Effective organization is the key to managing and completing your quilt projects. Here are some strategies to consider:

Prioritize and Plan:  Evaluate your unfinished projects and prioritize them based on your interest, timeline, or upcoming occasion. Are there any upcoming gifts that you need to prepare for, and can you prioritize one of your unfinished projects accordingly?  When creating a project plan, outline the steps necessary to finish each quilt along with any additional materials you might need to purchase to finish the project.  Remember, if you have them on our unfinished project challenge, you will save 15% off the supplies purchased through our shop. Don’t forget to set realistic deadlines.

Dedicated Space:  If you are like me, you might need to set time aside to clean and organize your space to allow you to work on multiple unfinished projects at once.  I’m working on the Little Llama Pattern by Elizabeth Hartman.  I love her patterns and designs!  I’ve only tackled one Hazel Hedgehog as a gift and have always wanted to make a quilt for myself.  When she came out with the Little Llama’s pattern, I was obsessed with them and needed to make one for myself.  If you have ever made any of her patterns before, there are a lot of tiny pieces that go into making her animals. I have finally gotten through 5 out of the 16 for a lap quilt.  I was tired of sewing on leaders and enders, so I had the bright idea to start another project which is the Goldie Quilt Pattern by Then Came June. To do this I needed to stop and take time to clean the sewing room up and organize and create a dedicated space.

Designate a specific area in your sewing room or home where you can store and work on your projects. Having a dedicated space helps you stay focused and minimizes the chances of misplacing materials or losing motivation. I'm lucky enough to have a separate space for my sewing room but, I'm not always that good at keeping it clean especially when I have so many projects started at once.  Sarah too has a separate space but she also uses this as her home office so I'm sure it means time to organize.



Sarah was cleaning out her sewing room to make it more useful and organized for all of the many projects she has going at one time. I wonder how many unfinished projects she has going.
 

Supplies and Tools:  Organize your supplies and tools in labeled bins, drawers, or shelves. Keep your fabrics, threads, patterns, and notions neatly sorted to easily access what you need. You will see here I have a mix of plastic bins, Tula Pink project bags, and upcycling tins. Also, one of the best keep secrets is a wreath plastic storage container for all of your La Passacaglia rosettes.  Myra shared that little find with me and it's been wonderful to keep that multi-year project all neat and organized.

Tracking Progress:  Maintain a visual tracker, such as a printable project tracker from Patchwork & Poodles, or create a digital spreadsheet, to monitor your progress and celebrate each milestone reached. It's a great motivator and a reminder of the projects awaiting completion.  Things you'll want to keep in mind when tracking your unfinished projects are as follows:

• Has your fabric been chosen?
• Is it all cutout?
• Pieced?
• Do you have your backing and batting?
• Do you have a quilt design in mind? Are you quilting it or sending it off to your favorite long quilter or are you quilting it yourself?

Welcome to our first special series. We hope you find this content helpful and inspiring as we take you through our journey. We hope to post a variety of motivational content to entice you to complete your UFOs. 

How many projects do you have going at once?  I have at least 16 and counting.  Do you ever start something new to learn a technique or take a class with a Quilting Star and place it aside to complete later?  What do you do with so many unfinished projects?  Our series will help YOU!   We will suggest ideas for what to do to organize these projects.  Welcome to the newest challenge from Amelia’s Garden.  The "Unfinished Project " challenge welcomes you from near and far.

Do you find yourself surrounded by stacks of fabric, half-sewn quilt blocks, and a growing list of unfinished quilt projects?  However, let's turn those unfinished projects into opportunities for creativity and growth.  We'll discuss the prevalence of unfinished quilt projects, explore effective organization strategies, and introduce an exciting challenge where you can win prizes and receive a 15% discount from Amelia’s Garden when you finish one of your six projects submitted to us. Let’s help you complete your tasks with a 15% discount on finishing items for your projects. All you need to do is fill out an online form to register for the challenge. Just fill out the necessary details, including your name, email address, and a brief description of your unfinished project.

 
The Unfinished Quilt Conundrum

Unfinished quilt projects are like hidden treasures waiting to be unearthed. Sometimes life's demands, lack of inspiration, or the allure of new patterns can derail our progress. As quilters, we pour our hearts into each project, so it's disheartening to see them sitting around untouched. However, instead of feeling overwhelmed, let's view these projects as opportunities to reignite our passion and elevate our skills. 

For example, I have a sewing friend, Sarah.  We started sewing together during Covid.  We wanted a block that not only challenged us in our quilting skills but one that we both really loved.  We started sewing the pillow from the "New York Beauties & Flying Geese" book by Carl Hentsch more than two years ago (during the dark days of isolation) over Facetime.  We both just loved this book. We both also have a huge stash of Tula Pink fabrics that we were excited to cut into. This also allowed us to use some scraps from other Tula Pink projects we have worked on.

We have various current and vintage collections of Tula Pink fabrics with more pre-orders of her next fabric line Besties coming soon.  

We have just picked this project back up hopefully working to completion.

We ORGANIZED the project and discussed where and how to move forward.

You will notice here an eye spy mistake.  Sarah and I chatted about this – what to do… do we fix it or do we move on?  What would you do with a project that is over 2 years old?

The decision was to just leave it.  Look at it as a design choice.


Join Our Unfinished Project Challenge

To encourage everyone to tackle their unfinished quilt projects, we are thrilled to announce our Unfinished Project Challenge! By participating, you not only get the chance to win exciting prizes but also save 15% on finishing items for your projects. Here's how you can take part:

Sign Up:  By filling out our online form to register for the Unfinished Project challenge. Make sure to include the necessary details, including your name, email address, and a brief description of the five unfinished projects you would like to include on our list.

For each of the 5 projects you’ve registered through the shop, you will receive a 15% discount on any items you need to finish the registered project. This challenge ends on December 30th. 

Work and Share: Dedicate time to work on your project regularly. Share your progress with the community through social media posts using our designated hashtag. Each month you tag our hashtag will be an entry into our monthly prize.  Tag a friend along with your post to follow at Amelia’s Garden on both Facebook and Instagram and receive a bonus entry. Engage with fellow participants, inspire one another, and exchange helpful tips and ideas. 

Submit and Win:  Once your project is completed, submit a photo or video of your finished quilt by either bringing it in for show and sharing, emailing it to sewameliasgarden@yahoo.com, or posting and tagging it on our social media sites. Once completed we will enter you in the grand prize drawing which will take place the first of the year.  

 

It's time to embrace your unfinished quilt projects and turn them into opportunities for growth and achievement. By organizing your projects and participating in our Unfinished Project Challenge, you can rekindle your passion for quilting, connect with fellow enthusiasts, and complete your projects with style. Don't let your unfinished quilts gather dust; let them shine as testaments to your creativity and dedication. Join us today and let's tackle our unfinished projects together!