Do More with what you have

Quilts come together when you have inspiration, tools, materials, and time. The perfect blending of these four ingredients result in complete satisfaction. But, what happens when you find you have inspiration, tools and materials - but no time? Frustration, that is what happens. So, here are our tips for squeezing moments of productivity from your already too busy day.

1. Whether you use a pillow case, a zip-close plastic bag, a shoe box or a pizza box...keep everything you need for a project in one bag or box. (Yes, even the special notions, thread and tools you need.) Having everything together in one place means that when you are ready to work on that project no time is wasted hunting for anything. (Janice uses the space-saving plastic bags found in the closet organizing section of a department store.)
2. Leave a hand-stitching project in an open basket, or attractive box, where it is visible and ready to be picked up and worked on if only for a few minutes at a time.
3. Thread up a new needle before you stop stitching. Always having a needle threaded and ready to go invites you to stitch. Nancy and Connie always do this before they set a project down. Most often they then forget to stop once the needle is threaded, so actually gets even more done.
4. Use a bell to help find your needle if you are appliqueing a large project, pin a little bell next to where your needle is. Now, when you have only a few minutes to stitch you won't waste any of them hunting for your needle. Instead, you will hear the bell and find your needle quickly, making the most of those few minutes.
5. If you are afraid to pick up your project for fear that you will become absorbed and lose track of time, set a kitchen-style timer for the 10 or 15 minutes you have to stitch. When the bell goes off you know it is time to stop.
6. Do not stop working on a project when you encounter a problem or make a mistake. Fix it or undo it before you put it down. You may never pick up a project again if you know that a problem is waiting for you.
7. Get rid of projects you know you will never finish. They rob you of energy and creativity, and they take up valuable space. So just release them for the next person to enjoy.

This is an article from one of our previous emails and thought it was worth sharing again.