Get Yourself Unstuck with a Project…
Do you ever find yourself so excited to start a new project but then very quickly run out of steam? Believe me, youโre not alone. Itโs a tale I hear often from my students and in fact this summer itโs happened to me too.
But how do you get yourself unstuck when this happens?
Here Iโll take you through a few steps to get you going again.
Donโt beat yourself up about it
Life is full of ebbs & flows. Somethings our motivation wanes and thatโs OK. Accepting that will make it much easier to pick it up again when youโre ready.
Be realistic about what you can achieve in a timeframe
Want a new dress for your holiday but got heaps of stuff you also need to do before you depart? Is that dress going to get finished? No, probably not! I am sooo guilty of expecting time to stretch to fit in everything I need to do. But sadly it doesnโt.
Starting a project with a super tight (self-imposed) deadline rarely ends well. Be realistic and give yourself more time than you think youโre going to need. Weโre not on the Sewing Bee here. You do not need to speed sew. Itโs actually more fun if you take your time.
Read about when I set myself a Sewing Bee challenge.
Enrol some help to get yourself unstuck
Why are you stuck? Is it because thereโs an element or technique you find daunting? Or is there something new that youโve never tried before? Get some sewing friends, so you can sew together to support each other. Or book a lesson with a pro!
Keep track of where you are
If you know you are prone to abandoning a project part way through, then keep track of where youโve got to, to make it easier to pick up again. Tick off the instructions as you go.
Take notes on any machine settings you use, or special stitches.
Keep all the stuff you need for your project in one bag or box. That way when you do come back to it, youโll know where everything is to get going again.
Only do one project at a time
Avoid shiny new object syndrome by only focussing on one project at a time. The satisfaction you get from actually completing a project is so fulfilling.
It is easy to get tempted but if you make a commitment to yourself, you won’t end up with lots of unfinished projects.
Get everything ready before you start
The reason I stalled my jeans making project this summer was because I ran out of topstitching thread. It took a while to get the correct colour delivered as lots of places were out of stock.
If Iโd have bought enough before I started then I wouldnโt have been forced to stop and would have kept momentum.
Also getting everything cut out, any markings transferred to fabric and interfacing applied before you actually start sewing will mean you donโt interrupt your flow.
Try to break it down into small chunks
If youโre stuck because your overwhelmed by what youโve got left to do. Then break kit down into smaller chunks. Do one step at a time. That way, youโll be surprised by how quickly you make progress.
Have you got any tips that help you get yourself unstuck? Please share in the comments.
Love & Stitches
Alison xx
