Making Progress

In avoidance of numerous other quilt projects that need attention, I managed to finally find some fabric and get borders on this quilt top.  It has been languishing in my quilt studio for a while now.  I still need to make the binding and the backing, but now I have to go back to the projects that I've been avoiding!

When finished, this will go to a local facility for seriously ill and/or fragile children.

A Work In Progress

I got a String X quilt top put together last week, and now I'm stumped as to what to use for the border.  Nothing I have seems to "go" very well.

please excuse the crummy photo

I've been working on these blocks off and on for a few years, then finally decided that A. I was tired of working with these strings, as I've been using these for years and B. I had enough blocks to make a charity quilt the size that my guild likes.  It does need some border to bring it up to the right size.  I'd like to get this finished before too long.  I'm debating whether or not to do a simple pieced border.  (I still  have some more squares of the background fabric that I could use.)

If anyone has any suggestions for border ideas, I'd really appreciate it!  Thanks!