If you’ve been here a while, you know that I jump from projects to projects, and I basically have many projects going all at once. Yup, I have a squirrel mind. Many projects, many tabs open, many things going on at once. I know that about me, but this week, something clicked, and I’ve found the way to really embrace and make the best of it.
The Week That Started It All
First, a little peek behind the curtain. There has been a whirlwind happening on the backend of this blog. I’ve been working on moving my courses to a new platform… ugh, all the technical things I have to do and the things that just take away my time from my sewing room. Well friends, it is a big project. The platforms where I put my courses these days are charging so much, and I refuse to pass those costs on to you. I want to keep my courses affordable and alive and organized, because I know they help so many of you. So I’m fighting for it, one late night at a time.
I still have a long way to go, and yes, a good chunk of my weekend went into it. It’s the kind of heavy, brain- stretching work that leaves you a bit wobbly by Saturday evening.
Which brings me to the funny revelation part. Read on…
The Bias Tape Revelation
Late Saturday evening, I treated myself to some sewing room time. I walked in, and without even really deciding to, I found myself at the ironing board pressing the bias tapes I had cut and piled up and have been avoiding every time I come into the sewing room. They were for my Hometown Appliqué Quilt that I started weeks back – you can read about that HERE> Hometown Appliqué Quilt Start.
Pressing these bias tape is tedious. It’s the task I walk past and pretend I don’t see. Haha.
But that evening? It felt easy. Enjoyable, even. Almost meditative.
And I realized WHY!: because my brain had just spent hours wrestling with something so much heavier, the bias tape suddenly felt like rest. Talk about comparison! The task didn’t change… my brain’s reference point did. Next to migrating an entire course platform, pressing bias tape is basically a spa day. It was surely so much more FUN!!!
That little moment clicked something in me.
Oh, So THAT’S Why I Love Having Many WIPs
I love challenges. I always have. But tedious work? That’s where I procrastinate. The tedious tasks only become interesting to me when I need to rest from something more challenging. They become the break. The palate cleanser. The reward, even.
No wonder I thrive with many works in progress at the same time! It’s not chaos (and definitely not a disadvantage) it’s a system my brain built without asking my permission. I jump between projects at different paces, and each one serves a different purpose:
- There are projects for when I need to clear my mind. Those are the simple, repetitive ones, like chain piecing, trimming, pressing.
- Then, there are projects that challenge me, a sampler quilt, a custom free motion quilting project or curvy piecing. Or projects that make me feel creative, the ones where I’m playing with fabric pulls and possibilities.
- And then, there are projects which I make for others, the ones stitched with someone’s face in my mind – there’s a special joyous feeling in my heart when I sew these.
All of them, in the end, are about the same thing: projects that make me feel good for having them done, or even just progressed. A little forward motion, every time I sit down. And to kick start that, it really depends on what I need in that moment.
This hobby truly is therapy. It allows my brain to process things while I relax and enjoy a productive time too. I am actually one of those people that can never have a moment where I have nothing to do! There’s always a project to work on, in the sewing room or out.
Flip It
Here’s the reframe I’m holding onto: every so-called disadvantage has an advantage hiding inside it, if you’re willing to flip it over and look.
A squirrel mind means I’m “unfocused”? Flip it: it means I always have the right project for the energy I have. Tired brain? Hand stitching. Restless brain? New challenge. Heavy heart? Something soothing and repetitive. There is always something that fits.
Too many WIPs means I “never finish anything”? Flip it: it means I’m never stuck. When one project stalls, another one moves. The overall progress never actually stops — it just changes lanes.
People can say what they want to say about the “right” way to quilt, the “right” number of projects, the “right” way to work. But we do it our own way, don’t we?
Your process only has to work for one person: you.
Try This: Sort Your WIPs by What They Give You
If you want to make this idea useful in your own sewing room this week, here’s a little exercise. Look at your current WIPs and instead of sorting them by deadline or guilt level (we’ve all done it!), sort them by what they give you:
Which one is your rest project? the one you can do with tired hands and a full brain?
Which one is your challenge project? the one that makes you grow.
Which one is your creative play project? The one that gives you that giddy feeling and allows you to simply play, make mistake and not
Which one is your heart project, made for someone you love?
Now, it doesn’t have to be even categorized. I find that my projects jump from one type to another too. Like what happened this weekend. Pressing those bias tapes was surely not my “rest project”. I dreaded it before… but it turned out to be one, when I have a heavier task outside the sewing room.
Photo above is custom quilting a baby size quilt – the Tulip Bloom. I do enjoy it when my custom quilting projects are a smaller quilts rather than large ones.
And if somehow someday you come in the room and you have nothing you feel like working on. Clean up or organize something or even more fun, start a new project! Yes, I am giving you permission to start a new project. You’re welcome.
Those someday projects just need that day to be the “someday”.
I love quilt kitting too for that special in the moment of starting a new project – you can read more about that HERE>
So Here’s to the Squirrel Minds
If you’re a one-project-at-a-time quilter, I admire you, truly. But if you’re like me, five or 25 projects deep, jumping between them like a squirrel with a very organized stash of acorns, I hope this chat helps you see it not as a flaw to fix, but a rhythm to work with.
I’d love to know: how many WIPs do you have going right now, and which one is your “rest” project? Tell me in the comments…no judgment here, only fellow squirrels.
Until next Sunday, happy quilting!
P.S. If you’re one of my course students, don’t worry, everything is safe and the move is all happening quietly behind the scenes. You’ll only notice things getting better. That’s a promise from one squirrel to another. 🐿️
Here’s a sneak peak.
