I’ve been sewing for over 15 years. In that time, I’ve graduated three times, moved a few times, became an auntie, gotten married, adopted a dog, and had two babies. My sewing space went from a three-drawer cart shoved in a corner and dragging my machine to the kitchen table sometimes, to having a section of the basement at my parents’ house, to having a small sewing room that was taken over by my cutting table, to intentionally looking for a house that has an additional space for “my room.” Time spent in each of these spaces has varied, but it is definitely “me time” in my happy place. I love that in my current house, my room has a door I can close and pretend like the mess isn’t there. I can leave projects out to come back to and work on in stolen chunks of time. I can hide in there when I just need a minute.
I am hoping that one day too, it will become a space that my children can go to create. They’ll go “shopping” for craft supplies on the shelves, create projects on a whim of their imaginations, and will hopefully pick up some sewing skills along the way! I have paints, stamps, and construction paper in small bins that I will pull out for craft time because currently, my 2-year-old daughter is not allowed in my sewing room. I am afraid she will step on a pin or eat something she isn’t supposed to or help herself to the paints! My 6-week-old son has joined me a few times because he is safely in his portable bassinet and the hum of a sewing machine makes for nice white noise (I did this with my daughter when she was an infant too. I actually made an entire t-shirt quilt the first week she was home because she slept so much!).
However, with two little ones around, I have had to adjust my normal. I used to stay up very late finishing projects. I can’t anymore. I used to bring things out to the kitchen table so I could watch a movie with my husband while I worked. I can’t anymore. I used to have ten projects going at a time. I can’t anymore. I used to sew things for myself. I can’t anymore. My normal has changed and my focus has shifted.
I love creating and time spent in my room helps me feel more like me, but it is a challenge to find the time anymore. Naps are not always coordinated, so when they are it is lovely! Sometimes I use nap time to sleep myself or to clean, but sometimes, I let myself wander into my room and create something! After the kiddos go to bed, I am usually too tired to do much of anything, plus I am afraid of the brain fog that sets in. I have found weekend nap times are a perfect time to sew - my husband is home for any misaligned sleeping schedules, I am still awake enough to concentrate, and I can save the finishing touches for after bedtime.
I have also had to shift how I hustle my business. I have to strategically plan projects along my tiny human time constraints, being aware of deadlines and order lead times. Unfortunately, I had to turn down a few requests for graduation t-shirt quilts this year because my son was due at the beginning of April. It also means my grand plans of starting this blog and revamping my business are in slow motion. But - progress is progress no matter how slow! As I continue on my journey and hone in on what brings me joy, I come back to sewing. Making something new from nothing much is a powerful skill to have. Bringing life to a person’s ideas is a neat thing to experience. Helping somebody preserve memories is an honor to be a part of.
And figuring out the new normal? Well, what’s normal?
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