Finding My Stride

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Remember a while back I mentioned I was going to be linked to on a big blog?  Well Tuesday, a link to my Fancy Burp Cloth tutorial was on Sew, Mama, Sew!  If you’re not already a Sew, Mama, Sew devotee, get your booty over there and take a look.  The tutorial was part of a roundup by the lovely Shannon of luvinthemommyhood, another great blog.  If you sew, definitely take a look at all the wonderful projects on that post – I can’t wait to try some out.

I feel much less stressed about getting products ready for next weekend’s Irvington Halloween Festival than I did when preparing for my first fair.  Part of the reason I’m more relaxed is that I have all the first-time stuff done – signs, tags, sign up sheets, etc. – and I really just have to focus on sewing.  I also have a better idea of what selling at a craft fair is all about, so I don’t have that big fear of the unknown.

Most importantly, I’m finally finding a rhythm to working at home with two kiddos around.  I typically cut and pin fabric at the island in my kitchen, which is nice and big and high enough that I don’t have to stoop over.  This means I can set Bridget up with a craft project at the kitchen table, let Graham empty out the cabinets, and get a good amount of cutting ready.  That way, when they go down for their naps, I’m ready to sew like crazy.  I’ve also been trying to get in a good hour of sewing right after they go to bed at night.


The administrative and computer stuff is easier to squeeze in here and there.  I can usually work on my inventory spreadsheets and accounting stuff in short bits throughout the day when the kids are playing.  I’ve started writing blog posts at night and setting them to publish in the mornings.  This week, I got all of my Etsy listings ready on Sunday night – that way I have been able to list stuff twice a day with a couple of clicks.

(If you're an Etsy seller and don't know how to get your listings ready in advance, here's a great forum thread on how to do it!)

Luckily I have an amazing husband who is always up for entertaining the kids when he’s home.  Saturdays and Sundays (and some evenings) I work really hard in my sewing room.  I usually save photo shoots for those days, too, so I know I can get all the pictures done at once.

I’m not saying I’m great at time management – my kids probably watch more cartoons than they should, and the poor hubs probably forgets what I look like – but I am for sure improving.  One thing I’m really working on is shutting the computer and staying away from the fabric from about 5 pm until the kids go to bed.  We have always made it a point to sit down for dinner, so it just makes it less stressful if I’m not trying to squeeze in work at the same time.

What do you guys do to manage family time and business time?  Finish your listings in the shower?  Hand sew while vacuuming with your feet?  Do share!