I restart my 15 minute and stash reports on January 1st, so my weekly report only covers the 5 days of 2019.
15 minutes stitching days/week = 5/5 days
15 minutes stitching days/Jan = 5/5 days
15 minutes stitching days in 2019 = 5/5 days
Success rate = 100%
Finding time to stitch in 2018 went really well. I found time to stitch 339 out of 365 days last year, for a success rate of 92.88%. That exceeded my goal of 90%. Hopefully, this year will be as good. Mr. Linky can be found at the bottom of the post so you can share how you've been doing so far this year.
After several years of failing to use more fabric than I buy it's obvious that setting goals in this area of my stitching isn't really working. I'm going to focus on using fabric and not worry so much about what comes in, as that seems to be what happens anyway. The new year got off to a good start as the first thing on my to do list was make the backing for the Inverted Star quilt.
Fabric out this week: 3.97 yards
I was more successful at finding time to stitch than ever before last year, but for some reason that didn't translate into more fabric usage. I ended the year with a lower than average usage number.
Fabric out for 2018: 42.17 yards
Since I can't tie fabric usage to any of the activities in my sewing room (fabric usage doesn't even seem to correlate with number of finishes) it just doesn't make any sense to set a value as I'm not sure what behavior I change to reach that. The fabric closet is absolutely full, so the plan is to really slow down on stash accumulation this year. But I like fabric, so if I add to my retirement stash, I'm not going to beat up on myself for it. Linking up with Quiltpaintcreate for the weekly stash report.
There were three other ambitions on my 2018 list. One was to blog at least once a week. The weekly stitching time report went out every week, so I easily met that ambition for 2018.
Another ambition was to work the UFO list down a bit. That didn't happen, I ended 2018 with an increase in the UFO count.
Though I didn't move a lot of UFOs off the list, I did do a good job of moving projects along last year.
Progress was made on 9 of the 12 quilts from the 2018 UFO challenge, with three of the quilts getting to finished stage. I'm hopeful that all the work from last year sets me up for a good number of finishes this year.
So more stitching time didn't do what I thought it would. It didn't mean more fabric going out of the stash or translate to more finishes. But there is the intangible benefit of helping me maintain my sanity when things get nuts, as they seem to do repeatedly during the year. The sanity maintenance is enough reason for me to keep up with the 15 minutes to stitch. What's your reason for trying to work in stitching time each day? Here's Mr. Linky for you to share how your week went.
| 1. Chrisknits 2. maggie f 3. Chris in Canada 4. Meloney | 5. Julie in GA 6. Andra 7. Marti 8. Shasta | 9. Deana 10. The Quilt Charmer 11. DesertSky Quilting 12. Christina's Handicrafts |
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16 comments:
Slow and steady wins the race. One year the quilt will be done, and that will help the fabric usage. But I try for 15 minutes, because, I love to sit at a sewing machine.Last year was challenging because the "studio" was overwhelmingly messy. It helped me get in there and a little bit of cleanup and organization happened while I was there - bonus
Good usage number this week. Backs really boost the fabric out, as well as bed-size quilts. My best usage is in years I do a lot of charity sewing.
I think we each need to find the metric that works best for us. I find seeing how much goes out of my stash helps me stop bringing in more. Sometimes I buy and I'm OK with that. I have been better at using what I'm buying sooner rather than hiding in the stash. I had over 300 net yards go out of stash this year and I can not see a dent in my stash. I just wonder how hard I had it all packed in there. I'll be working on UFOs and starting what I wish to start this year.
Good luck on having a great 2019
You got a lot done for the year. Frankly, I’m amazed at all you accomplish while still working a full-time job. Give yourself a pat on the back and ten attagirls from me.
I have tried the using up the fabric thing too and it never works. However, this year I am determined to use as much as possible!
Ha!, I've been retired for almost 6 years and I'm STILL building the retirement stash. But I am trying cut back, use stash, and do more charity quilts.
Pat
Its great to look back and see your successes. Getting back to hand stitching in the evenings always feels good!!!
I agree 100% that stitching time is essential for my sanity. Any completions are a bonus! You have made wonderful progress on many of your quilt projects over the last year, which will mean even more beautiful finishes this year! Thanks for continuing to host this linky.
You have worked on a lot of your quilts in 2018 so I bet you do have a lot of finishes this year. I'm glad your work year started out smoothly so you could get back in the groove, both at work and home.
I'm glad you said that fabric usage isn't always easy to tie to a specific project. I have noticed that here too and thought I should be able to pinpoint where the fabric was used, but with scrappy quilts, it's often a little here and a little there.
How frustrating to try to use up the stash and it doesn't work. Are you sure there aren't some bunnies in the stash making it grow? But then all that lovely stash will still be waiting for you when it's time!
Congratulations on not only reaching but exceeding your daily stitching time. You've probably read this before but shopping for fabric and actually using it are two different hobbies. Great job!!
Great start for this year.
It does help with my sanity and my enjoyment. Just being able to schedule some "me time" is helpful. And once in a while, I do get some finished quilts out of it.
Progress is all that counts. I quilt because I enjoy it. There is no other reason really. I don't let those unfinished projects bother me.
Just enjoy.
You have a great start on stitching days for 2019. =) I also think we can get too caught up in the details of accountability. The bottom line is that you had a great year, finished some UFOs, moved others along, and stitched a lot. I like the way you changed your stash report. It works better for YOU. I changed my stitching days report. I don't sew on Sundays, so I'm just keeping track of SIX days of sewing each week. I think it's important to make these things useful to us, and keep it fun. =)
Well, even if the numbers don’t show it, I think you had a pretty good year! I am sure some of those UFOs will get finished this year. I also try to find stitching time for sanity! It has been a very busy week and I have hardly had any time...hoping to remedy that over the weekend!
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