Decluttering Challenge 2024 - mid-way through

 I joined Karen Brown (of Just Get it Done Quilts) Decluttering Challenge for the second year. I only managed to get through about 4 days last year before all hell broke lose, so I decided New Year, Fresh Start!

So far, I have done well and just completed Day 12. I have cleared the room of garbage, rehomed items, been unsubcribing my emails like crazy, got my magazines together all in one place (still sorting through them) and culled my thread. Last year, I had dealt with my books and scissors so I was able to skip those days. It has spilled over into the rest of my space, so I have made 5 trips to the recyclers, two to the hospice society donation centre and got rid of two bags of garbage.

I still have to catch up on Notions, UFOs and Kits. The last two may end just being gathered up into one area, so that I can take my time going through them. Some kits were purchased with the idea I will do them when I retire (upcoming), so I don't feel pressured to get rid of them at this time. There are some UFOs that may not make the cut, but until I have them all in one place, I don't want to start culling.

Update: I dealt with my notions and ribbons, and continue to find my UFOS.

I didn't take a picture of my notions before. I found them in 1 cupboard, 1 drawer and 3 small bins. Once I went through them, I was left with this:

I had a ziploc bag of zippers, ric-rac, binding and elastics to donate:

And a bag of ribbons that I may put up for sale, as they are mostly new (still thinking about that):

I purchased two laundry hampers after last year's challenge, and have been using them to gather my scraps and UFOs as I come across them. 

As I find my UFOs, I put them in project bags and place them in the right basket:

I realize now that I need to move the hand-sewing projects to my sitting room, where I cross-stitch and do EPP. I'll do that today.

The scrappy basket was full to overflowing at one point as I was putting everything that didn't fit into my fabric storage, so as I'm going through the pile, I box up my unwanted fabrics and send them to my niece for her and her friends near Edmonton. 

They do charity sewing in addition to their own projects and during COVID they made dozens of scrub bags and hats for nurses, and hundreds of masks. I've continued to send her my overflow as it is good to know it's going to a good cause. 

I do mostly scrappy quilts, so I'm okay with with keeping this basket as long as I keep up processing the scraps into my scrap-user system.  I've also been purging these bins so I'm only left with the scraps I like.

Humm, I see a few more UFOs on here so I'll get to that after posting this.

So now that I have gone through the first 16 days, I have all these bins empty. Since they came from a friend, I'm going to check with her first if she wants them back, if not, onto marketplace they go.

Now, back to my reward project - finish quilting a quilt for my son-in-law. It is so nice to have the sewing desk clear and room to set up my extra table to hold the quilt.

2023 Wrap Up

Despite my fervent wishes that this year my work life would be better, it has gone downhill fast.  I'm considering early retirement in the new future. It has taken the wind out of my crafty sails and needless to say, I haven't accomplished much in 2023.

I have been working a couple of ufos, which I posted about earlier and finally finished the binding and both quilts have now been received by their recipients.

My version of Bonnie Hunter's Rhododendron Trail was finished with flanged purple binding and sent to my oldest friend - we've been friends for 44 years - just in time for her birthday! 

Not the best lighting, but it was a dreary November day and I needed to get it in the mail. I modified it from Bonnie's on-point version and eliminated the aqua micro-sashing that she used. I love how it turned out! And yes, I do have a turned block that I didn't notice until I saw this picture after I had already mailed it.

I had the quilting done by Maple Leaf Quilting Company in Cochrane, AB who offer a wonderful service with all-in-one pricing that includes shipping to and from them, thread and even batting. They also sell backings at a reasonable price, so they make it very easy to get my quilting done.

I choose a panto with butterflies to emulate the purple "butterflies" on the front. The backing colour is closer to the photos below.

I did a two-tone flange binding (my favourite way to bind when I'm in a hurry, and added a label with a piece of ribbon from a Fat Quarter Shop bundle.

Then I finished up On Ringo Lake with an aqua flanged binding and sent it to my aunt and uncle for their 60th anniversary. I love these two so much, and they have set such a wonderful example of love and companionship, something I could only dream of having. 

I forgot to take pictures before sending it off, but luckily Maple Leaf posted pictures on their Facebook page so I was able to scoop these.

I choose a panto called River, in keeping with the name of the pattern by Bonnie Hunter.

There was one more finish this year. I had been procastinating but on December 22nd I finally got down to making a small bag for my grandson's girlfriend. I made them come with me one day as I was doing running around (can't leave teenagers alone!), and when we were in the quilt shop, Tess found a fat quarter that was the same design as a baby blanket she had. So of course I had to buy it, and at Christmas I surprised with this:

The inside has her yellow fat quarter. I made both the cross-body strap and wrist/key chain strap so she can swap it out if she wants.

And that was it for finishes this year. I'm hoping that the new year brings some much needed changes, rest and more fun in my sewing room.