Posts Tagged studio

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07/06/2011 at 11:17 am · Filed under Stash Reduction Quilts ·Tagged , , ,

 I have been so busy sewing lately that I have let my resolve to blog slide a bit.  But no more, I am back.

I received some new fabric from Ink and Spindle and I have been busy making it into bags, as well as participating in the Patchwork Craft Show over the Memorial Day weekend.    So I have been busy.

As part of my plan to reduce use up the fabric I have on hand, instead of constantly adding to it, I have been finishing up some half made quilts as well.  I am actually starting to reach the point where I simply do not have enough fabric to finish off items.  And it feels good.  I no longer feel like I am drowning in fabric, or wastefully hoarding materials instead of turning it into usable goods.  I have also been able to sell some fabric that I no longer needed.  It is a wonderful feeling to send a package of fabric off to a new home, where it will hopefully be turned into something that is loved and needed.

Here are a few quilts I have recently completed.

I am so happy with how this one turned out.  The graduation of color on the spiral looks amazing.  And my husband, who has not yet loved a design enough to have it on our bed feels that this may be ‘the one’.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                     

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Letting Go of Failures

08/03/2011 at 2:11 pm · Filed under Getting Organized ·Tagged , , ,

I have reached the point in my organization where I am sorting through the old UFO box.  These are not the items I have been working on recently, that I mentioned before, these are old.  They have been shoved away, right at the back, sometimes from years ago.

I stopped working on these pieces for a variety of reasons, but mostly because I didn’t like how it was turning out.  The are basically fails.  So loath to waste them I hid them away, to deal with on another day.

Over the weekend I went through them.  I found a couple of things I still like, and will finish.  The rest is going to be given away, scraped for usable fabric or thrown away.  I thought this would be depressing.  Instead I feel freed. 

I never realised how knowing I had all my past failures sitting under my desk was affecting me, until they were gone.  What a wonderful feeling not having them sitting there scowling at me.  I am realising that part of experimenting artistically is accepting that not every idea is a good one,  I cannot always succeed.  Sometimes I will fail.  And when I do, I need to move on, by moving that failure right out of my studio.

Getting rid of the old is making room for the new.

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Getting Organized. Step 1

09/02/2011 at 3:58 pm · Filed under Getting Organized, Quilting Plans and Goals ·Tagged , , , , , ,

view of my studio from dining room

Today I had a formal consult with a professional organizer.  I was surprisingly nervous considering that  she is a good friend who has helped me out in my home many times, but this is different.  It is my studio.  I have a certain fear that if everything is changed I will lose  my creativity.  But it wasn’t scary at all.  Claudia had me think about  the steps I take and what I do at each station in my studio.  She targeted my major problem areas and then we brainstormed possibilities for solving each problem.  I have been thinking about this for a few days and had some big ideas.  She unceremoniously cut them down to size, and made me focus on the immediate instead of the long-term.  (she kept telling me ‘don’t worry about that yet.  It will be obvious once your workspace is functional.’) We came up with this list.

Problem 1.  Fabric is everywhere, my storage system is obviously not working

Problem 2. I have UFO’s (UnFinished Objects) scattered around and mixed in with my fabrics.  I tend to jump from project to project and loose pieces and notes in the chaos so finishing projects becomes less and less attractive.

Problem 3. I can never keep track of my small hand tools, like scissors, unpicker etc.  Or even if I know exactly where it is, it is on the other side of the room, and I waste a lot of time retracing my steps.

Problem 4. Paperwork is never properly filed, add this to my tendency to sketch, take notes and make calculations for cutting and yardage on any handy scrap of paper, and I have a giant pile of paper sitting in a basket with no idea what most of it is for.

Over the next few days I will be tackling these problems one by one, and discussing the solutions my organizer suggested and what I end up with.  I feel like I am on the edge of getting this figured out and I am actually pretty excited.  I am committed to getting this done before sewing another order (luckily I don’t have any due this week or next!).

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