Setting Goals for 2018

🎉🎉🎉 Happy New Year!!! 🎉🎉🎉

It's hard to believe how quickly 2017 sped by and here we are on the first day of January, 2018. My friend Denise Stahl at the Curious Kansas Quilter posted her goals for 2018 and inspired me to consider what I want this coming year to look like. 

Without having set specific goals for 2017, a lot was accomplished! Numerous beautiful quilts were quilted for customers, many samples were added to my Hexified Panel Quilts trunk show, and two quilts appeared in the new book, One Block Wonders of the World.  

Here are a few thoughts that I will aspire to meet as goals for 2018...

Work towards more finishes in 2018. I have a growing number of UFOs that need to be pulled out and evaluated. The number is much larger than you might imagine as I not only have my own, but also some 40+ that I inherited from my sister-in-law Cindy when she passed away several years ago. Some will go in my new trunk show, "UFOs, Orphans, and More! Oh My!" Those may remain UFOs or the items in the trunk show may evolve as I finish some and replace them with others. Regardless, the number of UFOs has to be tackled in some way. Although it may be difficult with my current schedule of classes, trunk shows, and quilting commitments, my goal is 12 finishes this year. 
 
Make the pile of tops waiting to be quilted shorter! At last count, I believe I had close to 25 tops anywhere from small wall hangings to large 100x100" quilts waiting to be quilted. Since I work on a sit-down quilter, it takes me a lot longer to finish a quilt. From pinning the layers, stitching in the ditch to stabilize the quilt top, and then deciding what to quilt on it, it's not a load and go with a pantograph kind of project. So, I've decided some need to be finished with something simple--get the grandkids' quilt tops done and gifted! One was started while I was still in California caring for my folks and still isn't done 5 years after my return to Kansas! That particular one has to move to the top as he graduates from high school in May! Others will get semi-custom quilting and some extensive custom quilting. Each needs to be done!
 
Work towards getting 3 PIGS started and made. PIGS or projects in grocery sacks (or, in my case, large 2-gallon ziploc bags) are piled high in my sewing room. Some of these are going to be gorgeous quilts! Time to dive in!
Maybe taking the PIGS, one at a time, to the several retreats I go to each year will give me someplace to focus on something new.
 
Focus on sticking with one BOM--the upcoming Tribal Star Vector Quilt with David Gilleland. By choosing only one BOM, hopefully I can stay on top of it throughout the year. 

Create a second and start on a third trunk show program to present to guilds. As I continue to receive invitations to speak at regional quilt guilds, if I want to be invited back, I need to kick it up a notch and get more ideas worked into story-telling presentations with different themes.

 
Get better at updating my blog! How about a minimum of 1 post per month! If I can do that, maybe I can increase it more next year.

Beyond my quilting and professional goals, I need to...

Organize my time better so I can spend more time with my husband and best friend. We have a very special connection and came into our marriage at a time when neither of us ever expected to go there again. Making the effort to spend quality time without feeling pressured to work would be a blessing. 
 
Travel more! Although long trips can be grueling on our bodies, seeing more "bucket list" locations like Mount Rushmore and Niagra Falls, among others, is high on our list. Plus, his daughter is moving to Sweden this spring!!! Time to get my passport at long last!
 

I'm sure there are many more goals, but this already feels like a lot to accomplish in one fleeting year. Wish me luck and check back for updates on my progress! I'd love to hear your goals in the comments. Wishing you all a very Happy New Year and may 2018 be filled with blessings for all!

More snippets from the sewing room soon...
Liz