Commit 2017

For the past few years, I’ve had a word for the year, and it’s been a very useful practice for me to do. At the end of the year/start of the next year, I reflect on the year that has been, and think about what I want to do in the coming year. Previously, I’ve had ‘focus’ and ‘create’, both of which came relatively quickly to mind. But this year, I wasn’t sure. I knew what I wanted to do this year in all areas of my life, broadly speaking, but how could I tie it back to one word? How could I connect all the aspects of my life together to make it meaningful and useful? To make changes as a person, not just in various roles, i.e. a planner, quilter, mother?

On January 1st, while on holiday, we went back to our old church, and the pastor’s sermon clicked in a very big way. Commit. To my growth as a person, as a wife, as a mother, as a friend. As a quilter and business owner. You see, the past 6 months have felt a little like finding my feet (again!) as we settled into our new life, and this year I want and need to focus on now growing beyond these fresh roots. What the end result will look like exactly, I’m not exactly sure, but I have some shorter-term goals that I have to focus on in the meantime that are not only business-related but also connected to what I want to do in my personal life.

 

So what has this got to do with you all? Well, I’m the kind of person for whom accountability can work really well – if I “put it out there”, I’m much more likely to act on it. It also plays into the kind of content I’ll be sharing on the blog this year!

Commit to me. Quilting is a bit like an onion. As you progress through the years, you slowly go through phases of fabric taste, of techniques, of colours and sizes. I’ve come to accept that my style is forever evolving and changing, and I’m going to quilt what I enjoy and what I love to make. I may be swayed by trends, I may completely ignore them. But I will do what I like to use and create because I want to.

Commit to joy. Related to the previous statements, I will enjoy the process. I will only make what excites me, what will bring me joy (whether directly by the making process, or indirectly knowing that it will bring someone else joy as a gift). That has already meant turning down a couple of opportunities because I’m just not into the patterns, and conversely saying yes to others because I will both enjoy the process and also be able to use it for my next aim…

Commit to handmade. As we were travelling around Adelaide over New Year’s, it was incredibly touching and satisfying to see so many of my quilts and pillows in the homes of my family and friends! This year, I want to spread the squishy love even further. You see, I have struggled for years at the idea of making something just for the sake of it with no particular end goal in mind. Over the past few months, I’ve started to strip away that falsehood. I am a better quilter when I make something just for the fun of it or for the learning journey! And what better way to give myself even more permission to do so than to make it a goal of using all the orphan blocks and fun projects to create a stash of handmade gifts. This goal plays into my personal goal to buy less/control the clutter/use my stash instead of hoarding.

Commit to learning. If it’s not already clear, I want to continue to grow as a quilter, as an artist. Over the past month, I’ve learned needle-turn applique and hand quilting, and fallen in love with these techniques. I want to continue learning, practicing, experimenting with how to incorporate these techniques (and more) into my quilting! Which also loops back in to committing to me – embrace the way my quilting styles change and grow!

And as these things tend to do, this all just “happens” to link into my motto, my ‘mission statement’, without me intentionally thinking about it: create what you love, with love, to love! So, 2017 will see me continue to chase that dream, and sharing that process on here as I go.

Do you have a plan or some goals or a word for the year? What’s guiding your creating this year? I’d love to hear it in the comments below!