Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Lists for 2010

Here it is, January 5th, and I still don't have any photos to show.  It's not that I can't find my camera, it's just getting myself organized!  Karen posted about the discipline of quilting, or rather, what that statement means to you.  To me everything in life requires discipline, I just don't have enough to cover all areas of my life so some things just get left in the dust (like my house).  The hardest thing for me about quilting is to NOT quilt.  I could hole up in my sewing room for hours, move to the studio and longarm quilt, then take a break (back in the sewing room). Just one more thing, I'll just sew these strips, then, I'll just press this fq, I'll just, I'll just...........acckkkk!
So back to the title of this post, Lists 2010.  A few years ago I make a written list of projects and the stages they were at.  By writing them down, they became even more important than fabric/blocks/tops in a box or bin.  I know I have UFO's, but how many?  Well, I'm feeling pretty good about this number.  I'm at 19 right now and I think that is my final count.  Since I moved this fall, everything has been handled and unpacked and refolded, so I'm confident about this number.  While going through this list in my mind, there is only one project I am going to abandon.  I didn't love the fabric from the beginning, and it will now become a back on some project along the way in 2010.  In essence, it too, will become a finished project, just not in the way it started it's life in my sewing room.
Why do I write down my projects? Because I have to think about what stage the project is at.  One just needs borders cut and sewn on.  The fabric is there, it's been prewashed, it's ready to go, I guess I'm not ready to move it to this stage.  I can't answer that, it just is.  By listing projects, it allows me to pick and choose what I will work on.  If I'm in the mood to have a finish, I can take my Christmas star and attach the last border to it, I will get such satisfaction on a day where I only have a short amount of time to sew.  Yeah, that's why I hold back at the last set.  That's my answer and I'm sticking to it.
Stitch today, you can dust tomorrow!
Sharon

3 comments:

Browndirtcottage said...

That's a VERY good idea!! Sometimes your just
not in the mood for a 'rolling up your leaves'
jumping in with both feet part of the project!!
I tend to forget certain ones....mainly because they are not all in one spot or one room OR on the same floor level!! I must do a list too!
Oh...and by the way...you're too late....I vacuumed and dusted my sewing room first thing this morning!!

julieQ said...

I write down my list with solemn intentions of following the list...and then go off in all directions!!!

Exuberantcolor/Wanda S Hanson said...

I think the lists help too. If I list all of the ones that need borders, I'll do a border on a day I just can't figure out what else I'm going to do.