Save that box!!!!

What a fabulous day we had at The Hobby Horse!!! Angie and I had never tag-teamed doing a lecture, but we worked amazingly well together! The students who came went home with their heads spinning on how to get better organized, find more time to sew, cut fabric, and much more!!! 

It always amazes me how many people feel that they have this stuff down pat. Heck, I teach it, and I'm still learning! It was a great session. We're continuing with another session and new topics in October, so check that out. 

The afternoon was devoted to free-motion quilting. Again, these ladies went home with their heads spinning. I tried to expand their knowledge about how to pick designs and free-motion quilting techniques, which is pretty simple but can be very scary! My goal is to take the scary out of the equation! They went home with visions of free-motion dancing in their heads! 

I came home with some patterns. I know—I should not have—but one of them will make an excellent class for the new year, and well—you never know!!!!

I also found this book in the bargain books section. Oh my—it was a great deal, and I already know two people who covet it! 

A new book for my collection

When I got home, I had to take a nap! There was so much swirling in my head—I needed a wee break! But then I was on top of things for the Virtual Retreat. I'll post the link for today at the end of the blog post. 

It took several hours this morning to put together the presentation for the UFO groups. WAIT—when my alarm went off this morning, guess what happened? The FIRST thing that popped into my head was to take that pill!!! Perhaps I'm on target now? Let's hope. 

I believe there are 36 people in the two UFO groups. I was chuckling as I saved and put the appropriate pictures in the presentations. I can see why some people have UFOs. There are some in the group who are very neat and meticulous. I get a clear picture of what they want to accomplish (a picture of the pattern or block), and then I get a clear picture of the completed work. 

And then there are others—it's a scattered mess. Are they trying to trick me into not charging for not completing the work? Perhaps a few guidelines would be in order! We might need some organization tips! Perhaps next year, I won't leave them to their own devices for such a long time. Some of them went astray! 

As for me? You'll have to wait until tomorrow to see what happened or didn't happen. 

When I got home, I had to unload everything I had packed for the class. I would say that a good half of it got put away. The other half? It joined the mess on the floor. I now have to jump over that line of stuff on the floor. I will attempt to work on it today, as it's a tripping hazard. 

Stuff that needs to be put away

What are your thoughts about saving boxes? I used to be a box saver - way back. Then I got rid of some boxes. But when we moved to this house, I started to save boxes again. I used to open the garage door and wing them into the garage. There was quite a nice pile of boxes in there. But that pile has been gone for quite a while. 

I save all the boxes for my sewing machines and embroidery stuff because they may need to be shipped. They do not belong to me, so the box is essential. All those boxes fill the cold space under my front step. Thankfully, I have a spot for them because some of those boxes are HUGE!!!

I have a stash of boxes in the office, which I'm keeping because when I empty a box or receive a shipment, the boxes come in handy for decluttering. So, right now, the pile of boxes in the office is a bit out of control. Well, it's not bad, but it adds to the visual clutter here. But for the moment, the boxes stay! 

A while back, I heard a clip on the radio about saving a REALLY GOOD box. I found this clip on YouTube, and it's hilarious!!! Check it out—it's about one minute long. I've watched some of his other videos, and they are very entertaining!!!  The guy is very talented!

I have a box purgatory in the office, but those boxes get used. I am continually starting a new giveaway box as I fill one and drop it off at the thrift store, so no yelling at me—the boxes are being used. When I no longer need boxes, I shall stop stockpiling them. 

But the other day, I was at our meeting, and I spotted this box near the garbage, meaning it was on its way out! 

A really good box!

The box originally contained a cutting mat and some quilting supplies—rulers, cutters, etc. They no longer wanted the box, and it was garbage. However, the box has a magnetic lid and is very sturdy—just the thing I could use. So, I brought it home rather than see it go in the garbage. 

And look - I used it yesterday for my lecture. I could put my 12½" ruler in there, as well as my cutter and the blocks I was going to demo trimming, and there was no danger of my large square ruler getting broken. 

The perfect project box

I can see this box becoming a retreat staple. You know what they say—one man's trash is another's treasure! It's a great box! I will use this one for classes or retreats. It stays! I just need to find a home for it  —someplace where I won't forget that I have it!!!

We had a great time at the Virtual Retreat last night. I'm back working on samples because they need to be in my suitcase by Monday night. I'm learning something new, and it's been so good so far. It's amazing how easy things can be when you know how to use your sewing machine. I had a lady in my free-motion class who struggled to use it in free-motion. Thankfully, it was a brand that I was familiar with, so I got her going. But she didn't know how to use it! Why don't people take the time to read their manual and figure this stuff out? 

Oh well. I know it's a lot when you are used to sewing on a mechanical machine and move to an electronic machine—I get that! 

Here's the link for the Virtual Retreat. Hopefully, we'll see some of you!!! OH -- and I met two people in the classes yesterday who follow my blog. Good morning to you both!!! It was a pleasure meeting you! But one of the funny things is that they know a lot about me, and I don't know much about them. Well, if you leave comments, then I get to know you a bit better. A couple of people comment frequently or send me e-mails, and that's how we get to know each other!!! 

And now for that link! We start at NOON EST. 

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82983517671?pwd=ODdsa1FJenQwdFNaQWFTNGd4bEhPZz09

Meeting ID: 829 8351 7671
Passcode: 117636

Have a super day if we don't see you on the call. 

Ciao!!!!