After I finished my blog post on Sunday, I realized that there really wasn’t a whole lot of time for me to finish the project. It had taken me three days to crochet six of the sixteen crochet squares needed for the finished piece, and I had not thought to schedule any time for a “blocking party,” where I could get the pieces stretched to their best effect before joining.

Realizing that I was seemingly already behind, I decided to crochet until I was too tired to make one more stitch, and then I set myself a series of easy to complete tasks to get me started, and just as the sun was setting yesterday, I had gotten this far:

But I didn’t stop my work at sunset. I had finished exactly half of the squares needed for the project, and I realized that if this piece is going to be ready in time for the Day of the Dead, I needed to keep at it, so I did, and by noon today, I had made enough progress that not only could I see that my deadline was within reach:

there was also time to have that “blocking party” I was intent on having:

This “crochet mural” or “crochet poster” that I am making is modest by yarn bombing standards, but it is a largely solo effort, and I am doing what I can to make it as easy to join as possible. In an effort to determine if the blocking was worth the time, I laid out the blocked and unblocked pieces in the late afternoon light and got this photo:

To my eye, it seems that the blocking is worth the effort, and so tonight, when I have stitched as many stitches as I can, I will block the pieces that remain and prepare tomorrow’s list of crochet tasks that must be done.