This week

Life (home, work, parenting, family, grad school, etc) have just wreaked havoc on any sewing time for the last year.  Over the long July 4th weekend, though, we had our annual Project Linus sewing weekend, and I was reminded how much a little sewing time can energize me.  Just seeing a project come together gives me so much energy towards all of my have-to-dos!

When we got home, I actually made a point of getting everything unpacked and put away right away.  No one was more surprised by that than me!  It felt so good, though - except for the pile of leftovers and partially finished projects sitting on my ironing table.  So I decided to try setting myself a daily 15 minute sewing goal, just to see if it would help me find the time.  I mean, I shouldn't need to feel guilty about using just 15 minutes to work on a project, right?

Just in case I wanted to keep going, and to keep me focused towards some finishes, I made a bonus list, too.  So I didn't wander off and start something new (not that THAT would ever happen!).

I'm trying to not add too many rules to this idea - more than once I have sunk myself by trying to be too organized and systematic about something.  So one day I worked ahead, another day I didn't do anything, two other days I switched the order.  That's ok!  And I don't need to track the life out of this, right?  Only as much as is fun and keeps me moving forward; not so much that it slows me down.

So this week's goals were:

Monday - Sort out the blue tote bag (multiple sets of fabric and partially started projects)

Tuesday - Prep a back and binding for the green/blue/polka dot top

Wednesday - Prep backs for 3 D9P (Disappearing nine-Patch) tops

Thursday - Trim the edges of Pink Splotches so it can be bound

Friday - make binding for Pink Splotches

Saturday - sew binding to back of Pink Splotches

Sunday - finish binding on Pink Splotches (on the machine)

This is Pink Splotches:

The fabric was selected by my daughter (DD), and she created the design also.  It started with an X formed by the dark blue and the light pink.  There IS a pattern to how she laid it out, but I don't think it is as obvious to me as it was to her!  She enjoyed doing it, and even did a lot of the assembly of squares into rows, so it completely meets the goal of having her be involved.  It was tied by my Sis, and is now bound and ready to go to Project Linus.  It finished at 40" square.

I finished everything on the goals list, and a few extra things, too!  With the motivation of getting some things put away, I cut and assembled the binding for the three tops from Wednesday, and got each top bundled with a back and a binding and ready to be tied next time we meet to work on Project Linus quilts.  And I assembled squares into rows for another quilt that DD has designed - she named it "Lightning" and it uses the same fabrics as above.  Since these fabrics were purchased specifically for her to design with for our Linus weekend, I was going to put the rows away to finish at next year's sewing weekend - but it seemed silly to not just finish it since I already have it out and in the correct order.  So it will be part of this week's goals.

Lightning (named for the dark blue lightning bolt down the center):

This week's goals are:

Monday - Write this post, log this week's goals, and mend a button

Tuesday - Iron the Lightning strips

Wednesday - Assembly the bottom half of DD's Swimming Leopards

Thursday - Sew 6 long seams on Lightning

Friday - Sew 6 long seams on Lightning

Saturday - Cut borders for Swimming Leopards

Sunday - Prep back and binding for Lightning, log in To Tie file

Hey, look at that - Monday's goals are almost complete already!