Ah yes, it's the start of a brand-new year! Time to break out the stash, start that new project and dig into our creative goals. -Insert dramatic sigh here- I don't know about you dear stitcher, but I'm just not feeling it...
The festivities of the holiday season are over now, and we are left with the remnants of random wrapping paper strewn across your cutting board, you cannot find the pattern you had printed just before your in-laws came for a visit and your "New Year Spring Cleaning" of the house is still pending. Deep breath! Whether it's due to the ever-looming pandemic, constant changes to routine, or simply being DONE, my creativity is in a great big slump, and I know I am not the only one.
So how do we shake off the New Year Blues and try to get some Create back into our Creativity? By taking it one stitch at a time of course...
Stop putting so much pressure on yourself!
You do not have to start your year off by making a To Do List of all the projects you did not finish last year. There is no rule book stating you need to finish them to start something new. It’s always a good thing to remember that this is your hobby, your stress reliever. When you start to feel overwhelmed regarding whatever creative release you have, you need to check yourself.
Do not sign up to EVERY sew-along you find.
This is a tricky one because I am guilty of doing this too. By now you’ve scrolled through Pinterest a hundred times and saved over a dozen new patterns, joined three Quilt Block of the Month Challenges, and you are left feeling overwhelmed and uninterested in any of them. Start with one maybe two if you have the time for it. Often, we set these incredibly high and unachievable goals and feel very demotivated when we cannot achieve them. The same applies to your hobby. Pick one class or workshop, one pattern, save the extra patterns for later on in the year. You have over 300 days to get creative.
Accept that now may not be the best time for you to start a project.
We tend to add so much to our plate and sooner rather than later we resent the goals and hobbies we have started. Take it easy! Maybe for the first week all you do is read the pattern, the next week you choose your fabrics and the week after that you cut a block or two. You do you! Start when you feel good, make yourself some tea and delve into your hobby and treat it as the luxury it is.
Creativity is our escape from the everyday rush of our lives, it is not meant to add pressure or guilt! My recipe to get out of the creative slump is going to involve accepting that my sewing room is a disaster 9/10 times, that I won’t always have the time or feel like sewing and that’s okay. Most of all, to take all things one stitch at a time.
Regards in Stitches
A Pin Cushion Gal
xx
Thank you for sharing your own creativity new year slump. It helps so much to know that I am not the only one. Also a very good reminder that yes it is a hobby and stress reliever. I am sure I shall find the joy in the process again just by taking itbone stitch at a time.🤗🌺