Headed into 2024

 As we head into another year I like to reflect on the goals of the previous year and how that reflects on the person that I am now and where I would like to see myself in the upcoming year. I would like for this upcoming year to be a year of growth through minimization. 

Now you might be thinking -- what? because quite frankly when I looked at my goals they seemed in conflict in several areas and I realized that if I took a different perspective on the pieces that I could combine the goals and perhaps accomplish this overall goal. 

In the area of minimization, many of the concepts are the usual suspects -- use more stash than brought in, purge scraps, complete UFO projects. I want to also do this with patterns and books that I have purchased and never used -- see if I can learn some new skill or bring those patterns to life using scraps or stash for a gift quilt or charity project. 

I did quite a bit of pattern testing last year to promote stash usage and it felt good to move things out that had been in the cabinet for quite a while so maybe I will continue with that journey as well. Though the drama around pattern testing right now is a bit high on Instagram so I am unsure how this will impact the number of people willing to ask for help when creating patterns -- and I have a lot of thoughts about that but this is not the post for that. 

I also wanted to take this a step further and start using tools I have had for years and either bringing them into something I uses regularly or purge them to a new home later in the year. 

In the realm of growth aside from skills and trying new patterns and tools, I want to continue to expand my long arming business. In the last 3.5 years that I have been offering hand driven edge to edge services I have quilted an average of  2-3 quilts per month for others, last year I did 36 quilts. I would like to see that number closer to 50 quilts this year and as things are expanding now that I have gone digital with my long arming I see that as a possibility. 

I'm also hoping to start blogging more frequently and build my Instagram community -- the goal is to reach 1500 followers by years end. I hope to also make weekly videos and hold several raffle opportunities to win quilting services throughout the year. 

So what UFO's am I taking into 2024? 

1. Ghastly NY Beauty Quilt -- started in early 2023
2. Blue and teal orphan block scrap quilt 
3. All Solids Pickle Dish -- started in early 2023
4. Candy Cats -- started 2018 (4 of 12 cats made) 
5. Slow going blue and pink pineapples -- started mid 2022
6. AMH Octo Zen Quilt -- started Dec 2023
7. Starry Cabins -- 2023 bee block 
8. Georgous Gertie -- 2021 bee block (ready for quilting) 
9. Traveling Wonderland Quilt -- started 2016, top finished 2020 (waiting for quilting) 
10. Skull Quilt -- Assembled 2021 (needs quilting) 
11. Bear Claws Quilt -- 2022 bee block (needs quilting) 
12. Winter quilt -- fabric pulled, no pattern picked 
13. September Moon Glow Quilt -- fabric pulled, no pattern picked
14. RSS / CS Giant Sisters Choice -- needs binding 

So 14 -- that's not too bad I guess, when 1 needs binding and 4 need quilting -- it really makes it more like 9. 

Yeah I'll keep telling myself that because I know how much I dislike the binding step. Hopefully January will see some finishes or at least some progress and more blogging with pictures of my actual projects. I am also trying to challenge myself to do 30 minutes of quilting (or time in the sewing room) daily or at least 3 hours per week to promote these goals and set good habits moving into the new year especially as January is cold and dark here in the US and it's very easy for me to not want to do anything after work. 

I'll be linking up over at Quilting Jet Girl for the #2024QuiltingPlanningParty