I will readily admit to being a bit of a nerd - with a love of spreadsheets. They are a terrific tool for tracking all kinds of things, and don't need to be fancy or complicated.
At the end of 2020 I found myself wondering just how many finishes I actually had for the year. I could go back in my blog and literally count them, but that seemed like an awful lot of work. So, for 2021 I've set up a simple spreadsheet to track finishes.
As I've worked on projects - or kitted them up - I've added them to the list. If I haven't worked on them, then they won't get added to the list. On the right side I set up a drop-down list of project types to help me organize them further. You can't see it in the photo, but I have a COUNTIF set up at the bottom, that will keep a running count of finishes in each category. And I removed the category for unfinished things so it's only counted after I add the date and choose a category from the drop down.
I've been thinking I should add new worksheet for RSC blocks or other "random" blocks I'm making for future projects. I'm sure the numbers in that category would add up fast. For example:
On Tuesday afternoon I made 3 more Patriotic Star blocks for our QOV group, and then made 6 little Hourglass blocks from HST trimmings from the stars. I'm trying NOT to allow these little (3.5") blocks distract me too much, but sewing them up right away kept me from having those triangles laying next to my cutting board. They've been added to the bag with the others - now adding up to 20 little blocks.
And on a side note - the cutting station is still clean. The rulers are all returned where they belong, and the only thing laying next to the mat is the stack of binding strips I just cut to bind the Unity quilt. It simplifies my life just a little to have that clean surface ready for the next cutting task. Let's hope I can keep it clean for longer than a few days.
The spreadsheet is a good idea. I don’t have any unfinished projects just scraps and ideas for quilts. My cutting table clutter is gradually being cleared.
ReplyDeleteI love your spreadsheet. I have a spreadsheet in Google Docs where I track my quilted quilts and in the past 15 years I've done close to 400 quilted items. I kind of wish I had kept track of all the bags and purses.
ReplyDeleteCool. Don't sewers/quilters have something like this? https://www.ravelry.com/people/woolyjooly
ReplyDeleteThis is how I keep track of knitting projects and finishing, along with library of patterns and ability to communicate in forums with other knitters world wide. A truly unparalleled site!
Very cool spreadsheet. There's just something about ordered data where you can see at a glance what you've got, what's done, etc. It's nice to know I'm not the only quilting nerd out there with a love of spreadsheets.
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