On Getting Organized

by Patricia Lynne Grace Cummings

Whenever I want to hear a good belly laugh from friends and family, I just have to announce that I hope to “get organized.” You must realize that this statement is made by one who is constantly working at that goal. However, there is real reason to believe that the task is possible. After all, I do have a dedicated work area for my quilting, which originally consisted of one large room upstairs, but which now has sprawled to encompass the entire second floor of my home. I lovingly refer to this workspace as my “studio.”

During the many years that I have been a quilter, the collections of quilt books, magazines, fabrics, sewing machines and a serger, quilting tools, and quilts both old and new, have multiplied to fill every available nook, cranny and closet. Recently, I mentioned to a friend that although I thought that I owned quilts and books, what I have truly come to discover is that they own me.

These days, a search for any particular item is a hunt that can take a least a month. In the process, the re-discovery of previously bought, must-have fabrics that "called out my name" in the store, leads me to ponder why they have not yet been used. The frightening aspect of this is the realization that they may never be used in my lifetime, any more than some of the patterns from my bulging file. There was a time that I truly enjoyed using the patterns created by others, and some are wonderful, but now I am compelled to generate ideas of my own for projects, and I prefer to follow my own creative vision.

As the quest to get organized continues, and it seems that progress is being made, a new project will come along that suddenly throws the whole studio into disarray again. Spools of thread find their way off the thread holders on the wall; the fabric stash is no longer sorted by color; and the books are no longer lined up by category. The large table where I work becomes a mound of fabric, tossed here and there, as if a cyclone has hit, or perhaps a mischievous ghost has been moving things about.

After several days of trying to accomplish something amidst all this utter mayhem, it is time to set things “right” again. Anyone who knows me, also knows that I am always inviting folks over to see my latest creation. This serves to keep me on task, to always have something freshly baked, and the house suitable for company, at a moment’s notice. However, a messy studio would be an embarrassment. After all, what would “they” think?

Lately, I have become aware that I feel happiest when working at the height of clutter. Having been pre-warned about the dangers of rotary cutters, and having had a slight encounter with one that was hiding under a pile of fabric, the only precaution I take is being constantly aware to where that tool is located.

After my most recent and assured exclamation that “I will get organized,” the studio still looks like a tornado just hit. Oh well, maybe I can accomplish this when I finish the quilt that I am now working on, or perhaps next week...or more realistically, most likely never!