I'm sure you read my 10 tips to sew more, better, faster. Today I'm going to break down how I use my not sewing time to make MORE sewing time. It is a little gift to myself. (***There are NO affiliate links in this post).

#1- Kon Mari. Unless you've been hiding under a rock, you know that Kon Mari is the process of getting rid of what you don't actually need and creating a more organized space. I have seen people go pretty extreme with this and end up with basically no stuff. Let's not go there. But I can promise, the more stuff you have, the more stuff you have to clean. So purge what you don't need so you can spend less time cleaning.

#2 Cook, fast! You might think that going out to eat would get you more time. But the truth is, no matter what you do, your family is going to take the same amount of time to eat. And going out to a restaurant will mean travel time to/from the location, waiting for them to prepare your food AND having to pay. If you could prepare a home cooked meal in 15-30 minutes, you could save a LOT of time. And your family will probably be happier and healthier. I'm partial to my Instant Pot, but slow cooking and freezer meals are also great options.

#3 Grocery Delivery. Whether you order online and pick up at the location OR order online and have it delivered straight to your house, not having to go out will save you time AND not surprisingly money. I use Door To Door Organics. I order my groceries and they show up to my door on Wednesday mornings. I don't end up impulse buying anything because I can order any time I want and change my list up until the night before. There are many similar services depending on what your food preferences are. Even stores like Safeway have a delivery service you can try (often for free).

#4 Do the chores that need unsupervised time. Nothing will suck up time (and my joy) like getting up in the morning and having to hand wash spoons (bowls, etc) so we can eat breakfast. OR what if you want to wash new fabric but there is too much laundry backed up?! Don't let that happen as then you can't sew. So, chores like dishes and laundry always get started BEFORE I start sewing. I may take a break to empty a dishwasher or switch a load of laundry, but otherwise I don't worry too much about a clean house.

#5 Clean your machines! Nothing is going to slow you down like having to take your machine into the shop because they're broken. A clean machine is a happy machine, mostly. I've written about cleaning your machine before. But you can check out these pins to figure out what parts of your machine you can be keeping clean.

#6 Spend time with your family. You're probably thinking, "How can spending time with someone else get me more sewing time?" Nothing makes my kids more needy than an impending deadline and me staying hyper focused on "work". And don't get me started on my husband who "just wants to spend time with me." So, don't scream at them to go away. Instead, set aside time to really do something they love. Stay 100% focused on them for a set given time. If they feel loved, appreciated and heard, they are more likely to give you some space to do what you need. Please note, this doesn't apply to babies and very small children. See #7 for tips on that.

#7 If you're a mom with a baby or toddlers, you know they hate sewing time. Actually, they mostly hate anything that doesn't involve hanging on mom for every single minute of every single day. Or maybe that was just my kids. I'm not sure. What's a mom to do? Create a "play area" for your little ones within eyesight of your machines. Sometimes that helps. And when it doesn't, I'm a big fan of baby wearing. When I would sling my kids onto my back, they were happy to watch what I was doing, or take a nap. I couldn't do this for hours a day, but when you just need to get 1-2 things done, it is a great compromise. There are many different types, styles and price ranges. I have used nearly all of them. For safety, you want a carrier that can be worn safely with your baby on your back. I have used for this purpose: a mei tai (you can probably sew one of these for yourself without too much stress), woven wrap (again, something you can make yourself if you source good fabric), and an SSC (I have a Boba). Any of these would be great for a back carry. DO NOT use a stretch wrap (like a moby) or a ring sling for a back carry. They are not meant for that purpose and baby cannot be secured properly.

#8 Babysitter/mother's helper/grandma/childcare share. Sometimes, the only way to get you time is to hire in help. A few years ago, my husband worked 9 hour days, went to school full time and traveled frequently for work. I didn't get ANY time for myself because he was never home and we had no family nearby. The only thing that kept my sanity was our mother's helper. I usually used the time when she was there to do laundry or clean up. But that meant I didn't have to do those things at night after the babies were all in bed. Thankfully, now we have my mom nearby. I'm fairly certain my kids prefer being at her house than hanging out with their parents. Thanks to homeschooling, our schedule is flexible, so they even get to have week day over nights with grandma. Those overnights give me HOURS and HOURS of free time.

#9 Sleep. I don't know about you, but I make the most sewing mistakes when I'm tired. Sleeves put in inside out or backwards. Bad stitching lines that aren't straight, etc. As much as you might want to stay up late to get something done, interruptions to your sleep won't just ruin a day. It can take a week or more to get your body back on schedule! So if you're tired, go to bed. Because time with your seam ripper is NOT time well spent. If you think I'm making this "sleep thing" up, feel free to google "dangers to sleep schedule". Or, you can just check out this link that I found with a quick search. "Top Ten Sleep Mistakes."

#10 Whatever thing will drive you crazy if you don't get it done. If something is going to nag you until it is done, just go do it. I will often go days without cleaning my house feeling happily oblivious to the chaos. Then bam, I suddenly NEED to clean all the things. As much as I may want to sew, it is better for everyone involved to just get it done. Did you know will power is actually a muscle? Saying yes is easier than saying no. So just say yes to things that feel like they need to get done. In the long term, you'll have more time for sewing and that will definitely make you happy.