STASH! UFO'S!

Stash! UFO's! Books, Magazines,Patterns! Great Ideas! Translation? I have too much fabric, too many magazines, books, ideas....too, too, much! It is becoming overwhelming. It's no great secret that I've been slacking in the quilting department lately. Why? Could it be my interests are changing? I don't think so. I am feeling totally and completely overwhelmed by my sewing room! I walk in there.... well, first of all it is a mess. So last night I began to clean. This is how it looked when I remembered to take a picture. What I've been looking at when I go into my room, combined with increased interest in other areas has led to this horrific MESS!

So I began to clean. And stew. And get angry at my self. And wonder why I have so much stuff. I love this hobby of mine. I really do. I love creating. I love the feel of the fabric; the possibilities in every book, fat quarter and piece of trim not only in my room but in every quilt shop and fabric store. AHA! Therein lies the problem! I love the possibilites! I love the dream! Sure, I like to actually DO a project or two but the dream! AH, the dream! It's like dreaming of being a size 5 or being tall. It's like thinking what would I do if I won the lottery. It's that magical dream of a beautiful completed project. The thrill of buying the fabric and the possibilities within the new magazine. The problem is, there is always a bigger and better dream around the corner. So, we buy the dream faster then we live the reality! I have patterns that I've been dying to do.....for YEARS and years! The same patterns. I look at them and LONG to get them done. I can't though because I've got this unfinished project or that unfinished project that must be finished before I can start. Then, a new dream enters the picture and off I go again. Sometimes I can live with this and sometimes, like recently, it becomes overwhelming and paralyzing.

To be very specifiic, I HATE borders. I can't move on and finish anything else until I get one border on one quilt. I've been stuck here for months. Then I look around and see sooooo much stuff. It's embarrassing. So much gluttonly. There are people fighting to survive and I have a mini Joanns in my house! It wouldn't be so bad but I'm not using it. It sits. It waits. It collects dust. It becomes a junk room. Sigh, sigh, sigh.

So I am cleaning up the mess. Literally and figuratively. I went to a quilt shop yesterday and what did I buy? Exactly what I went in for. Yeah me! I needed an Ultra Glide foot and that's what I bought. Oh I had fat quarters in my hand. I put them back. I had a bolt. I put it back. I did buy one impulse pattern. I will use it this week. I used to belong to stashbusters but I barely have time to maintain my blog let alone that busy online group.

Sooooooo......what is the answer? How do I stay strong? Here is my tactic.

1. Rejoin Flylady....When I am this out of control all I need to do is look around and see that

other areas are also out of control. I don't actually read much of anything

flylady sends. It's too preachy for me but it reminds me to do

something. I see her emails and it gets me off my duff to clean up

something or maintain something. Her basic premise is all I need.....Get

going and do something. Keep it clean and neat.

2. Try that 15 minutes in the sewing room thing.

3. Talk to Mrs. S. Explain about the whole borders thing and put her anniversary quilt away

for a short time until I can face it. It still needs to be finished within a month or so but this

way I can move on and not feel guilty.

3. Keep the checkbook in the wallet.

Judy L coincidentally has written recently about the same issue. She said to me "I am beginning to see it more as clutter and an obsession rather than "my wonderful stash." She hit it right on the head! Soooo,..... like Judy, I have a new mantra. Mine is Lose to Gain! I'm losing weight to gain physical health. I'm losing fat to gain muscle. I'm losing fabric to gain shelf space. I'm gaining happiness by giving a finished project away. I'm gaining peace of mind by losing (finishing) a project. I'm gaining control by losing the clutter and finishing what I have started. I'm gaining control by not losing my hard earned dollars to sit on the shelf!

I'm off to start. And clean!