Top Three Tips for Time Management

Every time I give my lecture "Time Management for Quilters" I hear from people, days, weeks or even months after who tell me they picked up a few tips that really helped them get more done. Some ask me to go into things in more depth. So here are my 3 Top Time Management tips, the things I do that really help me get more done.

1. PLAN--MY JOURNAL

I have always kept lists, usually on slips of paper. Eventually, the paper would get tossed out and sometime later I would wish I still had it. So when I learned about "bullet journals" a couple years ago I was intrigued. As I read about the concept I felt like you could spend all your time creating a journal about your life instead of living your life. But some of the ideas spoke to me so I adapted the idea to a format that works for me.

I started with a simple blank lined pages journal, picked up at a bookstore. One good pen that I liked the feel of and one ultra fine Sharpie, in Fuchsia, that's all I use. The inside front page is the Index. On the left are the  months listed and the page numbers they cover. On the right are what are called "Collections" but in the next edition I will simply call them "Pages".  I am on my second edition:

For each month, I start with one page that is the overview of that month, things I want or need to get done that month. Besides quilt deadlines, there are things like "book airfare for..." or "Send Supply Lists for Workshops to..." At the bottom of the page I keep a running total of Quilt Tops Completed" and Quilts Completed" that month and the cumulative total for the year, just because it is easy to do this way, for no other reason.

After the monthly overview page, each day I list the things I want/need/hope to get done that day. To the left of each item is a square box that I check off when the item is done. At the end of the day, if the item is not done, I use the fuchsia marker to draw a down arrow, meaning that item got moved down to the next day. If I decide i will not do that item at all, I draw a line through it. Some days have lots of items, some days few, but each day is listed. I usually list tomorrow's items at the end of today--I know what I'm going to be doing the next day.

I don't carry the journal with me, it sits on my desk at the computer. When traveling, I simply list something like"Saturday June 16-Wednesday June 20, San Diego Canyon Quilters".

The Pages/Collections list is the secret to this system for me. Whenever I think of things I want to keep track of, I create a Page for that, wherever in the journal I happen to be at that point--today it would be in the middle of July--the next blank page is 88. I add the Page name and page number to the Index at the front of the journal and it is easy to find whenever I need it. Here are my current Pages:

Quilts to Finish
Tops to Quilt
Labels to Make
Class Ideas
Internet Purchases
Blog Ideas
People to Make Quilts For
Quilts to Photograph
Where Did I Put?

One of the best of these is "Internet Purchases"--any time I order something online I put it on this page, page 8 in the journal, what it is, the cost, the seller, and then I check off when it arrives and when I pay the credit card for it. Before this list, I would get the credit card bill and wonder what that item was, a book? a sewing notion? Personal or business? Now I check page 8 and know instantly what I bought.

The last one is the most recent. Any time I say "I'll put this in a safe place" I add it to the Where Did I Put? list. Now I have a backup for my memory--aging is a real thing.

Your list will vary, start with those that make sense to you and add to them as you like.

Why does this save me time? First, it keeps me on track to get things done, on deadline or because that's what I want to do that day. Second, it keeps my ideas in one place, so I can find them again. Third, it keeps me focused--I never say "wonder what I'll do today?" I can break down a task into the required parts and give them a time slot.

This does not replace my calendar on my computer/phone/IPad--I keep that fully updated with appointments, trips, birthdays, etc. The journal simply works for me, keeping me on target for each day. Perhaps you'll find a different system.

2. THE 15 MINUTE PLAN

Today I have the luxury of working in my studio 9-4 most every day but it wasn't always that way. When I started quilting 35 years ago I  had two kids and a husband, a household to run, several paying jobs, including tax season for 34 years, where I often worked 60-70 hour weeks, was always active in my local guild with all the jobs that entails, and I still found time to make some of my best quilts, of my own design, hand quilting many.

In teaching new quilters I came up with the notion of the "15 Minute Plan". If you have to wait until you have 3 hours of uninterrupted time to start, you'll never get anything done. Break your quilting tasks into 15 minute jobs. Before work, if you have 15 minutes, you can:

Select the fabric for the next block you will sew
OR Cut the fabric for the next block you will  sew
OR Figure out how many strips of binding fabric you need and select the fabric for it
OR Cut the binding strips, sew them together if you still have time
OR Press the binding seams and binding
OR CLEAN UP THE CLUTTER--15 minutes of putting stuff away really helps so the job doesn't grow to an hour-long massive clean up

I always have something ready to sew right beside my machine--if I had 15 minutes I could sew this:

Before I leave the studio today, I'll have something ready to sew tomorrow.

What can you do in 15 minutes, besides play Solitaire or Angry Birds?

3. LEADERS AND ENDERS--Make FREE Quilts

I am a huge proponent of the leaders/enders process made popular by Bonnie Hunter.

Why do I love it so? It saves time, thread, aggravation and fabric bits. All you need to do is have a PLAN. Simple shapes work well for this, squares or triangles are easy. As I am creating quilts, I cut the leftover fabrics into the size "scrap" that works for the plan I have. Currently, it's 1.25" finished half square triangles; before that it was 2" finished four-patches.

At the start and end of each line of chain piecing I start with a Leader and finish with an Ender--two units of fabric that I piece while sewing other things for whatever quilt I am actively working on. Here you see the Leader, a block unit being created and an Ender:

We tend to have the most trouble keeping 1/4" seam allowances straight at the beginning and the end of chain piecing. This helps keep you straight as you start sewing the important part, here the block unit being constructed, and end straight as you leave the block and go to the Ender. We also have difficulty when we rethread the machine--occasionally, the machine likes to "eat" the points and create a "bird's nest" on the bottom--I would much rather have that problem on a small, unimportant bit of fabric than my lovely block.

And it SAVES THREAD. Quality thread is not cheap and it just breaks my heart to see a student sew one little unit together, then pull it out of the machine with at least a foot of both top and bobbin thread attached, only to cut off that thread and throw it in the trash! Chain piecing keeps that waste to a minimum.

To make this system work, all you need is a plan, a quilt pattern that uses simple units you can easily cut from scraps and sew as you go. Here are just a few of the Leader/Ender quilts I've made in recent years:

Queen-size FourPlay, pattern by Kinch and Storms

Doll quilt from a charm pack

Rainbow Baby Nine Patches

Queen-size Tumbler, Bonnie Hunter Leader/Ender Challenge project

I hope you find an idea here that helps you. The lecture is full of lots more but these are the 3 I live by. What tips/tricks do you use to help you get things done?

Let's quilt!

Barbara

How Do You Eat an Elephant?

One bite at a time...

This is my Lifetime Quilt, Thousands of 1.25" finished half square triangle units, all from reproduction fabrics. I give step-by-step instructions and more background in this post, written more than two years ago. This post shows how I make the units today, cutting pairs with a half square triangle ruler:  updated method.  What you see here are 7296 triangles.

When finished it will be 100" x 100" and contain 12,800 triangles. Today I wanted to see how far along I am--I have decided I want to finish this quilt in 2018. So far, it's been made exclusively as my "Leader/Ender" project, but it may get a little more attention in the coming months. Today I have to cut more triangle pairs, the supply is getting low.

Yesterday I taught two classes. First, was Mug Rugs to two students who were excited to make small projects, perfect for gifts. Rosa brought her machine and in two hours completed these, and was eager to go home and make more:

Top one is completely done, bottom needs quilting

The bottom one is the reverse side of the bottom one shown above--adorable!

The other student, Mary, brought her notebook and while Rosa sewed, we all discussed lots more design ideas--Pinterest has a wealth of pictures to give you ideas. Decide on a size you like, then cut extra hunks of batting into that size. Throughout the year you can easily make one or two a month and then have great gifts ready to go by Christmas. Mary works with a group making Quilts of Valor and she liked my idea of using the leftover fabrics from each quilt to make a pair of mug rugs to present to the spouse of the veteran, when presenting the quilt.

The afternoon class was Session 4 of Long Time Gone--13 students are plugging away at this one:

 Not everyone was able to be in class this time and not everyone put their whole quilt up but aren't these fun?!

We were all taken with Joan's Birdhouses, a wonderful way to accent this block.

They don't bring machines to this class, just the pattern book and their questions and their blocks. I bring my  machine and demo lots of tips for each block, and I do believe they are all learning a lot.

I have the first 5 sections done--next month I'll show them how to do partial seaming to join Section 5 blocks together.

And now for a laugh--Cyndi in the Long Tine Gone class sat where Rosa had been in the Mug Rug class. Cyndi raided the trash bucket for the chunks of fabric she found there--what Rosa threw away, Cyndi recognized as perfect for our tiny little blocks. One woman's trash is another woman's treasure:

Christmas is a week away and I have two projects to start and finish by then. And I have to clear off the extra spare bed, the one I call my "Archaeological Dig":

Since we have two spare bedrooms, I keep one always ready for guests, but this one... This one holds quilts most of the time. It will take me a while to remove and dump in a pile in the studio, most of these quilts.

Fortunately, several are being shipped to Road to California tomorrow. The Smitten class filled the first week, the Antique Rose Star has only a few spots left, and 2-for-1 is more than half full, quite a good showing for this largely "unknown" teacher. If you are attending Road to California in January 2018, I'd love to see you in class OR in the Roundabout Event Saturday evening--I'll be demonstrating several super tips for improving your binding technique. More info is here.

If you don't hear from me this week, I'm either buried under quilts, sewing those gifts, or baking cookies. Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, blessed Kwanzaa, whatever you celebrate may it include family and friends.

Let's quilt,

Barbara

What Do 4096 Triangles Look Like?

My Lifetime Quilt is progressing:

Each triangle is 1.25" finished. There are 32 of those triangles in one 5" block. Four 5" blocks become one 10" block. Four 10" blocks become one 20" block. Four 20" blocks become one 40" block. Here are two 40" blocks joined together, 80" x 40", about half of what the finished quilt will be, I think. It might become bigger, time will tell.  Here you see 4,096 triangles.

The rest of the story on this quilt and how I came to make it my "Lifetime Project" can be found here:  Lifetime Leader/Ender project.   

Now that this "half" is done it's back to making a bunch of 5" blocks:

They get made as I am piecing other projects, like the Long Time Gone blocks and the Halo Star Medallion quilt. I need to cut more triangles as the bin is getting a little low. I cut leftover fabrics into 1.75" strips, put light/dark strips right sides together, then use a Half-Square Triangle ruler to cut the triangle pairs. They are sewn, pressed and trimmed right along with whatever project I'm working on.

There is very little planning as I assemble the blocks. I try not to use one fabric more than twice in any 5" block. And I try to use a variety of colors in each block.  This one has a lot of green. Some have a lot of brown. I try to have at least one cheddar/gold in each block.

I like to think of some fabric historian having fun with this quilt 100 years from now, trying to guess the years these various fabrics were made. Since some are accurate reproductions of fabrics first printed 100 years ago, that should be interesting detective work.

Let's Quilt!

Barbara

UFOs, PHDs, PIGS, Ongoing Work

Whether you call them:

UFOs:  unfinished objects or
PHDs:  Projects Half Done or
PIGS:  Projects in Grocery Sacks

We all have  them--projects we start with good intentions that somehow get put on the back burner as something more exciting or more pressing has to get made.

Here are some of mine:

Diamond Jubilee--the quilt I intend to make to celebrate my 60th birthday--which happened two years ago.  This one is getting moved up the list, eventually...

I finished this top yesterday.  The hexagons are 1" and where made from a pack of 5" Charm squares, cut into quarters--the 2.5" squares fit the paper very well.  This was started at International Quilt Festival, Long Beach, CA 2009. For some reason, I didn't take any handwork with me and, of course, that was a mistake.  The great vendor, Cotton and Chocolate had a brilliant marketing plan:  They sold a "kit" packed into a plastic travel bag with their name and address on it, that included a Clover Desk Needle  threader, best notion ever, a spool of thread, a package of needles, and your choice of a packet of Paper Pieces shapes for English Paper piecing.  You purchased your choice of a MODA charm pack and they cut the 5" squares into 2.5" squares for you.  Sucked me right in.  All you needed to be sewing was a pair of scissors and they would be delighted to sell you those too, if you needed them.  They now include a Glue Pen for fast and easy basting of fabric to paper and today they even have a kit for machine sewing the hexagons, here.  This became my "take along" project for years until I finally buckled down to finish it.  Up next, it gets machine quilted. And, yes, I applique'd the hexagon top to the striped fabric borders; no way I was finishing it with the traditional hexagon zig zag edge.

Another favorite I am eager to return to:

Patriotic Pineapple blocks.  I really love this and lots of fabric strips are cut and ready, but, alas, it's not on the wall currently.

Today I took down my Lifetime Quilt to make room but here is what it is starting to look like:

This is my Leader/Ender lifetime project--I can't die until I finish it so I'm sewing it slowly...  Each half square triangle is 1.25" finished. Shown here are 5 blocks, each 20" square.  See the link above for step-by-step photos of my process.

Stella's Splendid Sampler needed more room so I  rearranged the design wall:

Only 16 more blocks to go, 8 weeks left.  I'm ready to see the end of this one.  The patterns are all free currently and available at The Splendid Sampler. A book is being printed for release after the project ends in early 2017.  It was more challenging than I expected but it's fun being part of a Facebook group of almost 24,000 members and who knows how many more who signed up with email.  Pat Sloan and Jane Davidson must be overwhelmed and amazed at the interest their little project has generated.

When Stella's Splendid Sampler comes down, here is what is going UP:

Sue Garman's Ruffled Roses--the Block of the Month quilt for The Quilt Show, 2011.  I still love it and am determined to finish it in 2017.  I wrote about my Turned Edge Applique' method here.  Having it prominently displayed on the design wall will be just what I need to get this one done. Guessing it will take me about two months to finish the top.  The pattern is still available from Sue's website:  here.

There are more projects I need to get back to, of course, but this is probably enough for 2017.

Let's Quilt!

Barbara

Lifetime Leader/Ender

I can't show you what I'm working on, it has to stay under wraps for two more weeks, until our guild challenge. Let's just say, I think they will know it's mine.

So, here is what I can show you:

First four rows of 6" blocks sewn together  with 1" sashing and cornerstones

Blocks #31 and #41

The first four rows of Stella's Splendid Sampler are finally done and assembled.  That block #31, the embroidery stack of books with birds and flowers, took me several weeks because I just didn't want to work on it.  No more embroidery blocks for me, I don't think, though I reserve the right to change my mind.  I got block #41 done quickly, large hexies appliqued in place, not English Paper Pieced.

Now that the Tumbler quilt is safely at the longarmer's house, I am back to my Lifetime Leader/Ender project, 1.25" finished Half Square Triangles (HSTs).  I first wrote about this here.  As I have leftover fabrics, I cut them into 1.75" strips. Then I use a Half Square Triangle ruler to cut the units ready for sewing.  Here are some photos that will show you the process:

Bin full of 1.75" strips

Pairing up fabrics and cutting HST units

Sewing by chain piecing

Clover thread cutter mounted in a wooden block makes quick work of separating chain pieced units

Trimming to 1.75" square, pressed toward the darker fabric

Sixteen squares laid out ready for sewing into rows

Rows pressed in opposing directions

Rows pressed open

All three seams now pressed open--block is done

This block finishes at 5" and is one of four that will be sewn into a larger unit

Two 5" units ready to be sewn together

Sixty-four HSTs sewn into a 10" finished block

Eight 10" blocks stuck up on the design wall

I don't plan to sew the 10" blocks together until I get a lot further along.  That should mean the various fabrics are spread out over the quilt top.  This quilt thrills me and is fun to work on.  Mostly as a Leader/Ender project, just making HSTs as I work on other piecing.  Then I do a block once a week or so, no rush on this one.

Let's Quilt!

Barbara

THREAD--It Matters

While making the Southern Star quilt I wrote about here and here, I used black Mettler 100% cotton 50/3 thread.   For the last several years I have pieced exclusively with Superior's Masterpiece 100% cotton 50/3 or Aurifil's MAKO NE 50/2 thread.   I also have a supply of inexpensive cotton thread sold on large spools:

Here is what I learned from the experiment I didn't know I was doing:

1. Thread size matters--the Mettler thread is thicker than the Masterpiece or Aurifil

2. With thicker thread I needed to make my seam allowances smaller, just a bit

3. Masterpiece and Aurifil create less lint in the bobbin area

4. Masterpiece and Aurifil put much more thread on the bobbin, less refilling of bobbins

5. The accuracy of your piecing is determined by the size of your units--not the size of the seam allowance--no one sees your seam allowance.  When using different thread, check each seam as you create the units--you will find out quickly if the seam allowances need to be adjusted.

6.  It is possible to use different machines on the same project.  I sewed at the Retreat on my Ruby Red Singer Featherweight and at home on my Bernina 630.  Just check your seam allowances between machines to be sure they are the same.

7. While this top was not paper pieced, I know from prior experience that I want to use ONLY the finer thread, Masterpiece or Aurifil, when paper piecing.  The added thickness of heavier thread really distorts the finished product when sewing on paper as well as two layers of fabric. And use a small stitch, 1.5 or so, when paper piecing.

8.  And a big tip I did not follow this time but will in the future:  when sewing primarily Black fabrics, use Navy Blue Thread.  When sewing Navy Blue fabrics, use Black thread.  When you have to "unsew" and we all do some time on each project, right?, it is oh, so much easier to see the navy thread on black.

9.  When sewing very light to very dark fabrics, use the darker thread color, or close, like navy on black, not the lighter fabric color.  If you must sew using a light thread on a dark fabric, make your stitch length shorter than normal--you don't want to see the stitches in the seam allowance from the front of the quilt.  This was a Judge's tip I learned when assisting a judge.

10.  I'll use the inexpensive thread for basting, maybe machine quilting charity quilts, or other uses where precision is not important, like string piecing.  And I will have to clean out the bobbin area at least with EVERY bobbin change, it is very linty!

All in all, like with most things, you get what you pay for.  As good thread is now about $13 a spool you don't want to waste it.  Use a "thread kitty", a "starty/stoppy" or a "leader/ender" project to save thread.  I wrote a bit about that here.  More on that another day.

NOTE:  because I use Masterpiece primarily, I buy it on large 2,500 yard cones:  that's more than 4 times the 600 yard spools.  Most quilt shops would be delighted to order cones for you, just ask.  If you don't support your local shop, don't be surprised when it's gone--just ask any quilter who doesn't have a shop within a two hour drive, but who used to.  They are sad.

Let's Quilt!

Barbara

Smitten by Westering Women, Circa 2016--Splendid!

I've kept the pedal to the metal most of the week to get Smitten together:

I added a 1" black solid border and then a 4" black printed floral border.  The first border really helps--the outside edges of the top and bottom contain a lot of bias pieces--using that narrow border and cutting them to fit precisely, brings the quilt into square.  The bold floral print made the quilt the size I wanted and it really seems to work well with all those bright fabrics.  The quilt top is 58" x 73" and I'll quilt it later this spring.  This will be an upcoming class, either summer or fall.

There was a Quilt-Along in 2015 for this quilt--I didn't follow along but you can find that here.

This week Block #2 of Westering Women was posted this week so I got that 12" block done:

Remember Circa 2016? And how I thought I was done?  Fortunately for me, this week there was only one small 3" finished block to make.  Here it is with the Center Medallion portion:

This was easy to keep up with.  Eventually, there will be more blocks to do, I'm sure.

The Splendid Sampler is going strong--a new 6" block each Thursday and Sunday.  There are more than 20,000 people who have signed up worldwide to receive the blocks by email.  The Facebook group has 16, 500 members currently. There are 84 designers providing the blocks.  Lots for people to learn by going to the designers' websites and blogs for tips. Wish I had done a little more research on the fourth block--I used freezer paper for the stabilizer and it was challenging to remove:

Rather than just create and store the 100 blocks over the 50 weeks of this project I decided to sew them together as they are made:

This is a good plan as long as you know for sure how you want to set the blocks.  There will be setting suggestions throughout the year so if you're not sure, just wait.  I know this is what I want, 10  rows of 10 blocks each with 1" finished sashing from dark turquoise.  So the quilt will grow each week until it's done.

I also had a student here all day Wednesday for private lessons.  She had to miss two of my classes earlier this month due to a family emergency so I had her come here and taught her the Leaders/Enders class and Kisses and Hugs--we had fun and went out for a good lunch too:

Kisses and Hugs (Japanese X and +)

Leader/Ender Ideas

I do practice what I preach, usually, and while piecing Smitten, I joined 8 more rows to my tumbler Leader/Ender quilt, brought to you by Bonnie Hunter. 

This probably won't be done by July, when Bonnie reveals the next Leader/Ender challenge--I plan to add 18 more rows to the 27 shown here.  That may not sound like much but it's 1098 more tumblers--still have lots more to cut.  It's easy and I cut them as I'm cleaning up from whatever project I'm doing or just from scraps.  This has all kinds of fabrics in it, batiks, repros, brights, muddy, everything.

My grand-girl Stella is on her way, arriving with her folks shortly.  She'll be 9 months old next week and she is really crawling a lot now.  We'll be chasing her soon.  There will be photos next week!

Let's Quilt!

Barbara