Unfocused, Non-Productive Bits and Pieces

Lately, I haven't been productive in the conventional way. Most days, the weather has been beautiful and didn't want to spend too much time cooped up in the sewing room. I preferred to be outside, even if I wasn't doing anything more than reading on the porch. In addition, my daughter decided to go back to UVA early and I wanted to spend some time with her before she left. (She shared a ride with a friend starting law school nearby, so I'll be driving to VA soon to take the rest of her stuff.) So, I've been in the sewing room sporadically and not really focused on finishing anything.

Bit #1
This non-productive period began with another orphan top! This knit is the last (I hope) of the fabric from the infamous G-Street Field Trip. I liked the challenge of finding a satin to match the knit. This top was shown in black and in white in the January issue of BWOF. I didn't like it in either color and I thought I'd have to settle for those colors if I couldn't find a more colorful knit and satin match. Luckily, I found a much cheerier yellow. This is an orphan top because the original coordinating fabric no longer went with the yellow knit, as is the case with most of the fabrics I bought at G-Street. I'm sure I can find something in my closet to wear with this top - even if its jeans or black pants. Knits are not my favorite fabrics to sew. The edges of the binding on this top was supposed to be pressed inside first, but the knit didn't want to hold a crease. Why can't knits be more like linen? Linen stays where you press it. I had to use a clapper to make the crease and I had to sew through many layers when sewing the binding to the neckline. My machine was able to handle the layers easily, but it doesn't look as neat as I'd like.

Piece # 2
I've started another quilt. I found a free downloadable pattern online made specifically for precut strips. I bought a package of 2 1/2 inch strips of coordinated fabrics. These coordinated packs are perfect for me until I get more confident selecting fabrics. After I bought the strips, it was such a beautiful day, I took them to a nearby state park and I was able to sort and match up the fabrics for the strip sets there, so I was able to satisfy my need to be outdoors while doing something sewing related. I plan to work on the quilt in between clothing projects. This quilt will be quite a bit larger than my previous wall quilt. The actual quilting should be quite an adventure.

Bit #3
My thread is organized and I'm very happy with my new thread storage! There is room in this little unit for over 800 spools of thread and it's almost full. But, now that I can easily see what I have, it will be easier to use the thread I already have rather than buy more. It's hard for me to believe I've accumulated nearly 800 spools of thread. I buy 3 spools for each garment. One spool is used on the conventional sewing machine and two spools for the chain stitch on the serger. The unit fits very nicely into a corner of the sewing room. I only had to completely remove everything from the adjacent bookcase and move it to the right about 4 inches to make the thread storage unit fit. I was able to purchase all eight bins with 40% off coupons, either online or in-store. I was even able to get the storage cubes at a discount. I can now see every spool of thread I own and I discovered I have about 8 spools of the same blue thread. Now that I have this excellent thread storage unit, that won't happen again. And to further organize the sewing room, I installed a serge protector on the wall behind the sewing machine to eliminate the jumble of extension cords.

So, I'm through with the orphan projects, I have a plan to accommodate sewing and quilting, and I have a clean, organized sewing room. I'm ready and eager to get focused and productive again.