My Dh is redoing a closet in a spare bedroom for me to store all my sewing things. My question is: I can design it any way i choose but am unsure what kind of shelving to put in. Would you use the white wire shelves or wood? Or maybe both? I need to keep the cost at a minimum but i want to do it right the first time. Any advise would be appreciated greatly!!

No. 1 thing that comes to mind for me is keep it flexible. I would definitely start with adjustable shelves. Whether they're wood or wire. Adjustable is a must have for me.

No. 1 thing that comes to mind for me is keep it flexible. I would definitely start with adjustable shelves. Whether they're wood or wire. Adjustable is a must have for me.

No. 1 thing that comes to mind for me is keep it flexible. I would definitely start with adjustable shelves. Whether they're wood or wire. Adjustable is a must have for me.

I personally don't care for the wire shelves. My husband insisted on them for the laundry room & garage. Guess what? Things fall thru them, things don't set squarely unless you set them on the wires just right. It is a constant balancing act. I can't wait until mine wear out & I can replace them with wood shelves.

I concur! I would not use the wire shelves. Definitely wood. Good luck!

Hmm, for fabric yardage, I like the wire shelves. We did all the closets in the condo in '92 when we moved in and long before I became a quilter. We even use an Elfa stack next to the washer dryer unit as our "linen closet" because the washer/dryer takes up almost all of the space that used to be the linen closet. For drawers, they make liners to keep stuff from falling thru, but I haven't had that problem in the closet shelves, but again I store stuff on those shelves that isn't going to fall thru!

ditto, no wire.

Adjustable shelving definitely.
Once you figure out how you want to fold/wrap your fabrics you can adjust the shelving accordingly to maximize space.
Wire shelving isn't so bad if you are using containers, or have some sort of acid-free shelf lining.

One thing to think about also...I've heard that some wooden shelving can stain fabric. You might have to line them with something before you put your fabric on them.

I like the adjustable wood shelves. Easier to keep things stright.

If you do wire.. have plexiglass cut to cover the wire so.. stuff will not fall through and your fabrics will lay as flat as possible.
Wood can stain the fabrics ... so make sure its a polyurethane finish, that has cured for several days before any real volume of fabric is placed on it.

Don't wait for them to wear out. Buy some boards, have them cut to size and put them over the wire.

I don't like wire, either. Can you tell?

Suggest putting at least one cedar board in the closet - Cedar helps repel bugs - and that can't be bad for fabric.

I would not do wire, nor real wood. They make a laminate shelving that you can purchase in various lengths. You can get it in faux (fake) wood grain if you want that "look" or you can buy it in white for a cleaner finish. Both are priced about the same. I just bought two pieces of the "wood grained" that were 8 x 24 and they were $4.95 each. They do come in wider and longer pieces, naturally the prices increase with the size. Unfortunately, this is not going for fabric storage, it is additional shelving in a book case. Lucky you for a crafty Hubby!

That just seems like doubling the expense, but I'm a cheapskate, or so I've been told. :lol:

i like the white shelving (wood)

you can buy shelving at home depot that is already painted. works great. they'll cut it to size for you

My son helped turn my walk-in closet into a fabulous storage space. The shelves came from IKEA and they work fabulously for me. Hope my photos help you to decide.

WHOA!!! first words out of my mouth. Looks like a store. I guess if mine was all out in the open and folded like that I would have one too. Can't wit til DD from WY comes home to help me this spring sometime. Pretty fabrics.

Painted? Are you sure? I think you are talking about the laminates. :-D

My thoughts exactly!

do wood if money is an issue. BUT you have to completely seal it, to avoid the oils/acids from leaching onto the fabric.

I would PREFER this myself!

Cedar, Can damage some fabric. When I was about---,I put an internation doll, in my cchest. Moved 20 yrs later.long storie. the doll's dress was disclored. My Dad,gave it to me At 10yrs Only glassware get put in now Tinker

Don't understand why the problem with wire shelving - I love mine! However, my fabric is all folded uniformly and I do have containers for my fat quarters so don't have a problem with things falling through. Also air can circulate better with wire shelving.

Another vote here for no wire shelving...can't stand them. All my closets have wood shelving that are painted white...love that creamy white in all of my closets. My husband made rows top to bottom at different levels of shelving for me in my closet in my quilting room and I love them. I don't have the same concerns about wood that some do on this board. I will say that the majority of my fabrics are in antique lawyer's bookcases with glass doors which are solid wood and not painted and have had no problems. In my closet are all the numerous other quilting items, and other necessities for other type projects. As usual like everything else we all have our preferences for what we like or dislike for various reasons.

I just had my dh put some more of the white wire shelving in the spare room closet for me to put my fabric on. This is working wonderful. Fabric is not falling through the wire. In fact, at one end I have my bolts standing straight up and they haven't fallen through either. I left about a 2 ft. area of hanging space so if I wanted to hang quilts that I'm working on or waiting to be worked on :oops: have a place to be. This is much easier to see what I have over looking through bins and bins and bins, I can now see what I have at a glance.

My fabric is happy! :-D

Joanie, once again IKEA comes to the rescue! My quilt room is lined with their 'Billy' bookcases which offer doors you can add on or not if you choose to leave the shelving open. And the floor to ceiling height is a blessing to store everything. At about $60 each, they couldn't be more affordable. (sorry, I sound like an IKEA advertisement, but I LOVE that store!! Even their fabrics are amazing!!

I use a closet that my husband 'retro fit' for me. I have a shelving unit that has adjustable 'wood' shelves. I don't like the wire shelves - small stuff falls thru. Also consider the depth of the shelves - if they're too deep everything gets pushed to the back. I was storing my fabric in clear boxes, I've switched to comic book boards - much easier to see the fabric. Have fun getting it together.

I don't like the wire because your fabric sets on the wire shelfs and the pressure pushs it though the wire and its hard to iron out those ripples after its been there awhile and it doesn't stack as neatly ...I would use wood and put a muslin lining on it to keep the wood from bleaching out your fabric colors that are on the bottom....enjoy..blessings

Suzi,
Get a set of the shelf brackets that you can put a rod on and place a bit higher tan normal. Get a good heavy rod, allow a bit of hanging space under the rod before you start your first shelf. That was you have somewhere to hang your WIP and other things (backs) that tend to wrinkle. I bought laminated shelves so that there was no chance of staining. Just a few suggestions.
Brenda

I KNEW you guys would help me with this!!!!!!!!!! Thanks so much for all your input! I can't wait to get all my stuff in one place. I will post pics when it is done :!:

but..... if you do wind up with the wire shelves, coroplast makes a wonderful "bottom". you can get it at sign shops for @25$ for a 4x8 sheet and it comes in all colors. cuts easily with a razor blade. and you can score it and fold it to make lips or boxes to keep stuff where you put it. i make the bottoms for my guinea pig cages out of it and it is great stuff.

I put 2 inexpensive bookcases from Walmart in my closet. The short ones which leaves space for bolts on top. There is a built-in shelf w/clothes rod. The 2 bookcases don't quite fill the width but I keep batting in the small space between. There is room in front of them for floor stand and my worst collecting habit - shipping boxes.

I do keep majority of stash in a buffet and under the cutting table though.

I have both wood and wire and prefer the wood. Things lay flat and evenly. And if you look at how the wire is installed, they have those big braces that hold up the shelf and it's awkward to stack around them. The braces that hold up the wood aren't nearly as intrusive.

I covered my wire shelves with clear contact paper. A bonus was the width of the paper was about an inch wider than I needed and I just folded it over the edge of the shelf and it holds nicely.

I have wire baskets and wire shelves. I personally like them because they're much lighter and I can lift the baskets easier. I also hate to dust shelves. I also have the problem of stuff falling through. I solved that by taking pieces of cardboard and putting them across the top of the shelves and then stacking stuff on top of that. When it's time to dust, I just change the cardboard.

I love mine made in Melamine. Fabric slides on it easily and there are no tannins to stain the fabric. I think wire shelving, while allowing nice ventilation, would crease your fabric on the bottom of the stack

Wood shelves are fine as long as there is some protective finish on them. Such as paint, etc. Mine haven't ever caused a problem. In a closet, I think wood holds up better. I do have wire baskets in a stand alone system which I also like - but I wouldn't use them in my closet. Just my opinion...as always :)

Debbie in Austin