Motivational Monday - Picking the FIRST UFO

It's Monday!  Some people dread Mondays, but for me, it's the start of a new week. I used to be able to spend the entire Monday sewing with friends, but when I recently (last year) took on a full time job (at a fabric company so it's not all bad news!), my Monday sewing was reduced to a quick hour in the morning before work to spend with the Monday Maniacs!   It doesn't matter - that one hour brightens up my day and gets me revved up for the week.

Now to get you revved up for your week, today is the day when we start a little bit of prioritizing. Hopefully by now, you've had a chance to make a list of UFOs.  Ideally, these are projects (sort of big ones, but don't have to necessarily be huge) that have been languishing in your studio and you just can't get motivated to complete them, but you would love to.

I've seen lots of lists. Texted to me, e-mailed to me, posted on Facebook - doesn't matter - we're making lists!   Awesome job everyone.

Now, it's time to pick ONE of those projects to work on. How do you prioritize? It could be there is a deadline, it could be a long overdue deadline, it could be the first one you wrote down, it could be the one with the least amount of work to finish.  Pay attention to how much time you will have in January. If you're going to be away for 3 weeks, don't pick the largest project.  Based on those suggestions, you MUST pick ONE and only ONE from that list.

What I did with my list is write the items in The Task Master (don't worry - next week, you'll going to get the entire story of her!).  Basically, the Task Master is a notebook - a cheap $2 notebook from the dollar store. On page ONE - write your list. I called mine  - The Dirty Dozen for 2017.

The Dirty Dozen

 The reason I transferred that list into the notebook (from my paper) is that I'm very good at losing things, especially pieces of paper. You could glue/staple or tape your list into the book. What to do if your priorities change throughout the year and you need to exchange (not ADD - nope - EXCHANGE!) one project for another?  You can cross one out and add to the bottom or there is good old white-out!

Now that you have picked ONE project, the next thing is to figure out how far you want to advance this project. Ideally, you want to finish it, but some of you have picked large projects and you may not be able to finish it and perhaps your intention was only to advance it to a certain stage. I should meantion that our goal is to work on ONE project each month.

Set the goal for that project:  Do you want to get the top done? Do you want to completely finish the project? Set a goal.  Remember WRITE all this down. Turn the page from your big list and write the name of the UFO and your goal for that month.

Let's have a look at the project that I choose.  I choose 13 projects, meaning that I have one for this month to complete. I chose the LoneStar Tree Skirt by PineTree Lodge Designs.

LoneStar Tree Skirt pattern

 Here is what the project currently looks like...........

The center of the tree skirt is complete

The setting triangles are cut

Plenty of extra fabric for the borders, binding and backing

The back - I have no idea why I took this picture

 This is supposed to be a tree skirt or it could be a table runner.  I checked out the center and it's too perfect to cut out for a tree skirt, so mine is going to be a table topper.  Why I chose that plaid for the center is beyond me!  I would never have chosen that now!!!!

The center - too perfect to cut out!

Just in case you're confused because I tend to ramble, here are the steps to do this week
1. Transfer your list of UFOs into your notebook
2. Choose ONE UFO that you want to work on in January (or December if you choose a bonus project)
3. Check the UFO container - do you have the pattern?, do you have all the fabric?, what is cut?, where are you in the project?
4. Make notes including a shopping list (if necessary).  Write all your notes on a separate page in your notebook that is devoted just for this UFO.
5. Buy or locate the missing components. You want to be able to hop right in now or in January when you're supposed to be working on this project.
6. Did you have any issues with this pattern and that's why you stopped?  If so, then post the problem on the Facebook page so we can help you.
7. Write out the steps necessasry to finish the project.  Here you can be as specific or as vague as you want, but the more steps (without going into too much detail) is better.  It's better to say piece section one, piece section two, piece section three of the Block - rather than saying piece 48 blocks!  Besides the more steps you have, the more items you get to check off!  Don't forget to add the binding, label and sleeve as separate items if you're planning on adding those items.
8. Post a picture of your first UFO on Facebook.

I know this is a bit in advance of January 1, but as the holiday season encroaches upon our time, we won't have time to do these steps and we want to start the year flying high!  If you haven't gotten this far, now is the time to catch up. Don't forget that a WRITTEN list is way better than a mental list - our brains are so full of stuff, that what we put on that list today will be completely forgotten by tomorrow.

Next week, I'm going to explain in greater detail, just who The Task Master is - she is ORANGE and very demanding!  I keep her and a bunch of supplies in a plastic shoe box beside the sewing machine.

The Task Master and supplies

In a way, I'm glad that I lost my other book!  It was smaller and well - this one is better!

I'm pretty excited about starting my project. I have until the end of December to COMPLETELY finish that table runner. I've got a list of the steps and well - I'm ready to start. Matter of fact, I already have!

On that note - have a super day! I can't wait to see what everyone is deciding to work on and how many brave souls have chosen to work on a project this month?

Ciao!!!!!