To those of you who sew and don't work.
 

I read a blog from a gal who sews from home. She said she was sewing seven days a week and burned herself out. Then she realized she needed to take weekends off. I decided to do the same. I burned myself out on sewing January 1st and just started sewing again last month. I think my treating sewing like I would a job, since I don't work, is a fabulous idea. I took this weekend off and am very excited to get back into the sewing room. This post is for people who are feeling burned out. Try this idea and see if it helps you.

I am still working until next spring, but love your idea. Thank way I can still do fun things with DH and the family.

im disabled, I can't sew as much as i'd like to because of the pain in my back and shoulder. i'd love to sew more. I can only sew for about 5 minutes at a time. I wish I could sew more and feel guilty when I don't.

I work fulltime and don't sew in the evenings or on Saturdays, but Sunday I go full throttle. Unless I'm in a really good book or there's a Law & Order marathon in which case I don't sew at all until the following weekend.

Your subject line is exactly what my hubby claims I do. Sew and NOT WORK. I do as little housework as I can and still be able to walk thru most of the house. I'm on here way too much, also

I try to treat sewing as my job; but I end up having to run errands, go to exercise, do housework, etc. I guess I'm just a part time sewer. That's why I end up doing some sewing on weekends. The way I have kept from burning out is that I work on so many different things, e.g., in the mornings, I work on FMQ, in the afternoons, I work on piecing, and at night I do handwork such as hand appliqué, Redwork embroidery, or repairing a 50 year old quilt. If I am tired of doing one thing in quilting, I can choose to do another quilting project.

I guess it depends on how much you enjoy the sewing. If it's paid work you have to do for others, you should definitely have time off. But for some of us, sewing is rest and recreation, and it's what we want to do every day!

I wish i could sew for longer time,but with RA the pain starts getting bad after two or three hours. I used to sew all day and have to force myself to stop, oh for the good old day's.

I sewed for a living, I did this for 20+ years. It took me awhile to even by a home sewing machine after I retired.
To this day I only sew when I want to. Sometimes I won't even go into my sewing room for days at a time. And there are times I will spend days on end in there.

My idea of not getting burnt out is to do more than quilting in my sewing room. I make clothes for the grandkids and myself. I do craft projects of all kinds.

I'm a "mood quilter". When I'm in the mood, I can piece/quilt all day long for days at a time :) When I'm not in the mood, it can be days/weeks before I touch my sewing machine :(

yep. I don't force myself to sew. I am in my room everyday only because I want to be. Some days are more productive than others, but none of the time is forced or wasted. I just like being there.

I work outside the home and sew when I can. There are many days (both weekdays and weekends) when I wake up at 4:00 a.m. and can't get back to sleep, so I sew. I would prefer to sew in the evenings, but life / home / family get in the way. I just had a week of vacation, and I got 2 WIP tops finished, worked on two different hand applique projects, got the last block of a fusible applique done, started 2 new fusible applique projects and sewed 2 pillowcases. All in all, I had a great time.

Same here, some days I sew and some days all I do is piddle around with different crafts while I am in my sewing room.

To those of you who sew and don't need to work, you are very blessed and I hope to achieve that sort of nirvana at some point in my life. Congrats!

I work full time and sew in the evenings and on week ends. I haven't been burned out yet.
I have alot of quilts I want to make. I don't plan on slowing down any time soon.

I don't work outside the home, but I don't sew every day. I have many other things in my life that keep me busy, most of them fun. I probably at least walk into either my sewing room or my long arm room every day to make plans, dream, think about new projects etc. Once in a while I'll spend nearly a whole day sewing, but I like to make a point of getting out to exercise every day, so I make myself stop every so often.

I am lucky that I don't have to work outside the home either - I spend most days in my sewing room (you would think it was spotless -not) some days I sew and some days I just cruise the internet. I do go through those slump periods too - but when I do have to take a day off to run errands or gasp! do housework - I am so excited to spend the next day in my sewing room. I do make a little bit of money from my sewing - just enough to supplement my fabric addiction. I love it.

I retired almost 5 years ago. If I am home I am in my sewing room. Two days a week I clean houses, one day a week I have lunch with my daughter, and of course church on Sun. I have been quilting since 1976. I have never gotten bored or burnt out. Making quilts is my passion. As soon as I finish one, I start another. I have an enormous stash, and I would much rather leave my 3 daughters and 10 grandchildren, a stack of quilt tops, than a mound of fabrics. I do send some out to be quilted, but can't afford to do them all. I used to hand quilt, and still do small projects, but large quilts take too long. I am so blessed to be able to spend as much time as I want doing what I love.

I'm pretty much retired. I do some substitute teaching but only when I want to. I sew after my daily chores and work are finished. Since I have a 2 acre yard, I sew less in the summer!!! I also garden, try to exercise daily (rowing machine and walking the dog), cook, clean, etc. I end up with about 4 hours a day for sewing and that's split between quilting and garment sewing. I also do handwork in the evenings in front of the TV--usually cross stitch--for an hour or two. I couldn't choose which is my favorite, but I do go into withdrawal when I cannot sew. My late husband was career military and I carried a machine everywhere, even to Korea where our electricity was spotty. Every time it came on, I fired up the sewing machine and iron. :) I'm thinking I'm addicted!!!

I enjoy being in my sewing room when I can. Not even close to burn out. I have to many quilts and other crafty things I want to make! :)

I work full time and recently I've started to really try to sew everyday. Im afraid that by the time i retire i might not be able to sew, arthritis showing up in my hands, bilateral cataract surgery.I've been a member of my guild for over 20 years and I've been buying fabric for longer than that. Lol even when I didn't sew a lot I was buying fabric. That counts right????
I feel like I've fallen in love with fabric, vintage sewing machines and quilting all over again.

When I'm depressed , I can't sew. and when i'm not in the mood to sew, it's best I wait until I am. I make less mistakes that way and enjoy it much more.

Sympathy for the RA. I have plain ole arthur. But 2 hours is about my limit for one sitting. A short rest and I can come back---------if I don't get sidetracked.

Hope you don't have to wait long.

BTW, your avatar is fantastic. What is the pattern name?

When I was a child, my grandma warned me, sew on Sunday, pierce an angel. Later on, I realized that for her, sewing was work. Not for me. Treating it like work goes against my grain, but I understand what you mean - you can't take a vacation if you don't have a job, if you are always on vacation. And yes, I take breaks from sewing all the time, and don't feel guilty at all. Do what you have to do, and have all the fun you can squeeze in.

I'm retired but take care of my grandchildren, 2 & 5, full time. They both are in preschool full time 8-2:00. That is my sewing time when I'm not running errands, exercising, or napping. My daughter is an ICU nurse and works nights. On the nights she works and I have the kids I don't sleep well, so during the daytime I nap if needed. I've learned the hard way not to quilt when I'm tired!!

I no longer work outside the home - I'm retired and love every minute of it. The first 6 months of retirement I didn't sew a stitch but worked in the house and did projects that had been put off forever. I learned how to cane the seat of my old rocker even. Now I sew 4 - 5 days a week - I love staying home but have a Mother to take care of and 7 grandbabies to watch in school programs, sports events, etc. For the next 3 weeks I will be watching 2 of the kids during the day so won't have a lot of opportunity to sew. I always have 5 or 6 projects in the works. Life is good!

I retired 5 years ago. I don't get to sew as much as I would like. My DH is a people-person and likes to be out and about with family and friends. Then add cleaning, Master Gardener volunteer at Magnolia Gardens greenhouse on Mondays, Embroidery guild, Smocking guild, Quilting guild, sewing group, church.... My DH doesn't particularly like to eat out.

This is me to.

I enjoyed reading all these comments and I can relate to so many of them. I have been retired for 11 years. All my plans for retirement were to quilt, quilt, quilt. I have been blessed with a huge room (use to be an enclosed swimming pool). My husband decided to fill in the pool because he thought I might like it for my sewing. He had other reasons!!!! He did not like every room in the house taken up with my "stuff". Like others I have accumulated a big stash and I am out in it all the time. It is big enough for my little great grands to have space to play too.

I try to do a little sewing each day, but I take a day off here & there if I'm not feeling up to it. I'm disabled and have arthritis head to foot so some days, (rain or chilly) I can barely move, let alone sew. I just continue to choose a wide variety of projects & keep going as I can. Quilting keeps my nerve-endings from jangling non-stop. I like being productive. Finishing projects is the icing on the cakes so to speak. Family all clamors for whatever I make, so there's not been a problem finding homes for the stuff. The problem is in trying to get time to make stuff for us!! :-)

I retired so I could do what I wanted to do and I treat sewing and quilting the same way. I love to do it when I want to do it and if something else comes up, it's okay if I don't sew for a while. My machine will patiently wait for me.

One should never feel guilty about sewing or not. I learned a long time ago not to invest in tickets for guilt trips. They have never been worth the money or time spent. There's always a side trip to the doctors office in the end if you buy one!

I sew when I have time...Since Spring I have no time to sew...I have to do all the yard work and care for the garden and all my many plants in the flower beds..I have 17 rose bushes that I try to dead head at least once a month as well as prune the shrubs and bushes..Once winter comes I will have my new sewing room done and hopefully I will have more time...It is not true that once you are retired you have all the time in the world. It seems like there is not enough hours in a day...I don't know how I ever had time to work..

This sounds like me!!! I have Arthur and need two knee replacements and have fibro. Not whining its just a fact that as we have ailments we can't sit in one position for two long a time. But I work hard during those times I can sit!! LOL

sewing and quilting---
 

I agree--never feel guilty about sewing! I have sewed all my life and will keep going with more! I belong to a guild and love it. My husband is deceased and I have grandchildren I sew for here and there and also crochet and quilt. I love it and do more some days than others. I get on this board every day (sometimes more often) just to read and keep up with what is new, going ons, etc, etc. LOVE every minute of it! Recently made a bunch of those knitted or crocheted scarves, sold some, gave away bunches and still have some. Anybody interested? Love those.
I have my computer and desk and a tv all in my sewing room and it is my "heaven". Also have taught sewing and quilting to several friends and shared ideas, etc. enjoy it so much. I do rotate from one project to another. Marilyn

Getting old is NOT for the weak, that is for sure. And I sure don't like it at all. I agree, for the good old days.

I have reached a bad burnout-can not get motivated at all.

I sew and still work full time ... I get frustrated because work saps my energy now and I can't sew like I used to. Used to be able to sew into the wee hours on weekends, and at retreats ... now I fall asleep at the machine ! Guess it's called getting older ... LOL, but not so funny ...
Looking forward to retirement when DH does in the next couple of yrs - but wonder if I'll ever have the time for quilting that I've envisioned ... ??

I recently retired from a very demanding occupation. Now that I have the time, I love being able to do some quilt project each day, but I couldn't sit at a machine all the time. Sometimes I hand piece or some other hand work. I mix it up.