You Really Don't Need a Free Day To Sew
Why small sewing sessions often achieve more than waiting for the perfect moment.
Last week, we kicked off the One Match One Make challenge in line with the World Cup tournament currently taking place in Mexico and the USA.
The idea was simple: use the length of a football match,or any small pocket of time,as an opportunity to make progress on a sewing project. Since then, I’ve found myself thinking about a question many of us ask:
“Is 90 minutes really enough time to sew?”
For a long time, I would have said no. I’d tell myself I needed an entire afternoon. A free Saturday. A quiet house. Plenty of uninterrupted time.
In reality, those perfect sewing days don’t come around nearly as often as we’d like. And when we believe that sewing requires hours and hours, it’s easy to do nothing at all.
But here’s what I’ve discovered:
90 minutes is often enough.
Not always enough to finish a project. But almost always enough to move one forward.
The Problem With Waiting for More Time
Many unfinished projects aren’t waiting for skill. They’re waiting for momentum. We put things aside because we’re busy, then a week passes, then a month, and suddenly the project feels much bigger than it really is, and the spark of the original idea is gone, along with the desire.
The irony is that many of these projects could have been moved forward significantly with a handful of short sewing sessions.
Not because we rushed. But because we showed up.
What Can You Do in 15 Minutes?
In reality, we can start even smaller. Fifteen minutes isn’t long at all.
But it’s enough to:
Wind fresh bobbins
Cut interfacing
Trace pattern pieces
Press fabric
Organise project components
Choose fabric for your next make
Sew a few seams
Attach labels to finished projects
These tasks might not seem exciting, but the key here is that they remove friction from future sewing sessions. Think of them as laying the groundwork.
What Can You Do in 45 Minutes?
Now we’re getting somewhere.
In 45 minutes you might:
Cut out a simple project
Assemble a pouch
Make bunting
Create a key loop or lanyard
Sew a fabric basket
Construct a project component such as a pocket, strap or lining
Even if you don’t finish, you’ve created visible progress. And visible progress is so, so motivating.
What Can You Do in 90 Minutes?
More than most people think.
In 90 minutes you could:
Complete a padded headband
Sew a simple accessory
Finish a nearly-complete project
Cut and prepare a larger project
Make substantial progress on a tote bag or handbag
Tackle several stages of a project that’s been waiting for attention
But perhaps more importantly, you can build a habit.
One 90-minute session rarely changes everything.
Ten 90-minute sessions can transform an unfinished project pile into an array of amazing handmade pieces, not to mention an incredible sense of achievement.
Progress Counts
One of the things I hope this challenge encourages is a shift in how we measure success, and I must hold my hand up here and admit that I am totally in need of this mindset change.
Success isn’t always a finished project.
Sometimes success is:
Cutting the fabric
Solving a problem
Sewing one difficult seam
Returning to a project you thought you’d abandoned
Every finished project is made up of dozens of small steps. The finish line only appears because those small steps happened.
This Week’s Challenge
Instead of asking yourself:
“Can I finish this?”
Try asking:
“OK, I have 90 minutes; what can I get done?”
You might be surprised by the answer. And if you’re not sure where to start, I’ve put together something to help.
This week’s free Sew Smarter resource (free to all subscribers) is a set of Sewing Sprint Cards.
Simply print, cut and shuffle your cards. Pick one at random and let it decide your next sewing task. Procrastination be gone!
Some take 15 minutes.
Some take longer.
All are designed to help you make progress.
Because sometimes the hardest part isn’t sewing. It’s deciding what to do next.
What have you managed to accomplish since joining the One Match One Make challenge so far?
I’d love to hear about your progress, big or small, and next week, I will share mine.
Happy sewing!