Decluttering the iron board!

by admin January 2, 2023

Well, I'm a big liar! When I wrote that my space is in good shape, if I had been Pinocchio, I couldn't have sat in front of the computer as my nose would have been too long!

OK -- so it's not that bad, but there are definitely things that need to be dealt with, and so I will be right there with you as we clean up our spaces. This time next year --- I'll have EVERYTHING under control! I can hardly wait!

I am being truthful when I say that NO MAJOR issues need to be dealt with. It's mostly stuff that has languished in one spot for too long. You'll see it in a minute.

I didn't even have to wait until this morning to get my Finisher badge for the Virtual Challenge. I was sitting at the computer yesterday morning, and POOF -- it arrived. So my total distance for 2022 was 6,610 KM or thereabouts. It included spin classes and some outdoor cycling, and about 2/3 of it was walking. And I ordered my medal! When it comes, I'll share it with you.

My Conquer 2022 finisher badge

So as not to be left out, I signed up for the Conquer 2023 challenge. I don't need the challenge to keep me motivated any longer, but I love that it tracks your mileage, so it's worth it, and I get a fancy medal at the end of the year.

Signed up for the 2023 Conquer challenge

What is my goal? I settled on 4,400 KM for a walking-only challenge. This is a little over 12 KM a day; I was well over that yesterday. HEY -- when the weather is nice, and your knees feel great, you take advantage of that!

The goal for 2023

But I also got a lot done in the house. Let's check that out. I started out with that pesky puzzle, as I needed to get this off my plate so I could focus on some embroidery and sewing.

Down to the last bit of the puzzle

Within one hour, it was complete. I did resort to trying every piece for some of the spots, but for the most part, shape recognition did the trick! It was hard to go by color, but that helped a wee bit. No pieces were missing!

The puzzle is complete!

Then it was tidy-up time. The puzzle got put away and is sitting in the staging area of the living waiting to be passed along.

And that leaves the puzzle table CLEAR.

The puzzle table is clear!

So there are 10 work surfaces in Studio B used for various things. One of ten is clear!

Then I had a peek at the Zoom table where all my technology sits, and it's in pretty good shape as well. I need to unpack the NEW document camera I purchased, which will be excellent for my Zoom sessions, and I should buy a new power bar. I really like the power towers, and that's what I'm going to get.

The Zoom table is in order

I have yet to research them, but the tower makes it so much easier to plug things in, especially those with bulky blocks, and this tower also has USB ports, so that will be a good thing. My goal for the year is that if I need something -- don't delay -- just get it and move on!

Purchasing anything and having it delivered is safe in our neighborhood. This package has been sitting on this porch for a couple of weeks and is still there. No one currently lives there, and the box has the correct address. The folks that used to live there didn't tell everyone that they had moved.

No porch pirates in our neighborhood

So table one is clear, table two needs something to be ordered, and one thing unpacked and tested. Let's look at work surface number three -- the ironing board. Remember that was your assignment yesterday! What is on your ironing surface, and does it need to be there?

I had some books and fabric that needed to be put away. That took all of 10 seconds.

Books and fabric on the ironing board

The other end of the ironing boards was more challenging to deal with. There was the box with the advent calendar items I received. Oh -- I'd better start putting that stuff away, and it's mostly put away. I threw some things on the cutting table (GASP -- you did WHAT?), and I'll deal with them later.

But look at this mess on the holder for the iron. I can't use the holder because it's filled with half-square triangles that need to be pressed and trimmed. This has been sitting there for eons, and it's time to clean it up. How can I tell you how to tidy up when this mess exists?

A mess of half-square triangles

So I got to work, and while the embroidery machine (more on that in a minute) was working, I pressed and trimmed.

Trimming half-square triangles

Soon -- I had a bag of these half-square triangles from my butterfly quilt.

A bag of half-square triangles

But that little container (yes, they are in a container, which you can't see) was overflowing and lots sitting on the stand itself. Let's keep going.

I would press about 10 and then trim them. Press another ten and trim those. All while babysitting the embroidery machine and listening to my audiobook.

More trimmed half-square triangles

Here's another stack of trimmed half-square triangles. Most of them were trimmed to 1½", although a few were 2½".

More trimmed half-square triangles

And this morning, the little container, while still full, looks much better. But now they all fit IN the container and are not spilled out everywhere. OK -- so you can't see the container yet! That means I'll be pressing and trimming half-square triangles while I'm embroidering over the next couple of days. Did I think a trimming fairy would come one night and do this for me? As usual, I tend to leave things until they are way out of control, and then it takes forever to clear up the mess. Granted, this is NOT huge, but it would be nice to move it off the ironing board. Before I move on to the next table, clearing the ironing board is a MUST!

A container of half-square triangles to press and trim

I even got out a cloth and cleaned all the lint off the stand at the end, and it's spic and span. Well, I'll talk about what's on that stand tomorrow. And I should wash that cover to see if it will clean it up. So my focus for the next few days is to clear that ironing board!

How did you make out with your ironing board? We can only move to a new surface once this one is clear! Do you have a shelf under your ironing board? What's on it? Do you need a new cover or wash the one you have? A clean ironing board is essential, so what are you waiting for? And if your iron is crappy, perhaps now is the time to replace it!

I want to hear good stories about how perfectly organized your ironing board is! You can send before and after pictures if you wish. elainetheriault@gmail.com, And if it takes a week to clean that surface, then it takes a week. If you try and tackle something new each day, you will fail! Simply because you have yet to finish one job before you move on to the next one. Nope -- we are going to do this right!

I have another table that is all organized as well. This isn't a work table but holds supplies. The orange bucket is filled with sewing machine accessories -- embroidery hoops, foot pedals, power cords, etc. And the black container is leftover bits of stabilizer that I used when embroidering and need multiple layers of stabilizers, and these bits get slipped beneath the hoop. It's all clean and tidy, but the drawer unit beneath it is filled with interfacing and other interlinings and could use a good sort. But it's all neat and tidy and together in one place, so I'm not going to worry about it right now. It's the visible workspaces that are my priority!

Accessories are neatly stored

Oh, here's the fourth surface in Studio B. This is the garage! This area holds the embroidery units if not on the embroidery machines, extension tables when not in use, and all the large embroidery hoops. It would be nice to NOT have this sit on a table, but with TWO large machines, and each has two extensions tables and accessories boxes, there is no other place. And it's OK because I don't need this space. They could be stored in the stash room if there was some shelf space (hint, hint!). That will come, but not right away.

Larger machine accessories are stored on a table

Speaking of the stash room, I got two more quilts from Diane. The storage room where all the quilt tops are stored is also neat and tidy. Gosh --- I love this organized space.

Two more quilt tops for Project Linus

As mentioned, I have a LOT of machine embroidery to do, and I had some fun playing with yarn yesterday. Then I got down to some serious programming on the embroidery machine and went to bed with visions of a beautiful design in my head. It was mostly done before I went to bed, but I need to tweak it a bit more. Thank goodness for being able to save designs right on the machine - or in the mySewnet Cloud!

Embroidering with yarn

And while I watched one more episode of The Great Canadian Baking Show, I removed more stabilizer from that embroidery. It's a fiddly job, but I'm over half done with the main section, so that is good news.

Removing stabilizer

The holidays are over, and it's back to work. I know why I'm not a big fan of Christmas. I see people go to tons of work, and then POOF, in one day, it's all over. It's like the lights get shut off. I find it very depressing as people get so hyped up, and then suddenly, it's over. I like to meter out my work and gatherings over the year, not crammed into one day or week. And I'm not steeped in tradition!

So today is a regular day -- it's Monday sewing, and I'll be off to spin class shortly. But I'm pumped! I want that ironing board to be CLEAN -- totally clean, none of this fake clean! And I expect nothing less from all of you! Together we will get our studios in top shape, so we can spend ALL of our time sewing and doing things we like and not spend so much time managing our crap!

Compared to last year and prior years, I'm miles ahead! And I'm thrilled!!!!

On that note, have fun cleaning your ironing station, and have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!