Hi Reader,

Did you have a goal this year for finishing some unfinished projects?

If so, how is it going?

My mom and I have been working on her UFOs for the past year and are making headway, but it's not always easy to make progress when you are doing it on your own.

This is why I was excited to see Emma Jane Powell's upcoming live workshop titled Managing Unfinished Projects.

(Emma Jane was a speaker at my Conquer Your Fabric Scraps Summit where she did a class on improv. Her website is Dream It Quilt It.)

You can join the waitlist and read more about it HERE.

3-Yard Quilts

Have you heard of Fabric Cafe and their 3-yard quilts?

I first heard about them from my friend and sewing buddy, Debbie. She shared with me how quick and easy these quilts are to make and showed me a couple of the books she had.

On Tuesday, Debbie and I were guests at a quilt guild meeting and had the pleasure of watching a presentation by Fran Morgan, one of the founders of Fabric Cafe and one of the designers/authors of the 3-Yard Quilts books. (Fran's mother is the other half of the business.)

During her presentation, Fran shared many of the quilts made with 3 yards of fabric and the stories behind them.

Each lap-size quilt takes 3 fabrics, a yard of each one. Fran shared that when she is designing a 3-yard quilt, she does so with 3 types of fabrics in mind:

• Fabric 1 is a focus fabric. It is multi-colored and usually has a design or pattern.
• Fabric 2 is a lighter color.
• Fabric 3 is a darker color.

A light bulb went off in my head...imagine how easy it would be to select 3 fabrics to make a quilt using this formula?

These 3-yard quilts would be an asset to helping me use the fabric yardage in my stash and could help you, too!

In addition to the many books available at Fabric Cafe, they also have a robust YouTube channel. There is even a video on fabric selection where Fran explains in detail how to pick the 3 fabrics.

If you have been looking for some quick and easy quilts to make or have a hard time picking out fabrics for quilts, Fabric Cafe is a resource you want to check out.

Note: I am not an affiliate just a quilter who is impressed by these patterns and videos.

Make Sewing Simple

Do you have a project you want to do but are having a difficult time getting started?

What's holding you back?

Is it fabric selection?

Fear of making a mistake?

Maybe you don't have the right tool(s) or supplies.

Perhaps there is a skill or technique you need to learn to do the project.

Whether it's one thing or many things that are keeping you from starting a project or completing a UFO, think about this:

Sewing is simple but not always easy.

So let's break that elusive sewing project down to the simplest steps.

Don't think about ALL the things that need to be done, think only about the FIRST step.

Then do it.

After that think about the NEXT step.

Then do it.

And so on.

Before you know it, you will be making progress on the project that you've been wanting to do. One step at a time.

Some steps will be harder than others and may take more time to do.

You may even be struggling with some fear and worry about making mistakes.

This is common and you're not alone in being afraid of messing something up.

You may mess up and that's okay.

Fail forward. Every sewing step you take is experience and the opportunity to learn.

But you must start to begin.

Does writing things down and checking them off help motivate you?

Try these printable sheets to Make Sewing Simple and see your progress. You'll be amazed at how much you'll be able to get done.

Note: The 2 pages of this printable are identical. I like to print 2 pages per sheet (a printer setting) and then cut them apart.

Vintage Textiles

What are your thoughts on vintage textiles?

Do you love the vibrant colors and design, handwork, or maybe just the connection to times past?

Do you have any vintage textiles?

Maybe some handkerchiefs, tablecloths and napkins, sheets, dresser scarfs, or garments you have inherited from a family member or picked up at an estate sale or thrift store.

I have quite a collection of vintage textiles that I've collected over the years.

Ideas for what to do with my vintage collection percolate in my brain from time to time but I haven't done much with them yet.

One project I did do with a vintage textile is making a top out of one of my grandmother's bedspreads.

The fabric is a jacquard/damask made of a lovely shade of blue with silvery threads on the right side.

While the pattern I used to make this top is not currently available, I hope to inspire you to look at vintage textiles as a possible fabric source for garments.

Another thing I've done with vintage textiles is learn how to repair and remove stains to restore a vintage baby quilt.

You can see the BEFORE photo and how I did the repairs in this blog post.

Have you done anything with vintage handkerchiefs? I'd love to hear about it. I've got a bin full of them but haven't discovered yet what they want to be.

That's all for now. Until next time...

P.S. Are you new to the Snappy Scissors newsletter? Click HERE to see past issues and get more sewing education and inspiration.