Sunday, April 10, 2016

Quilting... a dangerous activity

Just a few sharp items, ahem, waiting around to stick me.
Yep, even the pencils... I reached in to grab one, and stuck myself with the point.
Oy!

Quilting ain't for sissies. Look at those weapons! I haven't even mentioned how some people manage to sew right over their fingers with the sewing machine. (my grandmother did it with her treadle, so she gave the treadle to me) (I did it once when not paying attention) A day doesn't go by I don't stick myself with a pin or needle. I've snipped my finger with those wicked little snips. We won't talk about the rotary cutter.

The other day, I bravely faced the disaster area of a studio with hopes of sorting and putting supplies away.
this is the area of my cabinet that holds the bead collection.

I sorted them into seed beads, cylinders, natural stones, etc.

There are a lot of categories.

By the way, there are a lot of cute carriers for beads.
I'm a sucker for containers.

I taught beading on Fabric many times so there are also kits in here. But still... beads are small, so you know I've got quite a collection.
Well you ain't seen nothing yet.

Purchase after purchase I just piled in this cute little pink bin...


until I reached critical mass. Then I started to sort... and look what came out of the little pink bin...
I mean, this is testimony that you can go into a bead store for "just a look around" come out with a stash out of sight in your purse, and having spent a fortune!! Listen, they are shiny, and sparkly, and really fun to play with!
Anyway....
Some of these beauties defied sorting.

One of a kind, or too large, or difficult to squeeze into the containers that hold their kin.

Know what I mean?
You can have systems, and containers and best intentions to be neat and orderly but if the item defies you, well, what do you do??




And what if you container has reached critical mass and will no longer close? The sequin box SAYS it's full.
I know how small sequins are and think there's always room for one more, right?
What's a collector to do? There's only so much room in the studio and I'm not getting rid of anything.

Back to the sharp things, I was just thinking about them because I've been beading jewelry and trying to learn to do the brick stitch and getting repeatedly stuck by beading needles.

You gotta be tough to be an artist! What defies organization in your sewing room?


20 comments:

Jan said...

I like to say my brain is geared for creativity and not organization.

Joanne said...

Hi LeeAnna,
I think I say ow! more times when I have needle and thread in my hand than when I'm out in the garden with the pruners!
Just like what I learned with Hostas and other garden plants...you'll always find room when it's nice enough!

Joanne said...

Hi LeeAnna,
I think I say ow! more times when I have needle and thread in my hand than when I'm out in the garden with the pruners!
Just like what I learned with Hostas and other garden plants...you'll always find room when it's nice enough!

easyweimaraner said...

I'm sadly totally unorganized, but I will buy some clear containers too for the buttons and the sewing material... by now everything is a wild mix in a box :o(

Anonymous said...

Unknown said...

I got rid of the miriad opaque plastic containers and baggies and got some Dorice boxes. They are clear and come in a variety of sizes and fit in a larger box for toting to a workshop. I can see all that I have by opening the drawer and ... ta dah ... put them away easily as well. Happy beader now. See photo here: https://yarngoddess.wordpress.com/2016/01/19/sunset-and-letters/
Diane

Glen QuiltSwissy said...

I took a class with Thom Atkins a few years ago through Contemporary Fiber Artists of Louisiana. It was a huge MISTAKE!

I spend a lot of money on beads......and loved it! LOL

you need to see his stuff

http://smile.amazon.com/Beading-Artistry-Quilts-Stitches-Embellishments/dp/1607055848/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1460384341&sr=1-1&keywords=thom+atkins#reader_1607055848

Kathy said...

I gave up on categories, mostly, and went to sorting by color. But that collection grows and grow and I just can't bead that fast...or quilt that fast...or embroider that fast...but can we stop? Oh, no! It's all shiny and sparkly and beautiful. What's a girl to do?

Lori in South Dakota said...

organising is so BORING but necessary. laughed at all the beads. :)

Nann said...

"A place for everything and the more things in the place, the better!" I'm pretty organized, actually, but I just have so. much. stuff.

Tails Around the Ranch said...

Must be Spring since I too am tackling the studio. Sadly there's too much of EVERYTHING so I'm getting rid of some of it. Sigh. ღ

sonja said...

And then there is also the lack of sleep
due to the What IFS swirling about one creative essence
making ALL of those dangerous things even more so....Oy!

gayle said...

Actually the thing in my studio that most defies organization is **me**...

Maria said...

Not to mention breaking a needle while sewing and trying to dodge it coming straight for your eye... Yikes!

JanineMarie said...

Scraps. No they aren't even scraps. They're snippets. Those multicolored ones that don't fit into any category. And, yes, I've read all about people's scraps systems, but I still haven't conquered them. I am making good progress on the closet, though. Eventually there will be so much room in there, I won't have to organize the scraps. Ha!

Rike Busch said...

Hihi! I'm alsp addicted to bins, boxes and bags - like my mom. I store my beads in little mini bins by Body shop you get them for trying a new cream. I love them. Zippers l, Kam snaps and buttons are stored in boxes normally used for swrews and nails, because they are constructed not to mix up the different things although the are tiny. And so on and so on... ;D And my fabrics are sorted by colors or types in clear boxea by Ikea. So, I cannot live without boxes and co. *ggg* you are not alone!
Greetings from Germany, Rike

Bonnie said...

So, maybe you should make several projects to USE some of those pretty sparklers. I have a nifty little metal 4 drawer container that has beads from when my mom used to bead. I've actually gone through and used some of the older beads. Hum, might make some sense to look at those drawers again and see if any of the beads have dulled with age. Then I could put a few current beads into it. What a thought: organize a little!

Jayne said...

It it wasn't for plastics...I would never get organized! Every few months it seems like there is something that needs some tweaking. I have sewn through my finger once. Ouch and double ouch! Then there are the numerous slices from the rotary cutter. It's all part of the job!

Granny Maud's Girl said...

My top drawer defies sorting. I gave up. It is now the drawer for 'not very big things that do not have a home elsewhere'. Not much of a system, eh?
I have never sewn myself with the machine, but I have made myself bleed at least twice this week just hand sewing.

Kaja said...

You'll just have to make something with all those surplus beads and sequins now.

Susan said...

It's tough to stay organized, especially when everything keeps multiplying!