A Lot Of Thinking As I Clean

Yesterday was another beautiful day with a high of 24.7C. We had a good rain in the evening which lasted for about 30 minutes. It then cleared off and this morning it is 13C. We are to have a high of 22C with some showers today. 

Lifestyle

I cleaned the spare room and it wasn't too dirty. The floor needed attention as it is where the cat litter box is. I also washed the duvet cover and it is going to be discarded. It has several tears in it. I will replace it with a king size duvet cover. I also removed the cushion covers as I am going to make my own for that room. I am ready to sew for that room later this month.

Once the room was cleaned, I swept all the floors and washed the floors with the ceramic tile. I also straightened up the living room and tidied up the kitchen. Recycling was taken out and I called it a morning upstairs. 

Last night I sat and watched the rain come down. Once it was over, I opened windows to cool the house down overnight. It is so nice to have the a/c and fan turned off at night and the house cool and smelling fresh in the morning. I am really enjoying the cooler temperatures. 

Sewing

I cleaned the closet in the sewing room yesterday before lunch. The shelf was tidy but I needed to deal with the bottom part. Everything was removed and the floor was washed. It was more dusty than dirty. I put it all back in neatly. 

Two of the three cushion forms in the closet will be used to make cushions for the living room. The third one will probably be for the guest room. The fourth cushion form is larger and I am going to cover it with this fabric on the front and black on the back. I hope I have enough red dot fabric to put binding on the edges. 

This is the fabric I have out at Christmas in the dining area. I also have a large wall hanging to finish that has been a UFO for 13 years. It is next on the list to finish. 

With the closet cleaned and ideas swirling in my head, I finished the quilting on the child's bag before lunch. It is in the prepped pile.  

After lunch, I set to work cutting out daughter's bag. After looking at the placement of the dogs, I removed fabric from the bottom of the panel so it was 12.5" in length (11.5" finished). I then cut out a 7" (6" finished) piece for the bottom of the bag. After careful measuring I needed to cut out 3.5" piece (2.5" finished) for the top. I interfaced each piece and sewed the front together. For the back, I used the piece I cut off the front panel and cut it 3.5" (2.5" finished) and a piece 18.5" (17.5" finished). I interfaced each piece and sewed them together. I then put craft interfacing on the front and back pieces and sewed up the side seam. 

It looks weird but the bottom piece at the front is the bottom of the bag. In reality only only the print and top piece show. I am still deciding if I will stitch the lines that make the squares or if I will leave it plain. As I pondered, I cut out the handles, interfaced them, and pressed them. I am ready to make piping for the handles next. 

These three bags have used 4.5 meters of interfacing. I still need to interface the lining fabrics which will take another 3 meters. The left over interfacing will be used to make Christmas gift bags (I hope). I have to buy interfacing for my shirt. 

Before heading upstairs I did take a picture of the winter fabric project. This project grew out of proportion but I am happy with the results. 

I looked at the cutting table and it looks like a bomb has gone off on it. When these bags are done, I will clean it up and start again. I will have scraps to put into a bin for the quilter's guild and fabric to put away. 

While cleaning the closet, I found the small tub of Halloween fabrics. I need to go through them and put what I don't want into the thrift shop box and make the remaining into quick trick or treat bags for some children. I won't put a lot of interfacing in them so they can be folded up and stored. There are two little ones on the street that would love to have them. 

Knitting

None last night. I felt like this.

Thoughts 

    As I am cleaning the sewing room, my brain was on the rampage with thoughts. I need to get my ducks in order and do some more purging. Not just the sewing room but the areas like under the stairs. It needs to be cleaned up and organized. I have done a lot but I still need to do more and monitor what I buy. I realize I have less than most people and that the house isn't cluttered. I just need to keep on it all the time.

    With sewing, I am hoping to sew up more of the stash. I won't be keeping the left over pieces unless they are for a project I know I am going to make. I will donate the fabric to the quilter's guild. As I see the empty spaces on the stash shelving unit I know I am making the right decision. I want very little inventory of any kind. I can buy what I need when I need it. I have 2 UFO's that I am humming and hawing about. One is going to be bagged up and donated to the quilting guild. Someone can finish and enjoy it. The other one I am going to finish and give to a family on our street. I am sure they will love it. It is a Santa wall hanging. I need to buy buttons for it which I will glue on and then hand stitch in place for safety reasons. 

        The last thought I had was the doll's fabric. I was going to make and sell doll clothes but that is not going to happen. I need to go through their fabric once more, keep what I really want to have and then release it all to the quilter's guild. I will never sew it all up and I realize that. What I keep will be made into wardrobes for the dolls. At this time, I am giving myself until December 2024 to sew it up and then I purge again. 

Today

My goal is to wash the wood floors and stairs. I will do a bit of tidying up that needs to be done on a regular basis. I want to clean more of the sewing room this morning. I need to look at the section I am going to clean and make a plan. For sewing, I need to make piping for daughter's bag and more to send to her. I need to finish the handles and button loop on hers. Once done, I will start to sew the bags together so I can put the lining them. I will have to stop sewing earlier as I have to be at the doctor's at 4:10 pm. I'm buying dinner and I hope to knit tonight.