When I was a kid, I worked at the western clothing store with my grandfather & cousins. We always had to “take inventory” once a year. This meant, every single item in the store needed to be counted. Papa would sit in his chair with a yellow legal pad & bark orders at us.
He’d yell, “Sierra, go count the size large men’s shirts! Jensyn, go count the rubber boots!”
It was not a fun job, but it had to be done. After a few minutes, I would holler back at him, “Papa, I counted 57 large shirts.”
I take it back, it was the best job ever! We ran wild around the store — counting & yelling. Plus, Papa let us drink all the soda we wanted!
At the end of a long day of counting, Papa knew exactly what he had. It was refreshing.
I decided the same process applies to my sewing room. Today, I’m taking inventory of unfinished, ongoing projects. It is forcing me to try to think about what needs to happen next, where I’m at, and if I need any more supplies. It’s also forcing me to pull these projects out of all the random shelves & nooks they’ve gotten lost in!
Quilts
- Farm Animal Quilt: Do I want to have this machine quilted or quilt it myself? I think I’ll send it out to be quilted. Whew, decision made! Now, need to get it ready to mail.
2. Sally, Dick & Jane quilt: Do I want to send it out? Or, try to quilt it myself: I think I will send it out, too. Might as well ship two!
3. These binding strips are for the quilt that I currently have at the quilt shop. I could sew them together & iron them to get them ready. Then, I’ll be ready when the quilt is done. I love lines on fabric for binding. 
4. This hexagon quilt is SO CLOSE!! I finished all the hand quilting after a TV marathon evening. I just need to finish the binding. I started this on the first night of Harvest 2013.
I want to buy some rick rack & sew that into the binding via my machine. I’ve never done this before, should be interesting. I watched a new tutorial on Missouri Star’s YouTube channel. 
5. I’m just getting this little quilt started. I’m using this quilt-as-you go log cabin tutorial & these fabric from the Wickerweave collection by Renee for Andover Fabrics. 
6. Triangle quilt: I’ve got about 60 of these blocks so far. I need about 60 more *I think* to make a queen size quilt for our bedroom. The blocks are from scraps, so I’m moving slowly on purpose. However, I could cut out some of the muslin squares and rectangles. I could also sort through recent scraps to see if I have any in the correct size. 
7. Block of The Month Quilt: My fabrics just came in the mail! I need to cut out my fabrics & make the January, February AND March blocks. I’m already behind! EEEKK!
One exciting thing, is that the purple is for the 2014 Color of the Year: Orchid! I can’t wait 🙂 One of my long-term goals is to make a Color of the Year quilt every year! Won’t that be neat in 20 or 30 years? We can be like? Yuck, remember that Emerald from back in 2013? Or, that purple from 2014? However, for now, I LOVE both of these trendy colors! 
8. My Grandma gave me these vintage blocks. She picked them up at an auction or garage sale, but wasn’t sure what to do with them. I’m not sure either. I should take them to the next quilt guild meeting to see if they have any ideas. I’ve never seen anything this shape, so I’m a bit stumped. Any ideas? 
Hand Sewing Projects
9. Errrrr… I have no idea what to do with this little guy. I could: A) Glue it onto a card & mail it to a friend. B) Frame it on pretty paper with a quote. Supplies needed: 5×7 frame & paper
10. Same story here. I did this back in 2010….maybe I could take it with me on my next trip to Hobby Lobby & find a frame in about the right size. I suppose, I could also try quilting it into a small baby quilt. I could sew pieces & random blocks around it. Hummm….
11. Need to cut out the stems & leaves on this fall table mat. I also need to brush up on my stitches, I can’t remember how to start the stitch I need to use.
Then, I’ll be ready for the next long car drive to Missouri! I could also work on it during these last few long winter nights of relaxing & watching TV. Summer will be here soon & there will be no time for that! 
Small Sewing Projects
12. Random Blocks.The first is to frame them in a clean, modern looking frame. But, I’m not sure how to do that. Need to check Pinterest. The other idea would be to make them into potholders. I made them from scrap triangles. Used one to practice machine quilting. 
13. Okay, here I’m totally stumped. What do I do to finish this? Can I machine appliqué around the edges of this flower. I made it while experimenting with fusible web.
That stuff is really tricky for me! I have the batting & backing already cut out just need to come up with a plan for making the flower look “finished?” Any ideas? Tutorials? 
14. Uggggg. I’m dreading this project. Which probably means I should do it first! Get it out of the way. Last winter, I cut out 8 sets of fabric to make small quilted zipper pouches. They were supposed to be for our wedding party – but as you can tell – that DIDN’T HAPPEN! I hate installing the zippers! But, I have every ready…so I really should finish them. 
Inventory
Even though I have 14 stinking unfinished projects, sometimes I honestly look at my sewing room & think: I have nothing to sew. What new project can I start?
NOT ANYMORE! I’ve got quite a list of things to work on now 🙂
Mail Two QuiltsSew & Iron Brown BindingMachine Quilt binding on hexagon quilt.- Cut muslin squares and triangles. Make sure I have enough muslin.
- Cut blocks for scrap quilt.
Cut & sew January & February BOMs.- Keep working on quilt-as-you-go quilt.
- Find a frame, paper & quote for birdie.
- Take larger bird to Hobby Lobby to find frame OR sew into quilt.
Check Pinterest for framing ideas for green & yellow blocks.- Check Pinterest & blogs for tutorials on machine appliqué flower block.
Take vintage blocks to guild meeting.Cut out leaves for fall table mat.- Sew the darn 8 bags! 🙁
Your flower project is the perfect subject for machine applique. It is fun to use some of the decorative stitches on your sewing machine to stitch over the edge of the applique or use plain old zig-zag or blanket stitch to cover the edges. I usually do a test run to make sure I like the stitch, the stitch length, and the color of thread. I really like applique and have done several projects–so far three quilts that feature applique.
You have an impressive list of projects.
Laurel
Thanks for the suggestion on the flower! I will look into doing some machine appliqué – I’ve never done any! Honestly, I hate having this many projects going on at one time! I’m trying to narrow it down 🙂
I love the idea of using orphan blocks as pot holders. You can never have too many. When you have a potluck at your house, people can set hot dishes on them and ooh and aah at your resourcefulness. 🙂 My Mom makes these a lot. My Granny would do it too. I received hot pads from both of them as hostess gifts. Love them!