Here is Part II of a three-part series on the audit I recently completed of all my existing sewing projects (did not include knitting knitting or crochet projects) that began with yesterday’s post A Year of Finishes: Audit of Existing Projects, Part I .
Before I share the next 8 projects of the 24 total projects I had on my docket, I’d like to share some highlights from an article titled “The Ultimate Guide to Tackling Your UFOs” in the February 2022 issue of American Patchwork & Quilting (APQ) that I came across a couple weeks ago.
Why UFOs (unfinished objects) Can Be a Problem:
- They take up space
- They cause stress or guilt
- They block your creativity
Steps to Tackling UFOs:
- Get organized
- Set clear goals
- Track your progress
- Use the buddy system
Is social media creating new UFOs? Social media is a great tool for connecting with other quilters…but it can also be an overwhelming place where you are constantly bombarded with new patterns, fabrics, and quilt-along (QAL) opportunities. This can make your…UFO pile grow larger…
APQ, Vol. 30, No. 1, Issue 174 (Feb 2023)
It was a great article. My local public library has American Patchwork & Quilting as one of it’s online magazines that can be read through the apps Libby or Hoopla, so if you have this access you could read the full article in the February 2022 issue.
And now back to the continued audit…
THE PROJECT AUDIT (CONTINUED)
9) THE COASTERS
I’m not sure why I hold onto these…
Years ago at some quilt shop I found a panel of adorable blocks/prints of coffee drinks – Cafe du jour. I’ve made several sets of gift coasters from the original panel I bought and now I have around 10 random blocks left over. I made the coasters by putting Timtex, a really firm interfacing, inside between a cute backing fabric (like coffee beans). Here is a well used coaster (I made myself a set too) that I had for years:
No one that I have gifted the coasters has ever told me they were life changing (ha) and I am not too sure how many people want handmade coasters as gifts anymore.
AUDIT DECISION: In 2023 try turning one of the blocks into a pot holder (with a border to make a bit larger) and then decided after that experiment whether to make the remaining blocks into potholders (gifts? sell on Etsy shop?) or to donate.
10) THE LEFTOVER LIGHTHOUSE BLOCKS
Hmm…some of these are getting embarrassing to share…
I learned to quilt while living in Seattle, WA around 1999. After making a couple quilts (that are now embarrassing in regards to my lack of technical skills back then) I decided EVERYONE important to me in my life needed a handmade quilt from me (whether they wanted one or not).
My late husband Terry came from a large family (7 kids) and to handle all those people for Christmas, including their spouses, they decided to draw names and you only got a gift for your assigned family member. Well back in the early 2000s I pulled the name of a family member that loved lighthouses. So I made her a lighthouse themed quilt, which she loved (whew!).
Yes early 2000s. And I still have left over blocks/sections from the lighthouse prints panel I used to make her quilt. Why? Because I was going to make another lighthouse themed quilt someday…
AUDIT DECISION: Donate. No more to say about that obvious decision! (But I hope some crafter at the thrift store comes across them and exclaims: “Wow! I’ve been looking for these exact lighthouse prints to make into a quilt!” Hey – it could happen!)
11) BASKET OF FABRIC TO USE FOR MAKING BAGS
No, not more drawstring/project bags! Once I finish the stack of partially completed drawstring/project bags (see Part I), I don’t want to make any more of those for a long, long time.
This fabric is reserved for tote bags I want to make.
AUDIT DECISION: Keep, and I have to make at least one tote bag from the fabric in this basket in 2023!
12) ASIAN FABRIC SCRAPS FOR AN ORANGE PEEL STYLE QUILT
I was obsessed with Asian themed fabric in the mid to late 2000s and I still have a lot of it in my fabric stash I do not appear to be able to part with. I made a lot of quilts with Asian themed fabrics and I made a lot of miniature kimonos during my obsession with them (see my page Gallery page for examples of the zillions of miniature kimonos I made as gifts, for my home, and sold in the early days of my tierneycreates Etsy shop).
So I have a lot of Asian fabric scraps left over from all those projects. I decided I wanted to someday make an Orange Peel style quilt (see example below) from those scraps.
Source: http://www.leilagardunia.com/blog/orange-peel-quilt-block-tutorial
AUDIT DECISION: Keep for now but I must make at least one tester block for this quilt in 2023 or I need to donate the fabric scraps…or just return them to my Asian fabrics scrap pile!
13) UNFINISHED TABLE RUNNERS
Here is an old post from October 2017 about these types of table runners I got obsessed with making 6+ years ago – Can We Talk About Table Runners?
They actually sold very well on my tierneycreates Etsy shop and I sold out of them. I also made some as gifts which were well received. I used ombre fabric as the background which had a cool gradation. Here is what they looked like completed:
I made quilted versions and non quilted versions. These unfinished table runners are the non quilted versions.
AUDIT DECISION: As the three runners are nearly complete, finish them in 2023 and list them on my Textiles & Smiles Etsy shop when I open it again for business later this year.
14) COORDINATING FABRIC FROM AN OLD QUILT BACK
This fabric is from a friend who had an old pieced quilt back that no longer worked but it had some great fabric in it. I took the quilt back and dissembled it to recycle the high quality quilting cottons that were there.
AUDIT DECISION: Not really sure what I was thinking at the time, except “Oooh free nice fabric I can recycle”, as I do not have a project in mind for this collection of scraps. So I am giving myself 2023 to come up with something to make with them and if I do not I will re-evaluate…I could always just add them to my pile of blue fabric scraps…
15) DRAFT DRESS IN MUSLIN AND PATTERN
A friend who is the same dress size as me made a beautiful sheath dress for her son’s wedding. It was a casual wedding and the dress was not formal but something you could wear out to lunch or dinner. The pattern was very accessible for the casual/beginner clothes maker.
She offered to send it to me and I said yes. But it has been sitting around. I really want to make the dress I think it would look great on me as I am tall like her and she looks great in it. It would be a great step towards my dream of learning to make my own clothes.
AUDIT DECISION: Keep it for now but revisit in 2024 if I do not start making the dress in 2023. And as I mentioned in yesterday’s post – going forward do not accept any more projects from others in the future. No matter now appealing!
16) COLORFUL QUARTER CIRCLE QUILT
I actually assembled this quilt in 2020, see post What’s On the Design Wall: “Pride”, but fell short of actually sewing it together. I also posted the design wall photo of Instagram and someone asked if they could buy the quilt when it was completed/quilted.
I am not clear why I stopped working on it, but I really want to make it (this is another project given to me by a quilting friend who did most of the piecing of the blocks but did not want to finish it). It must have been one of those “squirrel” moments where my attention to it wavered and I was called towards the next appealing looking “nut”!
AUDIT DECISION: Get this quilt back up on the design wall in 2023 and get the blocks sewn together!
Whew that was exhausting to go through but I feel this process is making me accountable to do something with all the projects I have in queue (and are sort of weighing me down).
Next post I will take break from this audit and share an update on the post From Junk Drawer to Charging Station, as well as some big news!
Feature image: Pexel Free Photos
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