What helps me become better at sewing
Carving out the time to actually sew is one of the biggest obstacles I face to achieving my sewing goals. Some weeks, the days just roll by and I let the excuses pile up. I’m so tired after working all day, I just want to veg out on Facebook and watch TV. How can I get anything done when it’s so dark and late anyway?
I do have a few motivating factors though.
- Exercise
I have more energy if I’m riding my bike constantly, I have to admit that. I recently took a week off work to hang out with my parents while they visited, riding my bike a total of hardly at all kilometers the entire time. By the time I had to get back into my daily 12km commute, I thought something was seriously wrong with body. At nights when I hadn’t moved much during the day, I felt plain awful. I wanted to sit on the couch. I panicked that pregnancy was making it too tough for me to do anything. Then, after having a solid week of biking behind me again, I felt normal. I didn’t want to simply wallow after work; I had energy again and was motivated to sew, and therefore, it helps me get better. - Terrible TV
I seem to have blown through all decent sources of entertainment at the moment. I don’t mean terrible TV like, so-bad-it’s-good, guilty pleasure type shows. I mean, “No, this blows. I have no interest in continuing to watch this.” I used to watch so many Korean dramas (I even briefly held a job as a paid K-drama blogger), but I finished one that was meh, and couldn’t hook myself on a new series. For a few weeks I was so stoked on the Misfits, and then I hit Season 3. One episode in, I was done. Same with Orphan Black and Orange is the New Black, what is it with the third season? And with no motivation to watch TV, I turn to sewing. - Band practice
If my husband is at home, I prefer to be in the same room as him. Usually that means on the couch, watching TV. A few times he has read a book in the bedroom while I’m on the sewing machine in the same room, but I’m self-conscious about bothering him, or keeping him awake once he’s ready to turn in. Luckily, his weekly band practice, or another night or so per week that he might spend out with friends, gives me alone time to sew with no regrets. I know, a wild and crazy life I lead. - Getting prep work out of the way
I usually try to knock out the prep work on a bunch of projects all at once, so for an entire week, every evening I’ll print and assemble patterns. One weekend I’ll cut fabric for a few projects. Then I can start zipping through the sewing portion without dealing with the drudgery of prep work. It’s so great to clip the final threads on a new piece of clothing one night, and know I can just get started on another one the next night. - Finishing projects
There is nothing like the satisfaction of successfully finishing one project to get me excited about diving into another one!
What gets you motivated to sew, or your preferred hobby?