I Like Quilts, Not Guilt

Do you have a stack of unfinished quilting projects sitting around your house? (I know you do!) How do you feel about those projects?

I have been thinking about this a lot lately - when I am working on a project, I am usually pretty enamored with the fabrics and the process and the progress. But then when I set that project aside, I start to feel something different. Is it dread? Is it guilt? Is it frustration? I don't know, but it is leaking its negative energy all over my sewing room and I'm ready to be done with it.

This is the first project that I EVER left unfinished. I did finish it eventually.

Generally I am a finisher. I went YEARS without leaving a project unfinished. But lately my life is so busy (with both sewing-related and not sewing-related things) that I tend to flit a little more from project to project and sometimes those projects get set aside. Indefinitely.

Sure it is fun to start a shiny new project, especially if you are joining in on a quilt-a-long or if you want to make a new pattern, but wouldn't it be EVEN MORE fun if you didn't have all of those WIPs sitting around your sewing room.



That is my goal. Do you want to join along with me? Are you ready to free your quilting life of guilt? I started talking about this topic last week on Instagram and I know that I'm not the only one. If you would like to join along, go make a comment on this post with your goal and then use the hashtag #septemberquiltfinishes when you post any progress photos. Let's support each other!

The blocks on my design wall (from our house in San Diego THIS WAS PROBBALY 5 YEARS AGO) are my oldest WIP. They aren't on my agenda right now, but hopefully soon?

If you aren't on Instagram, I am will make a weekly post here and you can updated me in the comments. After September, if there is continued interest, I will make a couple posts a month just so we can check in on everyone. I don't have that many WIPs sitting around, but I am happy to support and encourage those of you that do.

These pillows were more of a glacially slow project than a WIP. 

I am also working on a newsletter with a collection of links and tips for keeping the WIPs under control and will be sending that out this week so sign up here if you are interested in seeing that.

Starting in 2020 I am going to test out doing a quilt-a-long with one or two of my patterns. This is something that I have resisted (for a variety of reasons) because I feel like it tends to contribute to the WIP problem - when everyone else is joining in on the fun, it is easy to abandon our current projects. Let's finish up what we have on our shelves.

p.s. If you have a pattern you would be interested in quilt-a-longing with, let me know in the comments! I am planning to get everything set up in advance so that it can operate smoothly and I want to know what you want to make!