I’ve found that small, consistent habits make a huge difference in staying productive without burning out.

But then summer rolled in, as it always does, and suddenly I had six weeks off work. Six whole weeks of no bells, no students, no deadlines. That was when everything shifted. With time, space, and absolutely no one policing my day, I really started to learn who I was, and I threw myself straight into sewing. I was on every sewing course going. If someone was teaching it, I was there, armed with a notebook and absolutely no self-control around fabric shops.

There are so many decisions, and every single one feels life-or-death when you’re a beginner. What thread? What fabric? What colour? On the bias or not on the bias? Is the fabric directional or am I about to sew this block upside down for the third time? And you can only make these decisions after industrial amounts of procrastination and enough cups of tea to qualify as a hydration hazard.