How much is too much
 

Feel like I am spending way to much time sewing. Spent about 5 hours each on Saturday and Sunday putting together a quilt for my granddaughter and a friends son. It is not getting in the way of anything important.
Did not watch any TV or spend any time on my phone or computer, so maybe it was not Too much time SoHow much time do you spend sewing/quilting

I spend as much time as possible and feel that it's never enough time. But if it feels that way to you maybe it is. We're all in different circumstances.
I'd say I spend 5 or more hours several days a week in my sewing room.
We just got 2 new kittens and they are taking up my time more than usual but they are so worth it!! No complaints :)

One of the ways I judge is by how my body feels. If I sit too long then I start to seize up, and if I don't walk each day then my legs ache. If you look at a day a lot of people will sit down after dinner and just watch TV. If you go to bed at 10 and ate dinner at 5 then you spent 5 hours watching television. So, I would say you are being productive instead of just sitting there. Are you enjoying yourself?

My time varies a lot depending on what else is happening in my life and I work in bits. My machine stays set up most of the time and I might sit down for just 10 minutes sometimes between other jobs or I might sew for an hour. Each day is different and I have never added up how much time I sew. I had a deadline a month ago and did do a lot more to reach it in time.

ha ha!! I spent a lot of time this weekend and I could still spend more time :) Sunday's not over yet. I have a boring job that I have to go to Monday thru Friday so the weekends are when I really do the most sewing.

I think as long as you are not ignoring responsibilities I think its up to you how much time you spend. My kids are out of the house now so I spend more time sewing now than I did a few years ago

If you are enjoying yourself - just enjoy :)

For me it depends on the project and my motivation. I spent about 5-6 hrs yesterday and another 7 hrs today working on a single (king size; paper pieced) quilt. Because I'm used to spending large chunks of time sewing, it's hard for me to spend a mere 10-15 min. at a clip working on a machine piecing project. I can do that with hand quilting but not machine piecing.


After a few weeks and only a few chuncks of the above type available time, I'm only 15 blocks into a 72 block quilt! Wowzer!

If you've made that amount of progress in that short period of time...kudos to you!

Hi Mimi,

I go through periods of time that I can spend 27 hours a day (I know there are only 24 hours in a day) and still want more time to sew. Then there are times I don't go near my sewing room for months at a time - no mojo.

Currently I am in an active mode. Made one charity quilt top, have another sewn into strips and ready to be sewn together. Cut templates and organized the fabric for a to-be made quilt. Cut out another round of blocks for a 1930's top I am working on. Organized hundreds of 5" I-Spy squares for my charity quilts and went to a quilt guild board meeting so I got no sewing done. I only sew in the afternoons from noon until about 5:30 pm. So basically, I've done what I consider a lot of quilting/quilt related things in 2 1/2 days (I don't quilt on weekends or in the evening because I spend the time with my husband who works all week). I am a late riser (I go back to bed after sending husband off to work at 6 am) and in the mornings I tend to work on my computer, do the household chores (is there no end to the laundry????), pay bills, etc. That leaves my afternoons to sew.

Too much or not enough time is in the eye of the beholder. If you are not comfortable with how much time you are spending, cut down. No one will say anything to you if you do - only you can judge for yourself what you are comfortable doing. Remember...there is no such thing as "quilt police". :)

When you stop enjoying what you are doing, it's time to put it away and take a break! Take care and know that your granddaughter and friend's son will, no doubt, love their quilts.

Some days I quilt more than other days. For me, it's not a job. I'm retired, old, live alone so no bosses anymore.

If I feel like doing housework or outside stuff (trimming bushes, picking up tree limbs [small ones only], organize closets, I do it. TV watching only the shows I really am interested in.

Lots of time for quilting... with lots of breaks for minor stuff like eating, sleeping, and washing dishes. :-)

There have been many times when I did not go into the sewing room for weeks. When I do any sewing, it is not too much. Relish the time you spend making beautiful things.

Sewing for me is sporadic so any time is good time

Even though I am 77 yr old retired person I still maintain my yard and give piano lessons one day a week and am very involved with my church, I still try to spend time either piecing or LA quilting. Last Friday and Saturday it rained so I spend 4 hours on Friday and another 4 on Saturday and finished a lap quilt. Today Sunday I have been cutting and sewing since 2pm and have just stopped and it is 11:30 pm....it is almost tomorrow. So good nite..

If it doesn’t interfere with other things then it’s not too much, I like to spend most of Saturdays and Sundays sewing and a couple of hours on other days. But if I have my grandaughter staying then I don’t sew at all. Whatever makes you happy is the right amount

I am no longer employed, so during the winter I can sometimes spend all day sewing if I care to. There is little on TV that is worth watching these days so I can spend all evening sewing too, time flies and it keeps me from the biscuit tin and the fridge!!

During the summer the gardening and allotment takes over and I might not come back into the house until very late so less sewing is done.

Only you know what 'too much' sewing is, if there are other calls upon your time.

I like to get household chores, shopping etc done in the mornings then, straight after I’ve had lunch, I prep our evening meal. After that I think what time is left is ‘my-time’.

But I think the main decider is my body. I know I spent too long at my machine yesterday because my shoulder is aching today but I just had to get that binding on!

I was the same when I used to machine knit or hand knit - I just don’t seem to be able to pace myself and just do a little.

I wish I could find something worth watching on TV on an evening but I’d much rather be quilting.

Winter time, and thanks to the Groundhog, we still have plenty of winter left....I stay in and sew. I am amazed at how little I get done, my neighbor is amazed at how much I get done. It's just a matter of perspective.

66 years old and retired, married and have a 3 1/2 year old Yorkie that demands a lot of my time. I'm in the sewing room for maybe 45 minutes at a time before having to stop and go do something else that needs my attention, like walk the dog, or play toys with her, do laundry, bake cookies. You get the general idea I'm sure. Then back into the room again. It seems to be a vicious cycle most days, and feels like I get almost no sewing accomplished. We go to bed early (7:30) and are up early (5:00). Personally I don't need as much sleep as DH does....maybe if I stayed up later I'd get more done.

On my days off I try to get household things done Early...like by 7 am. Then I can sew till about 11. Then, run any necessary errands, eat something and get back to sewing by 1-1:30, sew till hubby comes home around 4.
Sometimes I'mdoing prep work or hand stitching in my chair in the evening too.
So;
i don’t think there is any such thing as ( too long) as long as you take breaks and don’t over-tax your body.

If you feel you are spending too much time sewing, then cut back.

For me, 5 hours a day on the weekend would be less than half what I normally put in. I find that if I don't get a lot of sewing time, I start stressing out about my job. Sewing is how I relax. I'm not programmed to sit on my behind to relax, I need to be doing something.

My husband is the main housekeeper at this point in our lives, so that frees me from most cleaning and cooking. So the hours I am not dealing with my job, I can pretty much do what I like. And right now, that is playing with fabric.

i average a couple hours a day. My fingers hurt (arthritis) if I try to do more, especially cutting or FMQ.

As I am retired and have no one to answer to I can spend as much or as little time as I want. I try to spend around 5-6 hrs a day and sometimes not at all. Just depends on what's going on that day. I try to give myself a schedule what I want to get done that day and then just do it till its done. This week I'm decluttering my fabric shelves, refolding them and getting them back into color order In between I'm putting together rows on a quilt project. If I give myself a list what to get done that day I seem to get more done that way.

As a friend of mine says “quilt a little every day” works for me, tho I can go a few days w/o if life gets busy. Like the others, I try to listen to my body and can be in my studio from and hour to hours at a time, trying to change activities so I’m not in the same position for too long.
Do what works for you, it’s creative time, so enjoy!!

you say 'it is not getting in the way of anything important'. What you did in making the quilts was so very important! What a wonderful way to spend your weekend. Time spent with the tv, your phone or computer does not even compare to have wonderfully you spent your time.

We recently sold one of our retail businesses (after 10 years) so now I have more time to do the things I enjoy...quilting being one of them. I am not into television and don’t spend more than an hour or two a day on the internet or social media. I workout 4 days a week at my YMCA and keep a tidy house so I don’t count the hours I spend in my sewing studio.

Since winters are long in Maine and summers are short, I don’t spend much time sewing. I plant a large vegetable garden and I’d rather be outdoors during the summer months. I agree, if your time sewing doesn’t interfere with anything else, no use keeping track of the hours. ��

I quilt for my own pleasure and don't impose deadlines on myself. My mojo comes and goes and I have accepted that. So when I want to quilt I do. For as long as I am enjoying it. I have other things in my life that I enjoy too.

Since my husband and I are both retired, I don't have too many time restraints. Some days I sew 8 hours, others none. We travel many times throughout the year to see our kids, so no sewing then; once a month I spend 5-6 nights at a quilt retreat and sew maybe 10 or more hours per day. If you are anxious about spending too much time, that makes the time you do sew less fun, so cut back. Sometimes the season depends on how much I sew too and how much time I need to devote to outside work, so be your own judge. Remember quilting is supposed to be fun so make it fit into your schedule.

Is there such a thing as too much time quilting or sewing??? Not at my house. Sometimes dinner waits a little bit if I am on the last row or block of something. Good thing my husband supports my addiction. haha

I'm mad about quilting! Seems like I always have been! Made my first quilt at 8 years old. An orange and green offset strippy backed with flannel from my little sisters blankie.

I don't have a tv and I limit myself to about 2 hours a day online.

I love my lfe and an exceptionally lucky to have it after 4 wake up calls ;)
I've quit dusting the house apparently, but nothing else is going wanting.

I just found out that the wife of a friend of my DH's sews a lot. He said she makes a quilt top every week, then sends it to the "church ladies" to do the hand quilting.
If I could afford to have someone else do the quilting, I bet I would be making a quilt top every week, too.
As it is, I get frustrated with trying to get the machine "just right" for the FMQ. Then before I finish, I need to change it to do a repair or an emergency item. Back to square one. Bah!

I mostly sew on weekends because of working. I often spend 5 hours or so each day if I have no other plans. Like Kelsie, I let my body tell me when it's too much. I'm usually also doing laundry and other chores interspersed with sewing so I'm up and down a lot.

It seems to me the only thing you are spending too much time on is worrying about it! LOL! :D :D
If your body is able, and nobody is making important demands on you, and you are comfortable with your living arrangements, then sew all day and sleep all night; who cares! :thumbup:

I cut down to 2-4 hours at least per day. I have a couple other interest now. Care of bird,cat and dogs, housework mostly falls on me. My Husband is waiting for weather to warm up so he can spend time outside and doing yardwork. During rainy, or cold weather he mostly sleeps and reads. We retired last day of 2016.

Yeah that sounds about right unless I have other obligations. My husband always works so I am home and once I have done what I need to do I sew, especially at night.

Some days I will spend almost all day, but I find that my life is better when I don’t spend more than 2 or 3 hours per day. I strive for balance between sewing, cooking, gardening, cleaning, and quiet time.

I don't keep track of my quilting time. I may sew all day for a week then only one day the next week. I don't feel like I spend too much time breathing so its the same spending time doing what I want.