Thoughts On My Studio Cleanup Journey

There's a beautiful story about 2 famous basketball players, Charles Barkley, and Moses Malone. Charles Barkley was the #5 pick of the 1984 NBA draft. He felt he had the world by the tail, and that he would take the NBA by storm. He weighed in at close to 300 pounds, and was shocked to find himself sitting on the bench with limited opportunities to play. He approached Moses Malone for some guidance. Malone pulled no punches, he told him that he was fat and lazy. Brutal! He told Barkley to lose 10 pounds and meet him at the gym the next day. When he reached the goal of losing 10 pounds, Malone instructed him to lose another 10. The weight loss and workouts went on until Barkley weighed in at 255 pounds. Barkley asked Malone why he didn't tell him to lose close to 50 pounds when he first approached him. Malone replied that it was too big of a goal, 10 pounds was attainable. The relationship between Barkley and Malone remained so close that Barkley called Malone 'Dad' until Malone died. Barkley gave Moses Malone a beautiful tribute;

"He never said anything about what he did for me. Most guys when they mentor a young player like that, they go around saying, 'Yeah, that was me. I did that.' Not Moses. He never told anybody. And that was the best part."  

When I began cleaning up, and cleaning out my sewing studio, I cried to myself, "I can never buy another piece of fabric for as long as I live!!!" Then, I thought about the Barkley/Malone story, and realized that I was setting myself up for failure. So, I made a smaller, more obtainable goal, no new fabric shopping until August 1st. That was a 3 month goal, and one that I felt I could do. So far, so good :) But...whew!, in the last week or so, I have REALLY wanted to go to a fabric store. What helps a lot, is going into my studio and cleaning up a space, or a drawer. That's enough of a reminder, and the bonus is that I get excited about something that I want to make.

I did another little exercise that was rather difficult. I went through my fabric, pulled out 5 pieces that I love, and put them in a bag. A friend of mine and I had made a date for tea. I took the bag with me, handed it to her and told her that she could have all, some, or none, it was her choice. I then explained that these were pieces that I love, so not castoffs. She took all but 1 piece. As I sat there and watched her go through the fabric, I'll be honest, I thought of all the wonderful things I could do with it, but I held tight. A day later, she sent me a picture of a fun shirt she had made to wear with tights, using a piece of the fabric that I had given her. I could not have been happier! She was happy, I was happy, and it was all because I let go. 

I then decided to take my exercise a step further. I invited another friend to come by, go through my fabric and choose a few pieces that she would like to have and felt she could use. As I sat there and watched her touch the fabric, I cringed a bit, but once again, I held tight, and let her choose what she wanted. And guess what?!!, as much as I cringed, I can't remember exactly which pieces she took!!! And even better, she left excited about her new projects. 

My fabric diet is not music to any fabric shop owner's ears, but it is a journey that I am happy that I have embarked upon. At this point, I am learning to let go, and use what I have. 

I hope the Barkley/Malone story will inspire you in some way, It's one of my favorites, but then, I really like Charles Barkley. He makes me laugh :)

Rhonda

My Studio, and a Giveaway!

I can never buy another piece of fabric for the rest of my life!

I spent 3 hours in my studio yesterday afternoon clearing off shelves and organizing fabric. Here's the worst part of it, I am no where near finished!!! For quite some time, I have wanted to clean up and organize my studio. For far too long, I've gone from 1 project to the next without cleaning in between. 

I am beyond mortified to share the video below. You will see that even Gracie holds her head in shame. 

As I went through my fabric, I realized that I own some of the most amazing pieces. The idea of not buying fabric is heartbreaking, but what I have vowed to hold true to my goal, and not purchase anything until September 1st. At that point, I will assess how I am doing and go from there. That's 3 months, so that should give me plenty of time to begin to look into my soul and discover a little more about my obsession with fabric. Stay tuned for more posts on my progress. As some of you know, I have tried to set this as a goal in the past, and failed. This time I am taking a little different approach. Rather than try to find a huge block of time to clean, I am giving myself a small pocket of time each day. I had planned to only do an hour yesterday, but became immersed and just kept going. That's okay. Today I will may only do 30 minutes. 

Since the beginning of the year, I have had a goal to read through certain books of the Bible. The goal I set for myself was to read the books of Psalms, Proverbs, Song of Solomon, Job, Ecclesiastes, the books of Wisdom and Sirach(from the Catholic Bible), and finish out the year by reading through the New Testament. By setting small daily goals, I have finished Psalms, Proverbs, Song of Solomon, Ecclesiastes, Wisdom, and I am currently reading through Job. Now, reading books from the Bible is not for everyone, and I understand, but what I have learned from my goal is that by setting small daily goals, it adds up to big goals accomplished. It's just amazing! So, I am translating that same goal setting strategy to my studio space. 

Now for something fun!!!

Londa, of Londa's Creative Threads is sponsoring a give away here on the blog. Some of you have already purchased her Terrific T pattern, so whoever wins will have the opportunity to choose from her Terrific T, 

OR, her Trendy Tunic Tops pattern.

I will begin a new segment on the blog tomorrow on using a basic t-shirt pattern to create lots of fun tops. Londa's tee is perfect for this. But, if you've already purchased the t-shirt pattern, you can still enter the giveaway and try for the Trendy Tunics pattern. Very generous of Londa :)

To enter, just leave a message on this post. I will announce the winner next Wednesday, May 16, 2018.   

Good Luck!

Rhonda    

The Wednesday Showcase

A few nights ago, I watched a fascinating documentary on the Public Broadcasting network entitled, "Unrest." It's the story of filmmaker Jennifer Brea's struggle with chronic fatigue syndrome. For quite some time, she had been told that there was nothing wrong. She went online and found that there are many all over the world who struggle as she does. It was shocking to see how some have been treated in other countries. Many think that it is all in the patient's mind, and so should be treated for mental illness. 

Jennifer shows what her life was like prior to chronic fatigue, and then documents her life now, as well as the life of so many around the world. For her, it all began when she had a very high temperature, over 104 degrees. From that moment on, her life has never been the same. 

As I watched, I thought about the word tomorrow. We put too many things off until tomorrow, a day that does not exist. I highly recommend the documentary. It's streaming now on the PBS Independent Lens site, but only until January 23, 2018. You can find it HERE. 

I had intended to continue with the Wednesday Showcase 2017 roundup today, but I thought that you might be interested in something a little different. 

You may remember that I gave away 3 little sewing caddies during my birthday week. All 3 ladies have written and told me how much they appreciate their new little toys :) Joy of Joyful Expressions sent a picture of her sewing caddy already in use. You can see her lovely studio in the background. She said that she has ordered a pack of 12 plastic frames and will be making them for all of her sewing friends. Lucky friends!!!

If by chance you haven't checked out Joy's blog, be sure to pop over. She does lots of videos, and she always has a story to tell. 

If by chance you missed the tutorial on how to make the sewing caddy, you can find it HERE along with a video. 

During the Christmas holidays, I was out doing a little shopping. I stopped at a light, looked over, and to my surprise, I saw a sewing studio that I didn't even know existed.  

The studio offers classes for adults and children. They also offer parties for adults and children. The picture below if from a birthday party. What fun!

If you are in the Chicago area and looking for a fun place to meet up with some friends and do a little sewing, take a class, or participate in a little crafting, be sure to check out Sew Crafty Studio. They are located on the corner of Clybourn and Ashland in Chicago.  

Maybe a month ago or so, I came across this picture on Facebook. Pretty eye catching!!!

Intrigued, I decided to do a google search. Sew Houston is owned by Yolanda, a previous middle school English teacher. She has had a passion for sewing since she was a child, and always dreamed of having a sewing business. 

At Sew, she offers classes for adults and children, as well as parties. Her motto is, "Creativity never goes out of style." 

Sew Houston is located on the northwest side of town, just off of Hwy. 290. 

I never thought I would see the day that sewing studios would start popping up. Remember though, to keep them in business, we need to get the word out, and use their facilities. 

If you know of other sewing studios in any part of the world, I would love to showcase them. Many of you may be just like me and have no idea that something exists right in your own city. Just leave a message below.  

I thought I would leave you with this today;

Tomorrow

A mystical land where 99% of all human productivity, motivation, and achievement is stored. 

Sewing Room Inspiration and Cleaning/What To Do With Scraps

In my ongoing pursuit to clean out, declutter and organize my studio, the question that looms is what to do with scraps and fabric that we no longer want. For so many of us, this has almost become a war cry. We love to sew, we love to create, and yet we feel so guilty about throwing out fabric scraps that we know could be used for SOMETHING!!! And then there's the fabric that we once thought was great, but our tastes changed and it's just the sad old piece that continues to sit there because we feel, once again the "G" word, guilty about not using it. 

To lighten up the mood just a bit, now that I have us all feeling guilty, I came across this on Facebook this morning. Made me laugh and I thought you might enjoy it as well :)

At the moment, and I say at the moment, because I have quite a bit more to go through, I have 3 bags full of fabric and scraps. So what to do? 

 

A few years ago, a very energetic and creative woman came to speak to our sewing group, The Haute Couture Club of Chicago. I was amazed by what she has done and the impact that she has made. Her name is Monika Neuland Kimrey, and she is an artist who believes that you can change a life with a scrap of fabric or a piece of yarn. 

She works with the elderly, the developmentally and physically challenged, children's programs, and has recently started programs in the Englewood area of Chicago. For those of you who do not know Chicago, this area has become notorious for gang activity and murders.

Monkia believes in creating opportunities for those whom society has labeled as unable and and giving them the new title of artist. 

Below, an after school program. 

Monika teaching a developmentally challenged young man to sew and ultimately create.

Another example of what can be created with scraps.

After meeting Monika and experiencing her vision, I no longer look at my bags of scraps and unwanted fabric as a burden. I see them as possibilities in waiting.  

If you live in the Chicagoland area and have fabric and scraps that you would like to donate, please email me at sewbussted@yahoo.com and I will be happy to pass along Monika's email address. Sadly, she does not have a website.

Now, if you don't live in Chicago, what can you do? I've given this quite a bit of thought and here are some of my ideas.

1. Put an ad on Craig's List and direct it toward artists. There are many artists who use fabric scraps in their artwork. You can always arrange to meet them at a fabric store to pick up the fabric rather than coming to your home.

2. Contact a local art center. Again, many artist's use fabric and scraps in their artwork and would appreciate the donation.

3. Contact your local government or schools and see if they have an after school art program for children.

4. Talk to school teachers, especially those teaching kindergarten classes. They are always looking for materials that can be used for art projects. 

These are just a few ideas that came to mind. 

Do you have any resources or ideas that I can share? If so, please leave a comment and I will do a follow up post and share your ideas with everyone. 

I posted this last Sunday for the week's inspiration;

Never believe that a few caring people can't change the world, for indeed that's all who ever have.  

Even a scrap of fabric can make a difference.

Next week, I will share more of your studio pictures and my progress as well. In the meantime, if you would like to share your studio with all of us, you may link up your pictures on THIS POST. We want to see the good, the bad and the ugly :) Come on!, I showed you mine!!!  

Sewing Room Inspiration and Cleaning Part 2

Happy Thursday/Happy Spring! It seems, at least fingers crossed, that the weather gods have decided to give us a little taste of spring for the next few days. The cardinals are sooo happy, just singing out their little hearts, and that makes me happy too :) 

I had intended to post this yesterday, but my time got away from me. I do have a Thrifty Thursday piece to share, so I'll be back with that a little later today :)

A couple days ago, I shared my dirty little secret...my very out of control sewing studio. Like all of us, I'm busy. I think that one of my issues is a combination of a few things. I can have the attention span of a gnat at times, at least that's how I feel. I have an idea, pull things out, leave them out for added inspiration, and then when I do get started, I'm on a roll and the rest doesn't get put away. And even worse, there's usually a number of ideas going at one time. 

So my intention is to clean up, organize, and make better use of my space. I have a fairly large space, and I have pieces that I will not part with, like a large cutting table and a padded table. More on the padded table later.

Over the last few days I have cleaned a little. The picture below does not represent the mess as well as......      

this view of the same area.

Now, the somewhat after picture. I say somewhat since the entire table has yet to be attacked. The things that were piled up around the sewing machine were actually either put where they belong, given away, or thrown away. I was a little surprised with what needed to go in the garbage. 

As you can see, I chose to clean just a space, not the entire table. I set a timer and allowed myself to do what I could in that amount of time. When I sat down to sew yesterday, with just this small space cleaned, I was amazed how free I felt. Funny how that happens. I did clean a little on my cutting table, so a little more has been done than I'm sharing now. Now that I've made a little headway, I'm really pumped to keep going!  

I believe that blogging is really about sharing and inspiration. What we do as sewists can be so isolating. Yes, you can go to a class, but so much is done on our own and alone. So to help inspire those of us who are on a cleaning journey, I asked for those of you would like, to share your space. Share the good, the bad and the ugly!! I thought we would begin with the not only good, but the WOW!!!

We'll start with Karen of Once Sewn. In her post, she shares that she and her family have moved many times and she has had numerous spaces, but she finally has a dedicated space that she loves. Don't you just love the violin in the corner?!!  

This lovely space belongs to Margo of Creating In The Gap. She says that her space is the only finished area in her basement, so she has to walk through the unfinished section to enter her studio. It looks to me like she opens the door to heaven! 

Next we have TwoToast of Spotty Dog Social Club. She calls her studio her personal heaven. The shelves and tables are from Ikea. I really like the use of space. 

Pao of Project Minima linked up her post about her studio. Like many of you, she is multi-talented. She's also a very gifted artist. She has made her space productive and inviting with the use of so many found objects.

Thanks so much for sharing you spaces. You have not only inspired me, but sparked some great ideas.

A number of you have commented that a perfectly clean studio does not promote creativity, and I agree. There needs to be a little chaos in order to free the imagination. I just want less chaos. I also have a goal in mind that I'll share once I get a little further along. 

I'm giving myself a month to clean. So over the next month, I'll do a weekly check-in and share my progress. Be sure to link up your studios as well as your progress to THIS post. The link up will be open over the next month, so link away. I'll share what you share as I work through my cleaning process. As isolated as we may feel at times, we're really all in this together.

Hope the sun is shining wherever you are today :)

Rhonda 

Monday Morning Inspiration/Sewing Room Inspiration

I have a VERY dirty little secret. My studio is a disaster, and there are pictures to prove it!!! 
I dream of a pretty space where everything is neat and tidy. Look at the spaces below, how lovely and inviting they are.

And now for true confessions.... 
I hold my head in shame, what a mess!!! 

And wait!!!, there's more...

My cutting table. It's a very large table but you wouldn't know by the looks of it at the moment.

 This is REALLY bad.

And finally, my actual sewing table. Sometimes I wonder how I ever find anything. Believe it or not, even in the state of chaos that it's in, there is some semblance of organization. But only some.

So over the next few weeks as I clean, sort out and organize, I'll bring you along on my journey.

I love the idea of shelves. Under my cutting table, I do have wire baskets like those in the picture below. I think a table with the baskets would also be wonderful

                                       

And I think a beg board is a must.

So what about you? Am I the only one with an out of control sewing studio? With the pictures I see of some of your studios, I think I am. 

I would love a little inspiration, so if you have a studio that you would enjoy sharing,  I've created an Link Up, so please link away.

In the event that I am not alone and you too would like to take on the challenge of organizing your space, show us the good, the bad and the ugly as I have done. I  invite you to come along on my journey! Hey, misery loves company :)

Nothing like a little public humiliation to get one motivated. Hopefully a clean and organized studio is just a few weeks away. I hope :)

An InLinkz Link-up