It's a NEW YEAR

 I woke up super excited! It's a New Year, and we have another 365 days to do stuff! This time last year, I was deep in the throes of decluttering, and I don't have to declutter today! WHAT?? No, I have some stuff to put away, as I wanted to start the year with all three main surfaces clear. That's NOT quite the case, and I need to do some machine embroidery. 

Since I won't have any decluttering tips today -- here's a link to last year's blog where you can get some tips and motivation. 

Since I've got my act together and kept my ironing surface, workspaces, and cutting table clear, it's been a joy to go down and sew every day. It took me a long time, but clutter is a visual distraction and a physical nuisance! Yes -- some of my stuff got put into closets or boxes, but it's out of sight. I know where it is (for the most part) and can find most things within a few minutes. But I don't have to struggle to get the space to work. 

I will spend today tidying up the little dregs of stuff that have sat around and get that all organized so tomorrow, when I'm officially back to work, it'll be so easy. It feels weird not to have something to sort in Studio B. I know a few more spots could be gone through, but I'll be dealing with the fabric as Diane asks for more. And that will free up a lot more space on those shelves. 

Yesterday, when Diane asked for more fabric, I almost panicked. What am I going to give her? OK -- so why was that? I already had five projects waiting for her, and enough are sitting in that storage room for the following five requests from her. But after that, I have no choice but to hit my personal stash. Well, most of my personal flannel is gone! Yep --- it's all going to Diane to make quilts. Most of it was super quality and NICE stuff, but I'll never use it, so it's gone. When I made that decision, I did have a minor twinge, but not now. Flannel? What flannel?

Then I'm hitting the fabric baskets, and my goal is to reduce the personal stash by 50%!! There's enough to keep her sewing for 2023 and hopefully into 2024! By then, I may not want any of my fabrics, and the entire room will disappear! Is that a possibility? You bet it is!!

I was excited to get up and see 100% completion on my 2022 Virtual CHallenge, only to find that my FitBit didn't sync last night! Sigh!!!!! I could manually enter the data this morning, but then it'll sync tonight and be double-counted. So I'll have to wait until tomorrow. Grr!!! But I managed to get my 6,600 cardio KM in for 2022. That included some spin classes and outdoor cycling. But I would bet that 2/3 of it was walking! 

I bought a new 2023 challenge and have yet to set the goal, but I'll only make it a walking goal. 

So this is how I spent my day. This was the puzzle first thing in the morning. 

Puzzle at the start of the day

And throughout the day, I worked on it. And this is where I am this morning. The darn thing is addictive, so this is the LAST puzzle for a while. I have work to do!! 

The puzzle this morning

I haven't resorted to sorting the pieces by shape --- no -- I refuse to do that. But I'm going to focus on one side and then the other. Although those pieces are NOT the same color, they are very close, and it's a challenge to find the piece. Minuscule differences in shape are IMPORTANT. Then this puzzle I purchased at a thrift store will be packed away and passed along. I do NOT need or want to keep any of these. 

I still had that placemat to bind, and it's also done. That means no projects in my house need to be bound. Four quilts need sleeves sewn on, and I'll make that my focus - perhaps during Monday sewing since it's the perfect thing to do during Zoom. 

Placemat is done

Here are three more quilts that I picked up from Diane. I believe there are several more to be picked up, and I"ll get those on my walks this week. 

Three more quilts

Two pieces of clothesline have been sitting on the sewing tables, and I started to sew one yesterday. I needed to stop for a reason, which I'll finish today, and then try to get both off the table. It doesn't take long, but you have to sew slowly! 

Making a clothesline bowl

And I'm still working on removing the stabilizer from that machine embroidery. I have piddly little things that need to be cleaned up! Those are causing the minimal clutter in Studio B, and I was supposed to work on that over the holidays, but I did not. So that will be my focus for the next few days, and then I can start CLEAN for the year!

Removing stabilizer from machine embroidery

I finished The Shadow Sister by Lucinda Riley yesterday. Oh, shoot--- two weeks ago, the next book was sitting on the audiobook shelf. Now there's a 22-week wait list for it. How does that happen? I'll have to wait and hope it comes in sooner. I still have to add two more libraries to my Libby app. This is always a challenge to get everything back in order when switching phones. I'm happy to report that I've had ZERO issues with phone calls cutting out, so that is good news and makes the hassle worthwhile. And at last, I got my headphones paired. 

I'm reading a classic at the moment. And then there were none by Agatha Christie! Some books have been done with a similar storyline, but I believe hers was the first! I had to wait a LONG time for this audiobook to come in. And this book has several titles! 

Speaking of the library, I found this attached to the physical book I picked up the other day! Thanks to the librarian (gosh -- whose name I don't think I ever knew) who leaves me little orange things on my books! Thanks so much -- it brightened my day!!!! You know, small things like this are essential. It's nice to know that someone is thinking of you from time to time. So the next time you think of someone randomly during the day --- send them a text --- "just saying hi! I was thinking of you!" 

A leaf to brighten my day

So I want you all to be in the same clean slate I'm in, so get to work organizing your studio space. I find it hard to believe that I have nothing major to declutter today. OK - I could work in the office. 

But think about how you work, and why you dislike your space. Yes --- you may say that it's too small, so you must be more diligent about what you keep and where. Be sure to go back and read those tips from January 1, 2022. And it's going to be a long process -- so don't get discouraged. 

For today, I'd start by removing everything from your ironing surface. And don't just MOVE it somewhere else. Deal with it!!! Make sure everything has a home -- that has been the key to getting my space in shape!! Find a home for things so they are no longer clutter!

In case you're wondering if I made resolutions, I did not. I have a few goals -- the number of books to read, the number of KMs to walk, and that's about it. I have decent habits already, and my goal is to keep doing what I do! No relapses are allowed! 

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!