Working smarter, not harder!

I am not alone in the decision to keep that "wet" bag of scraps! And I've found a fun way to tackle what's left in it. 

I have a subscription to The Quilt Show, but I'm so far behind in watching the episodes. I'm way back in the 700 series. We were chatting about this at Monday Sewing, and it's hard for me to "watch" TV when I'm in Studio B. I'm back and forth between the long arm, the stash room, the cutting table, or whatever, and I can't follow along. 

Then it hit me; I could move the laptop beside the ironing board and press scraps while I watched. 

Watching The Quilt Show while pressing scraps

The way the tables are positioned makes it easy to move the laptop. Since it's on its own table, I just rotated the laptop and pulled the table close to the ironing board. I must look at that rolling cart so I'm not dragging the legs on the floor. 

I filled the shoebox with scraps and got out the last empty box. 

One shoebox filled with green scraps

Does it look like I made a dent?

The status of the scraps last night

Well, if you look at the photo from the day before, it doesn't, but I know I did. And I'm also finding lots of pieces large enough to throw in the 365 Challenge quilt basket. So when I cut blocks, the fabric will be WAY more accessible and hopefully more inviting to tackle. 

The status of the scraps from the previous day

And guess what? The quilt backing is DONE! 

The quilt backing for the community projects quilt

I managed to use all of the same-colored material for the backing except one large piece. I still have lots of fabric left over, but no large pieces, so that got put away in the storage room along with the rest of my flannel scraps. 

The leftovers

I just need to join some batting bits for this quilt, and it can go on the long arm. Yeah -- that would NEVER have happened without my "new" system. One thing at a time comes off Mount Projects, and I focus on it. 

I have the next project on the cutting table, which I want to work on today. Then, I'm going to have to take a break and work on my blog posts for QUILTsocial, which are also on the cutting table. 

The status of the cutting table

So, YES—my "new" system seems to be working, but it requires much discipline on my part not to drop everything and move to something else. I get enough variety in my day that I don't feel like I'm working on the same project for eons. I don't even feel tempted to break out something new. Some projects on Mount Projects take up room but won't take long to complete. Those will be welcoming tasks!

I found this pillowcase when I went through the blue bag last week. It's a cool pattern, and I ripped it apart yesterday. It's one long piece of fabric that was folded and sewn with two seams to make an envelope-style cushion cover. I'm not sure what I'll do with it yet, but I put it in the bin with words because it reminds me of writing.  

"Found" fabric from the scrap bags

I also managed to quilt a customer quilt. I will show you the back first because if ever there was a backing perfect for the front, it's this one. 

The back of the quilt

And now let's look at the front. 

Customer quilt - DONE

It was a great match! I need to get this trimmed today so it can be picked up. The next quilt is HUGE, so it will take most of the day to finish. 

My days are so full that I'm exhausted at the end of them. I walked a ridiculous amount of kilometers—over 16 km. Yes, that involved two main walks and a shorter walk, but also walking around my Studio, which is why I'm not a good candidate to "watch" a show on the computer because I'm never in one place long enough! 

I stopped at Indigo on my way to the dollar store—you'll see why tomorrow (hopefully)—and I looked at the craft book section. OH MY!! There might be one or two books on quilting, but quilt books in a bookstore are a thing of the past. It's all about knitting and crochet, and tons of books on making amigurumi exist. 

The meagre craft book section

There wasn't much on mixed media either, which was the rage for a while as well. It's knitting and crocheting! 

Before I go, have you figured out a system where you are making a dent in your old projects? Or figuring out a better way to work? It's all about making changes and working smarter, not harder or longer. But it takes a LONG time to realize that. It took me a long time to figure that out and I see the odd thing or two sitting on the cutting table that shouldn't be there. I'm evaluating how I work to see how I can improve and become more efficient with my time. 

Putting things on Mount Projects, into a big tub, or whatever has really been an eye-opener and has given me the space that I want to work in—a space where nothing is sitting around to distract me or to inhibit my work. I don't think it matters how big or how small your space is; you need to try that to see how it is. But it requires a lot of discipline. 

And for all the organizing I've done in the office, I did a bad thing. I had a library book that I've now lost. I had it just a few days ago, and where did I put it? My account is now so overdue that I'm blocked, and I can't renew or take out new materials. So I must find that book. But where did I place it? 

More happened at the house, but I don't have time as I'm on my way to spin class. 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!

You CANNOT judge me!

Some days, I sit down here and wonder where to start. It's not that rocket science is being done at my house, but sometimes, the slow and steady process of getting rid of more stuff just blows my mind. 

So, you are NOT allowed to judge me based on what I'm going to share today. You can talk about me and how crazy I am, but you are not allowed to judge me. What I find entertaining is not what you would find entertaining, and vice versa. 

However, I know what I'm going to do when I'm in the nursing home and can't remember a thing. Give me an iron (although they probably won't allow me to touch a hot one) and some scraps, and I could spend all day pressing and sorting them. 

Then the staff could just mess them up at night and give it to me the next day! That's how easy I am to keep entertained. 

Meanwhile, DH, who had the day off and a couple of hours to kill before golf, was wandering around the house looking for something to do! Good grief!  I should have given him the iron and the scraps. What is he going to do when he retires? He'll be one of those guys still working at 80. 

Here's the back story on what I'm going to share today. In 2016, I decided to sew the 365-Day Challenge quilt by Kathryn Kerr. I wanted to make it in green and beige. I pulled out my scrap bins for the green because you start by making dark blocks. I believe I dumped a shoebox of scraps into a larger container so they would be easier to sort through. At some point, the project was shelved and put in the storage room. 

Then we had a water issue in that room, and this bag of scraps got wet. Now, this is where the judging step comes in. Most of you would likely have tossed that damp bag, but I did not. I threw it in the dryer. You have to remember that I LOVE working with small pieces—it's just therapeutic, and for me, I couldn't care less about making quilts. GASP—did I just say that? 

For me, it's the process. I like the fiddling, cutting, and finding the right piece. I'm not a fan of cutting up huge squares and making a quilt. Yes, I'll make those kinds of quilts, but what I like to do is work with the small bits. It's the pioneer spirit in me. 

The now-dried bag of green scraps got tossed around for several years, and last year, I resurrected this project. But I struggled to make headway. Part of it, I think, was the cluttered state of that bag of scraps. It's just like my office - it was overwhelming, and I couldn't wrap my head around it. 

That bag was on Mount Projects; it's time to deal with it. Not just because it's on that table, but we have a Many Blocks class in two weeks, and I need to have something done. 

The fabric pulled for the 365-day challenge quilt

I had two shoeboxes of beige scraps, which are hard to rifle through when cutting these small blocks. So I emptied one of those blue bins in the office. 

Before I could use the blue bin, it was filled with paper crap. So, I spread all the paperwork on a table while we had Monday Sewing. I managed to get rid of a good part of the paper. Most of it went into the recycling, and a bit of it went back into a drawer so I could deal with it another day. 

Sorting paper

Then I emptied a beige shoe box and put it into the blue bin. 

Now, the fabric is easier to find

The second box of beige went back on the shelf. 

I had already been using a blue bin for the green scraps and added the green scraps that I found in the blue bag last week. They are all nicely pressed and ready to go. 

My two bins of fabric ready to cut

I must say that it looks a whole lot more inviting than what I was working with. The digital cutter work table makes an excellent temporary home for those bins while I'm pressing. 

OH -- I've now added the blocks I've made and the instructions to the mix. I must keep it all together. The shoebox on the left is where I'm putting the scraps as they are pressed. I have one more empty shoebox for the remainder of the green scraps. 

Getting the project organized

And YES - there are still unpressed green scraps. That's what the pile looked like when I dumped it out of the bag when I started yesterday. 

A mess of green scraps

I had some time last night, so I pressed and sorted. The larger pieces went into the blue bin, where they can be used for the 365-challenge quilt, and the smaller bits or multi-colored greens went into the shoebox. 

It will take some time to go through that mess, but here's where most of us differ. I'm NOT pressed for time. I enjoy that process and will use the scraps when I'm done. I do NOT need to be making another quilt. This process is what quilting is all about to me, so I'm happy to do it. 

Since I knew it would take a while, I couldn't leave that huge mess on the ironing board, so this morning, I found a container to corral the scraps in. I'll leave it by the ironing board and spend some time each day pressing the scraps. 

The mess is now contained

Oh my—the next time DH wanders around the house with nothing to do, I know exactly what I will give him. He can set up an ironing board in front of the TV and press to his heart's content! 

Even after removing that bag and a shoebox of fabric from Mount Projects, it doesn't look like I've made a dent in this table, but that's OK. It's not bothering anyone; I don't even notice it. I know where the stuff is when I need it, and hopefully, one day, I can put the table away! 

Mount Projects

This sign greeted me as I walked up the stairs to my spin class. It was an advertisement for HOKA running shoes. YES—I LOVE them! 

HOKA running shoes

It was time for me to dig out my new HOKAs to break them in before I continue walking the Camino. I bought the same color I had previously, and well, let's hope all will be good. They are one size larger than I usually wear, and with thin socks and the cooler weather yesterday, they felt a bit sloppy. So I need to dig out my hiking socks; with heat, my feet will soon fill them up!

My new shoes!

This saying is profound in light of what's been happening to me and the decluttering. 

Each of us has important things in our lives; for me, it's the decluttering process and dealing with my projects. I hope to keep the URGENT things at bay by getting them done BEFORE they become urgent. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I can learn some new habits. I'm trying very hard, and I like how I feel. 

I finished a small customer quilt yesterday; the next one is loaded and ready today. I'm a little behind where I would like to be, but I've got a plan, and all the customer quilts should be finished soon—at least the ones I have in the house to quilt. It's all about keeping on top of things! 

Customer quilt - DONE

Speaking of keeping on top, it takes a lot of work to keep on top of the girls! Neither came to greet me when I arrived home from the gym. DH said they were outside and were interested in the rabbit under the gazebo. OH NO!!!!

I ran out, and sure enough, Murphy was digging madly to get under that side of the gazebo, and Lexi was trying to dig her way through my brand wood floor. Do men not check these things? 

So there is Miss Murphy - all happy with her exploits. 

MOM -- there was a rabbit, and we were trying to catch it!

Yep -- the dirtier she is, the happier she is. Oh, Murphy! 

Mom - this dirt will disappear quickly!

Later, she was fixated on something in the tree and watched it, but she heard me at the kitchen window and looked at me! At least she wasn't barking. 

MOM -- I'm watching the squirrels in the tree

There is a lot on the agenda today, and I can't wait to get to it! I'm finding that the more I sort through the paper, the easier it is to deal with. That's a very positive thing, knowing how much paper there is in this room. But if I need to put a supply item away, it's super easy now that the cabinet is organized. I found more journals. I've started a new donation box for the school when it opens in the fall. I hope to have much more to add to that box. 

So yes, all is good at my house. But do not be envious. This didn't happen by luck. It happened because of hard decisions on my part, and it took a lot of time. I'm still working on it, and I'll probably still be working on it in 10 years. But it's going faster and faster each time I tackle something. I just do not want to leave this mess to anyone else. 

Even though the weather has been decent and I don't have urgent tasks on my plate, I haven't been out in the gazebo! I'm so happy and relaxed doing what I'm doing that I don't need to take a break! 

More stuff happened yesterday, but I'll share that with you another day. It's all baby steps, but I'm loving the process. 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!

Clearing up the little jobs - one at a time

Slow and steady! Therapeutic! I hope others feel that because after the Virtual Retreat, I think a "few" people have been organizing their sewing spaces. I heard people having been refolding their fabrics so they fit nicely on the shelves, scraps have been pitched, patterns are being reevaluated, and a whole lot more. 

Doesn't it feel good? I swear, the more that I slow down and actually accomplish those niggly little tasks, the more I want to do them and actually get something done instead of shoving it to the side. 

Let's take a look at what is happening. Here's my dust cover for the Momento (my large digital cutter). 

Dust cover for my Momento

All those half-square triangles! I threw it on the long arm and quilted the ends in a diagonal plaid, and the center was a different pattern. Let's just say that I need some lessons on that, as the scale of the pattern at either end is NOT the same. OK -- let's dig out some fabric and do some experimenting. But overall, I like it, and I'm OK with the quilting not being of the same scale. If I didn't tell you, you wouldn't notice. 

The ends are also quilted. I quilted up a small piece of fabric and then cut the ends from that. The seams inside were covered with binding and hand-stitched on one side, which I hadn't done in a long time. Then I machine-stitched the binding to the bottom.  And it's DONE! 

That allowed me to move on to the next project, which is the quilt backing. I didn't do anything on it yesterday as I was chatting, and I knew I needed some concentration. Perhaps later this afternoon after Monday sewing. YES—even though it's a holiday in Canada, we always sew! 

And I was able to complete more stuff off that table. I'm almost finished, and I should be able to clear it today. Then, I can put out the puzzle as a reward. 

I won this small wall hanging at a guild show twenty years ago, and one of the yo-yos burst open. It's been like that for years. It was time to fix it. 

A yo-yo burst on my wall hanging

I had to remove the yo-yo from the piece, and the outer edges were turned in, which I guess is normal. It's been so long since I made a yo-yo that I can't remember. Anyway, the wall hanging is back to normal, and no one would know that one of them popped a seam. 

The wall hanging is complete!

I had to "fix" two other samples with the glue gun—oops, I forgot to take a picture of those. One has wristwatch faces on it, one came loose, and the other had some ribbons that needed to be put back in place. OK, I'll get pictures to share with you tomorrow. But both of those had been sitting for a long time in need of repair and now they are done. 

Then, back to pressing those scraps. A pile of blue and green still needed to be processed. 

The blue scraps are pressed

I'm happy to report that the blue is done. OH -- that red dot is my yo-yo! I had to dig out a new shoe box for the blue as my current box is full. The triangles go in another place, and the stuff on the left is polyester, which does not go in my scrap boxes. 

That leaves the pile of green and there's a story behind the green, which I'll share tomorrow. I'm going to work on the green as I really need to get it done and I will. I am NOT leaving this out to become clutter. I value my peace of mind too much to do that. 

I didn't take a picture of the cutting table or the other table, as there are a few things that need to be put away, and I was getting tired last night. That's the first thing to do this morning—and it'll only take a few minutes! 

Yesterday was our "out of the box" class and the topic was TEA, T, or TEE. This group might be small, but the creativity is HUGE! It inspired me to dig out my tea sets. This is one of them. Can you guess how big they are? 

My mini tea set

Here's a ruler to give you some scale. I found them on the farm and have ZERO history of them. I can't even ask because my Mom will want them. How sad is that?  But I don't think they belonged to us. 

Those are tiny tea cups

As I was sharing and chatting, I decided to display these instead of keeping them in a plastic bag. While walking, I remembered a small wood cabinet I had—I think I bought it at Michael's in the doll section. The big question was, did I still have it? There was a good chance it ended up in a giveaway box. 

Imagine my delight when I came home, went into the office, looked at the bookcase, and saw the little shelf. What's hilarious is that this cabinet has been on the shelf for years! I don't notice it daily, but subconsciously, I must have because I knew exactly where to look! 

My little cabinet is still there

The scale might be a bit off, but it's close enough. So I now need to paint that cabinet and fix up some hooks and ledges, and I'll be set to add it to my tea-themed display area. I need paint! I had donated all my paints, and I'm not sure I kept any, so I must check that out. 

Here's something I noticed when I walked Lexi past the church. All of the cars are reversed into their parking spots. Was that something they learned because it's chaos to reverse out, or were they told? I always reverse park into my driveway and have for years. It's WAY safer than driving in. 

Every car is reverse-parked

I looked at the angry skies as I walked, but there was no rain! 

Angry-looking skies but no rain

And after MANY KMs (well over 1000), meaning these are way past their due date, it's time to say goodbye to these shoes. I love them - they are a Nike Trail shoe and held up very well. Do you see the toes? No breaking at all in the front toe area. I think I might get another pair of these as they are slim but still provide great comfort and room for my wide feet. The only thing I do NOT like about them is they are slippery on ceramic when wet. They are very dangerous, but I can handle that fault since they are outdoor shoes. 

Bye-bye shoes!

Today, I get to start breaking in a new pair of shoes that will be used when I return to Spain. Yep—I'm going back, and I need shoes! I'll break those out later this morning. I'm on my way to the gym for a spin class. Yes, even with the holiday, they kept the morning classes. 

And that's a wrap for today. Just so much exciting stuff happening by finishing off those small jobs that have been there for years. I am really starting to feel on top of things, which hasn't been the case for a long time, and it feels so good. But I needed to slow down before that could happen. 

Keep plugging away at that fabric stash, those drawers, the closet, or whatever area you have picked. You will NOT regret it, and soon, you'll be moving on to the next area. It is TIME-CONSUMING, but can you NOT afford to do this? Don't just think of it as gaining more physical space or having things look neat, but the boost to my MENTAL HEALTH is stunning!! I'm so glad this has become a way of life! 

On that happy note, have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!