- Today we're going to talk about UFOs.
Doesn't matter whether they're in an orange bag,
Ziploc bag or a project box.
They're always lurking at the back of our mind
taking up valuable brain space.
So it's time to get the meta hiding and get them done.
So stick with me and I'll show you how to do it.
(upbeat music)
I'm Karen Brown of Just Get It Done Quilts.
I give you tips, tricks and strategies
to help you make the quilt that you want to make.
My last video about my quilt story
struck a call with so many of you,
I want to thank you so much from the bottom of my heart
for all the empathy and the kind words,
I just felt so snug and well cared for.
Just like, but what also came out in the comments
is that we all have a tonne of UFOs.
They were in our sewing rooms,
the back of her closets, in a garage,
in the basement, and it's time to bring them out
and give them some air.
One current trendy cleanup method
is to take all your projects and put them in a pile
in the middle of your room or on your bed
and just work your way through it.
But personally, I find that takes up a lot of energy.
And most of us will burn out
before we ever get to the making part.
So I feel it's best to take one two or three projects
and deal with them and use your energy to get it done.
Doesn't matter which ones you want to start with.
If you choose easy ones,
you can choose the hard ones grab two or three.
Now I am defining UFO as a project that you have put aside,
you haven't worked on it for over a year
and you have no current plan to get it done.
I do have projects that I've been working on
that I will not finish for three years.
Those are what I consider works in progress
and those are not UFO.
So when you open your project,
you're going to get a very gut reaction.
And it's going to be one of three things.
It is going to be a yes,
it's going to be a no or it's going to be eh,
not sure maybe.
So let's deal with no first.
When you open up a project
and you get a strong negative reaction,
my friends, life is too short
to be spending time on projects
that don't bring you any joy.
Don't worry about how much fabric cost.
Don't worry about how much time you've invested in it.
A fabric or pattern brings up
some really bad so job get rid of it.
You sell it, you donate it, you incinerate it, if you must.
It's just that simple.
Yes projects are projects that you do want to finish,
but somehow life got in the way,
it got put on the back burner,
and it's just time to bring it back on the front.
The first thing you want to do with your UFO
is you want to find the pattern and you want to read it.
You just want to read familiarise yourself,
how it's made and what's going forward.
The second step,
if you want to evaluate how much of the quilt
that you've actually done.
Sometimes it can be quite surprising.
I had to laugh when I pulled this UFO,
I thought I was 50% along.
It turned out I wasn't even 20% along.
But it's good to have something visual
or a checklist so that you know how much is completed.
The other thing you have to look for
is there anything more that you need
to complete your quilt.
Batting, backing and do you have to set a budget for it
and in going through these three steps,
you're going to come to the fourth step,
and that is realising why you stopped in the first place.
And the number one reason that we stopped a UFO
is because we've done something wrong
and it requires us to go backward before we go forwards.
We have to spend a couple of days ripping out
or maybe we're just coming to terms with the mistake
and realise it's not that bad and we can go forward.
It could be that the project was just too darn repetitive.
So going forward, you need to be to pace yourself,
so you don't fall back into that
or you're working with the wrong colour,
and it's sucking the energy out of you.
I do have some strategies for working through quilts
that are not in your colour zone.
And when I make a video out of it,
I'm going to put a connection for it up here.
The next step is to plot a chart.
Now some of you may just jump straight into it
and try to finish it with a burst of momentum.
But personally, I like to set a checklist.
A checklist will help you pace yourself.
So you're not overcome by boredom,
or all the issues when you're working
inside your colour zone.
And the last step
is to set a realistic start date and finish date.
You don't have to start a UFO right now.
Maybe you started when you're finished
the project that you're working on
or you're going to do it when you go to the cottage
or you're going to do it
when you come back from a particular trip.
You also need to set a realistic finish date.
There is no rush.
Steady over fast will get you to the finish line.
So now let's deal with the much trickier, eh,
not quite sure.
There's a number of reasons for UFOs
to be in this pile but truly
the biggest reason is that you're not in love with it.
It could be a beginner mistake in your enthusiasm
for the new craft that you were doing.
You made some bad choices,
wrong fabric or pattern that stretched you too far
or colours that weren't yours
or perhaps you, it's an old workshop project.
You took a workshop at a conference
and there was a fabric purchase list.
But once you finished the workshop
you really didn't feel any momentum to finish.
There are the what was I thinking project?
Where you tried to stretch yourself.
Go outside of your comfort zone
and there's a reason why it was outside your comfort zone
or the two long gone quilts.
You were going to make them for a child or a baby.
Now they're going off to college
or for a couple for their wedding
and now they're getting divorced,
or for a special person who has since passed.
What all these projects have in common
is that you have cut pieces of fabric
and some unfinished blocks.
But they also have in common
is that they require an investment of time
and money to complete.
You probably have bedding to buy, backing to buy, binding,
you may have to pay a long armour
or pay long term rental fees.
And truly do you want to make that investment to finish it?
And if you don't,
perhaps that project, the no pile.
But what happens if you're still?
Maybe so you can take that project,
perhaps there's somebody in your life
that you realise needs a quilt.
Now if you can take that personal space
and put it with the quilt
knowing that they will appreciate it
is that enough motivation to get the quilt done?
If it is then we move it into the yes pile.
What happens if you're still going maybe.
If you took You're finished blocks from your project,
and you just put them in a simplified grid
with a lot of negative space
and then call it done,
Is that enough to motivate you?
Would you finish that kind of quilt?
And if so, then let's move that into the yes pile.
And if you're still going, not sure.
Well, what happens if you took those same blocks,
and instead of making a big quilt,
you just made a baby quilt,
or maybe a table runner or maybe a pillow?
Is that enough to complete the project.
And if that's enough,
then we move it into the yes pile.
And that's exactly
what I'm going to do with this project right here.
I've looked at it,
I've seen I've made some pieces,
and I'm going to turn it all into baby quilt.
I'll be fast done and over.
You could throw a hail Mary to your quilting friends.
You could host a stitching chat or at a retreat,
just send out a request saying please,
can you help me make one or two blocks?
Don't be embarrassed.
That's what quilting friends are for.
And of course, it's understand if they need the help,
you'll give them a hand.
So if you like this idea,
put it in the yes pile.
And what happens if you're still not sure after this one?
Well, there are projects and this is one of them,
where I just don't want to go forward.
But I still like the fabric.
So this is a layer cake.
I didn't like the technique in the workshop,
I managed to make two blocks and put them together wrong.
They had cut them wrong.
So I'm actually going to throw at these two blocks,
and I'm going to put everything else
back in my stash for another project.
So are you still not sure?
Well, truly, you're at the point of no.
You're probably stuck on the fact that you've invested
so much money or so much time in this project
and you can't let it go.
But the truth is,
you've probably spent that money years ago,
that money's gone,
it's not coming back and the item is becoming a ball
and chain is just occupying space
and you never have any intentions of finishing it.
Or you could be stuck on the point of giving up
and what that might say about your character.
We live in a society where we're constantly told
never give up.
But the truth is you can't be held to begin a mistake
that you made years ago.
The important thing
is the lesson you learn from that mistake.
And that is so much more valuable
than the unfinished blocks.
So if you're waiting for someone
to give you permission to stop,
I'm giving it to you now.
Just move it into the no pile.
There are quilters and organisations
that will really appreciate your donation.
So don't worry about the waste.
Now if you go through these steps,
and now you're motivated to make some of your UFOs,
if you would like me to start a UFO challenge,
please put in the comments below.
Please take a moment to check out one of my other videos.
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Take care and I'll see you next time.