NOTE : I no longer promote Craftsy/Bluprint as I used to due to the way the subscription is currently being carried out. I had the issue of cancelling my subscription when the company changed hand and I find that cancelling through calls is inconvenient. However, I do still stand behind these classes I promote and if you are subscribed, you can surely check these classes I recommend on the platform. If you are looking for another online platform to learn craft such as quilting, do check out
CreativeBug. It is
much cheaper in subscription (subscribe now 3 months for only $5). Thank you.
If you are like me, working everyday on weekdays from 8-5 and have a family to take care of, you probably want to make sure you are making the most of your free time.
First off, I love to craft and I make sure I have time to do so. Whenever people ask me, where do I get the time to do so, I shall say – I make time to do so. I schedule in Sewing time. Even if it is only 5 minutes for that day.
So before I go onto the tips, I would advice you to:
Make time for your crafting/sewing even 5 minutes a day. Put in your schedule, or even take time sew when you wait for that dinner to bake out. Just make sure you put a timer on. 😛
Then in that limited times, here are my 5 tips to make the most of it:
5 tips to sew efficiently in limited time
There are affiliate links within this post. Please find my full disclosure here.
Read the instruction or plan the steps to do
Whenever you start a new project, first please read the instruction or plan the steps to do if you are not following any pattern – write it down so you can refer to it.
This will save a lot of time later, and will also save you from having to spend time with Mr Seam Ripper.
Do all the cutting, batch it!
Do all the cutting required first, put them in a dedicated box/ tray
This way you can sew anytime, I have very limited space too, so I cut elsewhere and having cut pieces ready to sew means I can save time taking out my cutting board etc.
It also makes easier to clean up and to carry around.
Chain piece
chain piece whenever you can.
I love chain piecing. It can save you a lot of time cutting or re-threading believe me! See chain piecing video here.
If your machine does not have an auto thread cutter, this is definitely a must! You can also save threads. You can even sew pieces of scraps in between blocks to mark it. This method of using scraps can also be a thread saver. See more of this thread saving tip here.
Portable design boards
Use portable design boards to place the cut pieces – especially for patchwork! Use this tutorial to make some cute portable design boards.
I also use this boards to place my pieces for making wallets. And they can be stacked on top of each other, which is perfect for small space and for stacking various blocks or parts
Use labels
I label my pieces if I’m sewing bags and my rows for chain piecing quilts. They save me time looking for them. I can leave them anytime when my sewing time is up, knowing that I won’t be lost next time I come back to it.
You can buy these alphabetic labels 
to help or just print out alphabets and cut them in small squares.
Well, hope you get more sewing done with these tips I learned!
Small chunks of time saved can save you a ton of time and make you more productive! Last but not least, be happy and enjoy your sewing time even for a small 5 minutes!
if you are interested into that.
