Making the Old New Again

I read an article on Etsy this morning called “Make Something Every Day.”  You should read it.  Go ahead.  I’m still typing anyway.  (ha ha.  a bit of blogging humor.  A very little bit.)

Anyway, the article, which features Noah Scalin’s book 365:  A Daily Creativity Journal, got me thinking.

At first I thought “Drat, I can’t particpate!  I’m already a week behind!”

Then I thought “What’s a week?  Okay…then what could I do…day by day…I HAVE NO IDEA!  I LACK CREATIVITY!  MY SPARK IS OUT!”

And then I tilted my head and looked at this from a different angle.

I’m already hoping to do a year of Cookie Cutter Cookies…that’s a weekly project, which is fine – cookies every day would be a perfect example of too much of a good thing being a bad thing.

So that’s a creative thing, a creative food thing, which is fine. 

I also want to get back to making cheese, and do more canning.

Again, all food things.

So what else do I do that’s creative?

Well, I sew.  I used to do a lot of it, and I’ve recently started up again.  I used to quilt. 

Hmmm…

I could start a quilt!  And depending on the dimensions, and the size of the pieces that make up the quilt, I could do a portion of it a day…or weekly.

But…wait, Jayne.

Don’t you already have at least one quilt in the works?

Oh.

Yeah, you know, you’re right.

I do.

I started making a double wedding ring quilt back either before or after Bill and I got married.

Heh, heh.

It’s not finished.

We’re going on 10 1/2 years of marriage now.  Might be swell if I could finish the quilt before we hit 20.

So that got me started.

I went poking through various bins and totes, just looking at all sorts of unfinished projects – many are older then the double wedding ring quilt, actually.

And I’ve also got a few quilts in need of repair…one that my grandmother made me when I was a kid…a few from Bill’s side of the family.

I have other quilts that I apparently started, too.  One looks like a fan pattern…another – I have no idea what it is, but it’s got pinks and dusty rose and that makes me think it might have some floral sort of theme.

There are Christmas stockings (yes, Christmas stockings) in white satin that have trapunto snowflakes stitched in them…somewhere around here I also have a few pretty cool 12” x 12” blocks for a quilt I was going to make for a friend of mine.  And there are partially made quilts that I think my grandmother had started…and a few toys that the kids have asked me to fix and I haven’t.

Yet.

So I thought, instead of worrying about making something new every day, why don’t I make this the year to go through ALLLLLLL of that unfinished or in-need-of-repair projects and FINISH them?

So there’s my challenge, I think.

To finish what I’ve started.  To fix what I have.

To get all of these projects out of the dark of bins and boxes and into the light of living rooms and bedrooms.

And of course, I’ll take pictures as I go, just so you can see some of these things.

Just don’t be surprised if, in conjunction with all this finishing and fixing, I squeeze in a new sewing project here and there.  But small projects that can be finished before the end of the year.  No more 10-years-to-make-a-quilt.

Or at least that’s the plan.

So…where to begin?

Comments

[Lulu]

Cool idea. I'm sitting here staring at two seven year old bald and naked Raggedy Ann Dolls. You are inspring me. :) Thanks!

[judith]

I was about to say the Skull project was inspirational, but not nearly as much as yours. I'm going to finish my started projects. I won't start anything new until I finish what I have in the making (except that white Aran sweater, it's been on the design table for about 3 years, doesn't that count as unfinished?)

[darby]

I read that same article the other day, and found inspiration in it as well. I am actually going to blog about the same subject matter today myself...weird I know. Now, you've compounded the inspiration factor for me, since I have unfinished projects in every corner of my house!! Don't feel bad about your unfinished quilt... it took me over ten years to finish a lap size quilt that was far less complicated a design than your double wedding ring!! Thank-you much for your lovely tales of adventure...I really enjoy reading them :) Good-luck with your 365 day project!!