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If you’re anything like me, being a crocheter means you have about 50 million WIPs hanging around your home (and car). Typically, I’ll stay up late and look at all sorts of pretty crochet things on Pinterest whilst thinking, ‘yeah, I’ll make that one day’ with absolutely no intention of ever making 99% of them. But, there’s always just that one idea that I NEED (I use this term very lightly) to make. So after finding the pattern, and thinking about whether another WIP is really necessary, the decision is made and another project is being added to my list.
There is sooo much enthusiasm and motivation in the beginning. But then I get distracted/bored and put the crochet down, with every intention of picking it back up later. When I say later, I mean putting it in your crochet WIP box and not going back to it.
So this year, I made myself a goal: To get my sh*t together. This included finishing ALL my WIPs. In order to help my fellow WIP enthusiasts, I’ve come up with some top tips to help you get on your way to completing them. Here’s to more storage space for yarn! YAY!
How to finish all your WIPs... (work in progress)
MAKE A LIST
Ok so firstly, write a list of your current unfinished projects. Yes, I mean ALL of them. It helps to get them out and go through them all, believe me. I found projects that I had totally forgot I had!
Grab a pen and paper and physically write them down. Write out what it is and how much you have left to finish it. It could be a simple weaving in ends job, or a whole project. It really doesn’t matter!
Now have a look at your list and decide which projects NEED finishing. By that, I mean any projects that are for other people – not necessarily paid orders, but projects for others that don’t have time limits. After you’ve sorted those, order the remaining projects so that the WIPs with the shortest finishing time are nearer the top.
DEDICATE TIME
Time planning is crucial. No one likes starting something, only to get distracted! So, plan your crochet time with EXACTLY what you are going to achieve. You could say that for 1 hour, you will focus on X and nothing else. Perhaps even plan a whole day. Don’t just guess, write a plan and stick to it!
Distractions are one of the main reasons we build up so many projects. From family to unexpected events, sometimes these things are unavoidable. But setting time aside just for YOU will not only help combat this, but will also give you that bit of ‘Me Time’.
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SET GOALS
Next it’s time to set some goals so that you can track your progress. You need to make sure they are achievable so that you can easily work your way through them. Breaking those goals up into micro goals helps a lot!
Even if you’re working on a simple blanket where the rows are pretty much all the same, you can break this down but completing a certain amount of rows at a time. 20 rows = a little reward. Sounds more fun now, doesn’t it?
If you had a baby cardigan to finish and you still need to complete the sleeves, weave ends and sew on buttons, break these down into separate goals. Doing this makes everything less daunting!
REWARDS
One of the things I find hardest about finishing WIPs, is motivation to finish them. I like to make sure I give myself little rewards each time I finish a micro goal. Maybe a biscuit or just some time to catch up on social media. During my dedicated crochet time, I do not touch my phone, as hard as it can be when I get a notification!
For when the whole WIP is complete, look at slightly bigger rewards. For example, a trip to the local yarn shop. I find this gives me so much more motivation. Remember when you were a kid at school and you’d get stickers for doing well? Yeah, think of it like that.
FEEL GOOD
As soon as you finish a WIP, STOP. Just rest for a minute and chill. What you’ve just done, is created a masterpiece. Admire it, take in that feeling of accomplishment and appreciate it. The satisfaction of completion is amazing.
Sometimes we all have a bit of doubt as to what others think. It’s natural. But what do YOU think? Are you proud of yourself? Does it make you smile? If yes, then great! You should feel incredibly proud! But if not, then look at it and ask WHY? Why doesn’t it make you smile? Why aren’t you proud of it? And what/how could you have done better?
And that’s it! Hopefully this should help you work your way through your WIP box, free up loads more space and make you feel sooooo good!
As ever, if you have any questions or have any other tips that help you with your WIPs, pop me an email at ccbyfran@gmail.com! I'd love to hear from you!
Happy making!
