Might as well say it bluntly: I've needed time to resume sewing after losing Tenzing. It's hard to lose your furry sewing buddy and leap right back into the hobby like nothing happened. I'm still not really really all the way back on the horse, but I'm getting there. I'm working my way through a few projects, but I've started focusing on the long-paused "Pentatonic." I spread out the quilt, started assessing what I had cut, and realized I was further along than I'd originally expected. So I'm plowing forward.

Here's a current snapshot of my guide, showing what portion of the quilt is complete:

View on Flickr
by domesticat.

and as of last night, here's a snapshot of the actual sewn pieces:

Structure happens.
by domesticat.

There's hope. I have more pieces basted that haven't been added to the quilt top yet. As each of the lobes grow larger, it gets harder to work on the big mass. I should be able to start backfilling the spaces between the lobes soon, and as I do that, the total number of paper pieces still attached to fabric will decrease, and the quilt top will get easier to manage. Instead of reaching deep into the center of the quilt to attach things, I'll start working more along the far edges. Easier to manager, easier to keep paper pieces from popping out.

I think I have enough fabric. It's going to be close. I'm planning to work my ass off between now and Christmas Day to try to get this top finished before heading to Australia.