8 Tips To Be More Productive When Crafting
Don’t feel you have time to stitch or craft? Despite running a craft blog that is exactly how I feel sometimes! There always seems to be something more urgent you need to do or others want you to do. We all have 24
Crafting and stitching is the perfect antidote to rushing around and slowing down a little. Crafting is good for your soul. With a little bit of organisation, and setting aside time you’ll be on your way in no time.
Even 15 minutes before you pick up the kids from school or you head out to go to your yoga class is enough time to do a few stitches.
Here are some tips that I find helpful to carve out some time to stitch and craft.
Tip #1 – Organise Your Materials
The good thing about small crafts like embroidery is that you do not need much space. The most important thing here is that you have your craft supplies organised. Once you have organised your supplies, you don’t have to dig around and look for everything you need and you are ready to go.
If you have lots of projects on the go use a plastic box with lit. You can see what is inside and stack the boxes. Plus if you craft in a shared area like in the kitchen it is easy to put a lit on to keep your work protected from any spillage and tiny hands.
If you are out and about a lot, I’d invest in a project bag. There are lots of great bags on Etsy.com. I’ll do a round up of some great bags in an upcoming post. But a simple shopping bag will do as well. I like to use a bag that has a square bottom, as it is easier to find your bits and pieces.
When I go out and take my embroidery project with me, I also have a small bag for all my craft tools, including scissors, markers, needles
Tip #2 – Plan Crafting Time Into Your Schedule
Plan craft activities into your day or week. AND don’t feel guilty to spend time crafting. Everyone needs some downtime!
The important thing is to get into a routine. It is so easy to get site tracked. It can be tough to get started but once you have established a routine it will get easier.
Tip #3 – Plan Your Project
As with many things in life some tasks can seem overwhelming as you look at it in its entirety. But when you break things down into smaller activities they become more manageable. For a typical embroidery project, this could be to get your materials ready, mark your design, hoop up your work and stitch one area at a time.
Tip #4 Be present
Switch off distractions, especially social media and your mobile! This is time to be creative and to relax!
Tip #5 – Keep Notes
I keep notes when embroidering. I write down what went well and what did not. Often I jot down a little drawing and annotate the drawing with any changes or ideas for future projects. If something did not work, I note down what I did instead. Apart from helping with future projects, it is a great way of documenting your embroidery or crafting journey and a great memento to look back at.
Tip #6 – Dedicated Space Or Time
If you are doing a sewing project the ideal would be to have a dedicated space, as it is much easier to get on with a project when the machine is out. But I understand this is not always possible. If you don’t have a dedicated space I’d suggest to set aside at least 1.5 hours – 2 hours. Otherwise, there is not really enough time to get into the flow and it can get frustrating.
Tip #7 – Concentrate On One Project At A Time
I have so many projects in my head and am often tempted to start on something new before I finish something else. However, I find this so counterproductive as in the end I don’t complete anything. I have learned to be disciplined with my self and never work on more than 1 or 2 project maximum at anyone time.
Unless you really hate doing a project aim to finish it! Otherwise you end up with 10 unfinished projects in your project box! Not only is this a waste but guilt is creeping in as well. The next project will still be there tomorrow.
A notebook comes in handy here as well, as you can note down possible ideas and pick the idea up again when you are looking for a new project to do.
Tip #8
Simply get on with it and start crafting.
With a little bit of
I’d love to hear from you if you have a comment or you have found some other ways to find time to craft. Please leave a comment below.
Happy Stitching!
You might find the following posts helpful to get you started with your embroidery journey.
