Back from retreat

I can't believe that my quilting retreat is over already. It was a wonderful getaway as always and very inspiring to see all the amazing bags, tablerunners, wallhangings, and quilts being made by quilting friends.
This is my project tally:
11 projects made the trip this year...I tried to be more realistic and reduced by 3 from last year!
5 did not get opened (apparently I am still a little overly optimistic!)
2 new projects were started...1 from stash scraps (see below) and 1 from a kit which I disliked and put away quickly
4 ongoing projects saw some major progress however I have no finishes to announce...I spread my time working on various projects until I felt like working on something else
One of my goals was to start the machine quilting on Carolina Crossroads which I finished piecing at retreat 2 years ago and pieced the backing for last weekend. Don't you just hate it when the bobbin runs out in the middle of machine quilting!  This quilt now has about 3 bobbins worth of quilting and it's maybe 1/3 finished.
My new project that I enjoyed working on is Quiltville's Scrappy Trips Around the World. I used some fabric from a scrap bag I bought at Hancock's in Paducah last year, plus lots of fabric from my stash. This photo shows the 20 blocks I pieced.  It was fun to sew and a great stash reducer. I want to make at least 4 more blocks, but I had sewn as many strips as I brought with me.

I took along the box of scraps that Julie sent to me - click here. I gave away a few pieces that some friends were coveting, then pressed the strings, sorting them into lights and darks, and sewed them into the Quilt-As-You-Go blocks I have been working on since 2007. I had hoped to make more progress on this project with sewing the blocks into rows, but I got so distracted with watching the Olympics that I didn't get much done! I did get the finished blocks sewn into twosies and the sashings are ready to be hand stitched.

This photo of me reminds me of Bonnie's blogpost about quilters dressing to match their quilts - click here. I am sewing with purple thread and working on purple sashing with a purple backing...and wearing purple!
That's the report for 2010 quilt retreat. Now I am off to get some much needed sleep!