I Earn My Productive Sewing Day the Day Before
I’ve learned something about myself over the years. I am not good at constantly switching gears. I can’t happily bounce from laundry to bookkeeping to sewing to dishes to community association business and back to sewing again and expect to feel productive. By the time I’ve switched directions five or six times, my brain is somewhere between “What was I doing?” and “Why am I standing in the kitchen holding a rotary cutter?”
Okay…maybe not quite that bad. But you get the idea. I’ve discovered that I am much more productive when I batch my responsibilities together and then give myself a dedicated day to be creative. The problem is, I don’t have a sewing day every day. Or even every week. Sometimes I have one full day every couple of weeks when I can really work on my crafts and quilting.
And I’ve learned to protect that day.
The Day Before My Sewing Day Is a Big Deal
When I know my creative day is coming, I try to get as much of the everyday stuff finished beforehand as I possibly can.
- Laundry? Done!
- Floors? Done!
- Dishes? Done!
- Bookkeeping? Done! Or at least a good amount as it never goes away.
- Community Association responsibilities? Done!
- Short Term Rentals? Done – and this usually includes more bookkeeping and laundry!
All those little things that normally float around in the back of my head? The goal is to check off as many as possible. Truthfully, I am happy if the above items are taken care of. The rest is a big bonus.
And I’ll be honest… That day can be exhausting. Sometimes it feels like I’ve spent the entire day running around taking care of everything except the things I actually want to do. But I know something my future self doesn’t:
Tomorrow is sewing day.
And that makes all the difference.
And Then There’s Supper…
Of course, there’s one more thing that needs to happen when I’m having one of those big catch-up days: Supper.
Because after a full day of laundry, floors, dishes, bookkeeping, community association work and rental responsibilities, the last thing I want to do is spend an hour figuring out what we’re having for dinner. So I’ve become a big fan of the crock-pot.
If I’m going to spend the day getting everything caught up so I can have a creative day tomorrow, supper needs to take care of itself. I’ll throw something in the crock-pot in the morning, go about my day, and by dinner time, it’s ready. That’s my kind of meal planning. If I am lucky there will be leftovers for another dinner later in the week!
Put dinner in the crock-pot. Get the chores done. Then tomorrow…SEW!
I’m always looking for new crock-pot ideas, though, so if you have a favorite easy, throw-it-in-the-crock-pot-and-forget-about-it recipe, please share it with me! Especially if it’s something that makes enough for leftovers.
I’m pretty sure that’s just good quilting math. One crock-pot meal, two dinners!
My Creative Day Is Different
When I wake up on my sewing and craft day, I don’t want to look around the house and think:
“I really should vacuum.” Or: “I need to fold that laundry.” Or: “I should probably work on that bookkeeping.”
I’ve already done it. That’s the whole point. I’ve given myself permission to walk into my sewing room and stay there. I can sew. Quilt. Work on a UFO. Start something new. Make things for craft shows. Play with fabric. Try an idea that’s been bouncing around in my head. Or spend far too much time deciding which fabric looks better with another piece of fabric. That’s part of the creative process. And because I know I don’t have to jump up and switch gears every 30 minutes, I can really get into it.
That’s when I get the most done.
Not because I suddenly have more hours. Not because I’ve become incredibly disciplined. It’s because I’ve eliminated the constant mental switching between chores and creative chaos.
I’ve Learned That “Free Time” Isn’t Always Enough
I used to think that if I could just find little pockets of time throughout the day, I’d get more sewing done. Maybe I could sew for 20 minutes after doing the dishes. Then sew again after starting the laundry. How about work on a project after answering emails. Then maybe cut some fabric before dinner. For some people, that probably works beautifully. It doesn’t work nearly as well for me.
Every time I stop what I’m doing and switch to something completely different, I lose some of my momentum. And creative work needs momentum. Once I’m cutting fabric, I want to keep cutting. Once I’m piecing a block, I want to keep piecing. Once I’m working on an idea, I want to follow it and see where it goes. I don’t want to stop in the middle of it because I suddenly remembered that the towels are in the dryer. The towels will survive. My creative momentum might not.
Think of It as Two Different Kinds of Work
I’ve started thinking about my time in two categories:
Maintenance Days
These are the days when I take care of life.
- Laundry
- Cleaning
- Floors
- Dishes
- Bookkeeping
- Dusting
- Community Association Work
- Rental Responsibilities
- Errands
- All the things that keep everything else running
They’re not necessarily exciting, but they matter. And sometimes I have to admit that getting those things done feels pretty good. Especially when I can look around and think:
“Okay. I can breathe now.”
Creative Days
Then there are the days when I get to create. These days are different. I don’t want to spend half of a creative day catching up on maintenance.
- Making quilts
- Sewing
- Work on crafts
- Experiment with fabrics
- Design a quilt pattern
- Plan a mystery quilt or block of the month
- Work on WIP or UFO
- Start something new
Because, let’s be honest…Quilters are very good at finding reasons to start another project.
A Few Things That Help Me Make the Most of My Creative Day
Since I’m already doing all this preparation, I’ve learned a few little tricks that make that precious sewing time even more productive.
Keep Your Projects Ready to Go
If I’m working on a quilt, I like to keep everything together: Pattern, Fabric, Pieces, Rulers, Thread, Notes, Anything else I need. A basket or project box works great. That way, when my creative day arrives, I don’t spend the first hour looking for the project I want to work on. The goal is to sit down and sew—not prepare to sew.
Although, let’s be honest, preparing to sew can sometimes become a hobby all by itself.
Batch Your Sewing Day Tasks
Since I’ve discovered that switching gears isn’t my strong suit, I try to use the same idea in the sewing room.
If I need to cut, I’ll cut several things at once. Need to make a bunch of half-square triangles to make, I’ll make them together. If blocks need pressing, I’ll press a bunch at once. If I need to trim, I’ll trim several blocks.
Instead of:
Cut → Sew → Press → Cut → Sew → Press → Search for ruler → Sew
I can stay focused on one task. And I get so much more accomplished.
Give Yourself a “Closing Shift” at the end of your sewing day
At the end of my creative day, I try to spend a few minutes getting the sewing room ready for next time. Not a deep clean. I’m still me. We’re not suddenly organizing every drawer and alphabetizing our thread.
I’m talking about five or ten minutes:
- Put the rotary cutter away.
- Pick up the thread scraps.
- Return rulers to their homes.
- Put fabric back where it belongs.
- Gather the current project together.
- Clear enough space to start again.
And please…
Make sure there’s a bobbin ready. Because there is nothing more frustrating than sitting down at your sewing machine ready to go and realizing you have no bobbin. Or the wrong thread. Or no idea where you put the ruler. Or absolutely no recollection of what you were doing the last time you were in the sewing room.
A little reset at the end makes the next creative session much easier.
And Then There Are the UFOs…
Let’s talk about the elephant in the sewing room.
UFOs.
Unfinished Objects. I have them. You have them. We all have them. And occasionally I look at my collection and think:“When exactly did I have time to start all of these?” The answer is apparently: Every time I was supposed to be finishing something else.
I’ve been trying to make room for UFO time during my creative days. Maybe I’ll pull out one project and make some serious progress instead of bouncing between five different quilts. Because apparently I don’t need more projects.
I need more finished projects. That’s a completely different thing.
Not Every Creative Day Has to Be Productive
This is important, too. I don’t want my creative day to become another job. Sometimes I want to make progress. Sometimes I want to finish something. But sometimes I just want to play.
Pull out some scraps. Try a new block. Play with color. Make something completely unnecessary. Try an idea that’s been sitting in my head.
Some of my favorite quilting moments have started with:
“I wonder what would happen if I tried this…” And sometimes the answer is: “Well…that certainly didn’t work.” But that’s okay. That’s part of being creative.
The House Does Not Have to Be Perfect
There is something else I’ve had to give myself permission to accept: The house does not have to be perfect. There will always be something that needs to be done. The laundry will come back. The dishes will need washing. The floors will get dirty again. The dust will return. And apparently, the dust bunnies have already organized themselves into a labor union and are demanding better working conditions.
But our quilts? Those are projects we may remember for years. We remember who we made them for. We remember the fabrics we chose. We remember the block that gave us fits. We remember the quilt we almost gave up on. We remember sitting at our sewing machines making something with our own two hands.
So I’m learning that my house doesn’t have to be perfect before I earn the right to quilt.
- Sometimes the laundry can wait.
- Sometimes the dust can wait.
- Sometimes supper can be simple.
And sometimes…
I just need to go sew.
Maybe Productivity Isn’t About Doing More on My Sewing Day
Maybe it’s about doing fewer things at once. That’s the routine that works for me. Take care of life. Clear the decks. Protect the creative day. Then sew. I know that the day before my sewing day might be a long one. I’ll probably be tired by the end of it. But I’ll also know that I’ve taken care of the things that need to be done.
And tomorrow?
Tomorrow I get to create. I get to walk into my sewing room without feeling guilty. I get to work on my quilts. I get to make things. I get to play with fabric. I get to lose track of time. And for one glorious day…
the laundry can wait. The bookkeeping can wait. The floors can wait. The dust bunnies can definitely wait. Because I’ve already earned it. It’s my creative day.
And I’ve got quilts to make and patterns to finish.
If you need ideas for patterns checkout: the Scrap Quilts page or the Quilt Block page. Would you like to be notified of new patterns? Check out my Facebook Page. If you find you haven’t been approved – check to make sure you have answered the questions. I am trying to keep scammers at bay.
Happy quilting until next time.
Tamara
Quilting With Tamara