Let’s Talk About UFOs (and the Quiet Guilt We Don’t Say Out Loud)

You walk into your sewing room with a plan.

Today, so today… you will finish something.

You open a drawer…
then another…
then a basket…

…and suddenly you’re staring at a stack of unfinished projects. The photo below shows my UFOs from long time ago. And yet, I still have some of them in my UFO pile. Today, we are going to unpack the guilt around UFO and learn how to make a gentle move around them. Read more below — and tell me, do you have a UFO that’s been quietly judging you too?

A half-assembled quilt top
Loose quilt blocks
A forgotten mystery quilt
That ambitious denim quilt from last year

And without warning, the excitement to sew quietly turns into guilt. So instead… you start a new project. 

If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone. Almost every avid quilter carries some form of UFO guilt during their quilting journey. Today I want to talk about it honestly — and gently — and maybe help you move one quilt closer to the finish line.

Photo above: A project I’ve been wanting to start but have not yet.

The Guilt Behind the UFO Pile

Here’s the surprising part: Most of the weight of a quilting UFO isn’t fabric.

It’s EMOTION.

Guilt #1. “I Should Finish Before Starting”

You just bought beautiful new fabrics.
But your brain whispers:

You still have unfinished quilt projects…

We sometimes thought creativity must be linear:
start → finish → start → finish.

But quilting doesn’t work that way.

Different quilts require different energy.
Some days you want precision.
Some days you just want to piece mindlessly.

Starting something new isn’t failure.
It’s how creativity breathes.

Tip #1 for working on quilting UFO:

Instead of banning new starts, allow one paired start.
For every new start → do one tiny action on a ufo project (press seams, trim blocks, choose background fabric).

No pressure. Just balance.

And I tell you…this alone makes a world of difference! Lately I’ve been doing exactly that. I tell myself I can start something new right after I finish one UFO, and most of the time I already feel accomplished once it’s done (even if it’s just the pants that needed hemming that I kept draping over my chair, quietly annoying me every time I walked into the room).

Sometimes I do get to treat myself. And honestly, it feels much more fun when you’ve actually moved old projects out first.

Last month I worked on simply binding my practice pieces and I enjoyed the finish a lot! You can read about that HERE>

Guilt #2. The Money Guilt

You look at an old project and think about cost.

Fabric wasn’t cheap.
Batting. Time. Effort.

I wasted it.

But you didn’t. Many UFOs exist because your skills have improved.
Your taste changed.
You learned new techniques.

The quilt already gave you something – EXPERIENCE.

Tip #2 for working on quilting UFO:

If you don’t love it anymore, don’t force it into a bed quilt.
Turn it into smaller projects:

• pillows
• bags
• wall hangings
• donation quilts

Finished small is better than perfect imaginary.

I’ve so many projects that I actually love it more when they are no longer “just an orphan block”. These three pouched that I made a while ago live with friends and sometimes, I get a peek at them when I’m around with my friends, and it made my heart sparkled. They were some orphan blocks to begin with. You can read more about them HERE>

Other Creative Ways to Cross the Finish Line

When a quilt feels stuck, shrink the goal.

Finishing differently is still finishing.

Guilt #3. The Skill-Level Shame

You unfold an old project and cringe.

Crooked seams.
Awkward colors.
Early-days piecing.

So you hide it again.

But that quilt is proof you stayed long enough to improve. I had just finished a long left-out UFO and it felt so good. I hated the project for quite a while. It had served the time when I wanted to practice all those free motion quilting, but I honestly hated that I decided to go with the crazy idea of using up my grey stash for the borders. I actually hate the mashed-up look of those greys in the quilt. But finishing it off feels good. And I still love the quilting I did on them! This quilt is a quilt-as-you-go project I did a while back which you can read more about it HERE>

Tip #3 for working on quilting UFO:

Let it go if you can’t bear working on it anymore. Put it in the donate pile or simply – into the bin. 

Guilt #4. The Memory Weight

Some quilts hold seasons of life.

A busy year.
A hard year.
A hopeful year.

The project paused, and emotionally, so did you.

Sometimes finishing a quilt isn’t sewing.

It’s closure. So let it be closed OR let it rest out of the sewing room for a while and simply be what it is: a memory. Who knows, someday you might take it out again. At least it won’t be quietly guilting you for the time being.

I have this quilt cupboard that I have moved into the guest bedroom, and I feel like it is a better energy to have ymy UFOs in there with some of my finished quilts. I’ll only bring them into my sewing room when I truly want to work on them, one at a time! Not piling them all up in my sewing room..  🙂

Guilt #5. The Space Pressure

Your sewing space slowly shrinks.

Bins, baskets, folded tops.

The problem isn’t the fabric, it’s unfinished decisions.

Your brain keeps remembering them.

Tip #4 for working on quilting UFO:

You can join in the Quilted Forest as they go through their One-a-month UFO challenge. It’s always motivating seeing others work on their UFOs too. 

During the month
Work in tiny pockets of time:

• sew one seam
• join patch blocks
• arrange rows

End of the month
Define a realistic finish:

• quilt top done
• ready to quilt
• bound
• turned into a gift for a special occasion

Progress counts as finishing.

6. The Comparison Trap

On social media, people post finishes weekly.
Your UFO pile grows. Even joining a UFO challenge can sometimes become a trap. So be mindful of these feelings — it’s okay if you can’t follow through every month.

You wonder if you lack discipline. But finishing speed depends on life season, sometime LIFE HAPPENS. 

Here’s a thought:

Some years are collecting years.
Some are finishing years.

Both belong in a real quilting journey.

Tip #5 for working on quilting UFO:

Share pictures of your progress instead of only finishes.
Progress creates motivation — for you and your quilting friends. I blog and send you emails almost weekly (I wish I was more consistent) but as I look back on these posts, I am getting back motivations. Keeping photos of them also works, take some free time to scroll on those photos. Thye really can bring back sparks of motivation.

Join a local quilt guild or a closed facebook group or a yearly ufo challenge.
Accountability works better than willpower.

Why Finishing Matters More Than Starting

I will say though finishing always feels good. Usually it’s about pushing through and just simmering those ideas out to finally just get it done!

Starting teaches excitement.
Finishing teaches mastery.

Because finishing forces decisions:
color, layout, quilting, binding.

That’s where skill lives.

I told you earlier, that I recently finished a very old UFO. Well, I actually learned a better way to bind this the, taking the time to trim well so my binding can fold in nicely. Definitely worth the patience. I can tick my February UFO box now and start some new projects! 

A Gentle Plan for the Year

Instead of: Finish everything by the end of the year

Try: One project at a time

By the end of the month, one quilt moves forward. That’s how a mountain disappears — one seam at a time.

Your First Step (Right Now)

Go to your sewing room.

Don’t reorganize.
Don’t plan your next project. Pick one quilt from the ufo pile. Do the first step. If you can push yourself a little, just take deep breath and allow it to be easy. And just get to it. Because most quilts don’t get finished by motivation.They get finished by returning.

Happy quilting 🧵