Are you procrastinating already? Shouldn’t you be sewing something? Well, as you have landed here you may as well finish reading this article and perhaps by the end of it I would convince you to finish that project that you left half way through. I may not be able to teach you how to sew faster, oh wait, maybe I can, but that’s a different article for another time. On this post, I am going to give you some tips to improve your sewing productivity.
Can you really improve your sewing productivity?
Of course you can, there is thousands of seamstress that have to create many new garments daily. How come you cannot finish just that one piece in 5 months? Leaving aside practice and experience, there are many reasons why you may not be able to be as productive as you want. These are just some ways in which you can be more productive. If you ask me, I can give you one single word that summarizes it all: focus.
1. Find a cozy spot
First things first, find youself a nice spot and keep it. Ideally you want to have your own sewing space. If you have a spare room, you can use it as your basecamp, I recently refurbished my sewing room. Now, I know many people won’t have the luxury of a permanent sewing spot. That’s not a problem. Just make sure your machine and utensils are readily available and easy to set up whenever you need them, let’s say in a cupboard by the table so you can easily access them whenever you are ready to start.
2. Start with a clean slate
Keep it clean and keep it tidy. Personally, I have a little ritual before I focus and start sewing. First of all, I make sure everthing is in the right place. I tidy up the room and I clean and return any tools to their original places (if I didn’t during the last session). This actually puts me in a good mood. Because being comfortable is very important
Tidying your room is a great practice and it will actually help you during your sewing sessions. No more looking for the scissors under a pile of scrap fabric or . Just get ready to start sewing.
3. No interruptions allowed
Sewing time is me time and I want absolutely no interruptions. The one thing that distracts me the most is my phone or my computer. Getting all those annoying notifications while you are sewing is very distracting. Turn off your devices. Don’t worry, you do not need them. If the house is on fire you will know. Furthermore, make sure you make it very clear that you are busy and you are not expecting any visits. A keep out sign on the door is tempting, but if you are struggling, try to sew when you know you won’t be interrupted, perhaps after you have put the kids to bed (or fed the cats). And make sure you have everything else done in advance. Dinner is sorted, washing up done and all your homework finished before hand. Nothing worse than having that one thing to do stuck in your mind.
4. Set yourself a goal
I know that mostly you want to sew just for fun, me too! Deadlines can make you feel nervous or anxious, we don’t want that. However, having a goal will also make you have a purpose. And that purpose may motivate you to keep going. For example, you may want to finish your new dress for your sister’s party, or maybe you are going to a convention and you need to dress up. Is Halloween around the corner? If you don’t really have a goal (let’s face it, last year hasn’t been known for the abundance of parties) make up one. Let’s say, I would like to have a new dress by the end of the month. If you don’t get it done on time, it is not the end of the world, but knowing that you have a purpose may give you that little push that you need,
5. Materials assemble
There is nothing that annoys me more than starting a project and notice that I have forgotten to buy matching thread, the lining or any other silly thing. Not only is this annoying, but it is going to make you waste time. You will have to leave your sewing garment half way through just to go and buy that one piece you are missing (or wait for the delivery truck), just to realise a day later that you have forgotten something else! I like making a full list of materials on my Cosplay Planner just before I start and I won’t start a project until I have gathered all the necessary materials. No interruptions when you are in the mood.
6. Focus on a piece at a time
When I am sewing a new project, I find very useful focusing on one piece at a time. You dob’t need to finish the whole thing in one go. For example, you could focus on just cutting all the pieces one day, sewing the lining another day and finishing the garment the third day. Getting bored of the same project? No worries, choose something else for today, maybe finish hemming a skirt you left halfway through, or start gathering materials for your next dress. Just remember to go back to your initial project without leaving it unfinished for too long. Otherwise, it will become a UFO (UnFinishedObject) and we really don’t like those cluttering your space.
7. Boost your motivation
The time I am most productive is when I am motivated. You know I make cosplays , so watching a series or playing a game with the characters I want to recreate always makes me want to sew even more. Watching sewing programs like “The Sewing Bee” also gives me a good boost of energy and ideas. What’s most important about motivation is using it wisely. If I have just seen something I really want to make, I don’t stop myself and do something else I don’t want to be doing. Instead, I go straight to the project I really want to do at that exact moment. I find I get much more done if I am really motivated.
8. Switch before you get burnt out
Some projects take just too long. Sometimes it is as if they were cursed! If you feel like you can’t continue with something you are doing, just take a break. If your mindset is not the right one you will start commiting mistakes and that’s the last thing you want.Taking a short break from those projects is not a bad idea. Maybe you can take a day off and watch telly, it is absolutely fine. Just again, don’t let them wait for too long or you will completely lose interest.
9. Don’t overthink it
Personally I am very insecure. Sometimes I spend more time thinking or researching how to sew something than actually giving it a go. I have actually written a million sewing tutorials myself. Truth is, it is not going to work if you don’t even try it! There is always time to fix mistakes or start a new project if the first one didn’t work. Just keep sewing.
10. Let it go…
This is perhaps the most difficult advice to take. There are times in which simply you are not prepared to finish a project. That is absolutely fine. You can instead… let it go. You don’t need to finish something if you are not really enjoying it. Sometimes it was just not meant to be. Don’t be afraid to say I can’t do this (right now) or simply I don’t want to do this anymore. Maybe you lost interest or maybe you just don’t have the abiliy or resources yet. Take the project out of your list, pause it or get rid of it all together. Start with something new that really excites you right now. The time you spent on that project will never be wasted as you keep with you the experience and joy it gave you when you were sewing it.
Just remember, you don’t owe anything to anyone. It does not matter if you are productive or not. You are doing this for yourself. Enjoy the process and have fun with it! And you will see how you will improve with time without noticing it.
Do you like my posts? Remember you can support my blog in many ways, using my affiliate links, buying me a Ko-fi, or visiting my Cosplay Store! Following me on my Social Media and sharing my posts helps too! With your help I can create more cosplays, articles and tutorials to share with you!
