I've done the same thing and it works well. There is a company who have basically done the same thing with "acid free" cardboard, they were at the Houston quilt festival as well as others, I would imagine, and they claim that the fabric bolts are not acid free and will destroy your fabric, but I've been doing this for almost 2 years now and haven't had a problem to date. Look at this as an encouragement to use your stash that much quicker....and still buy more! Happy Thanksgiving!

I have been working on sorting and refolding all my fabrics, and storing
them in plastic storage bins 58qt size (18x13x17). Anything UNDER 3
yards gets folded.

Separated by color, if fabrics are heavily multi-colored than
I put them into yet another bin. Everything OVER 3 yards is
put onto empty bolts I get from Joann's, Hobby Lobby and
any other store who is willing to let me have them. I also put
collection groups onto the bolts IF there is 2+ yards of each
I put them all together. If the collection group has LESS then
1-1/2 yards each I fold and put them into zipper plastic bags
1 gallon or the 2-1/2 gallon size depending on how much I
have.

IF I have a pattern that I intend to use with fabric I purchased
even if it is not part of a group I put the pattern with the fabric.
I sometimes plan out quilt designs in EQ7 when I print the pattern
I make "notes" and make sure that it gets put with the fabrics and/or
pattern.

All my "holiday" fabrics go into one bin EXCEPT Christmas
since there is so much of that it gets 2+ bins.

ALL my fat quarters are in 2 FULL bins and have a third bin
started. They are NOT separated in no particular way. ALL
my scraps are just a jumble of pieces in 6 FULL bins with #7
in the works.

Since I am not into crumb quilts I have not intension of using
all the scraps. I NEED to separate the scraps into the catagories
100% cotton, Flannel & unknown content.

Now if I could spend 1/4 of the time sewing that I do playing with
the fabric I might actually get some quilts made.

LOL

I organize as you have listed. I have mostly quilting cottons, but also have minkee, flannel, and fleece. I keep this in a different area than I do my cotton quilting fabric. I then sort by collection and everything else is sorted by color. Good luck with oganizing your stash.

By separating into colors I was able to eliminate one large plastic tub and two smaller ones and replace with three ArtBin 12x12x4's color-cordinated with the fabrics inside. These either stand or stack, so I can grab what I need easily. Trouble is, they are full. I can't buy fabric until I use some up.

I'm fairly new at the quilting hobby (started in fall of 2010) and because I have two homes, it's a challenge to adapt each setting in a way that works for me. We spend half the year in CO and half the year in TX. What is working for me right now is to use the clear zippered containers that I recycle from other things I have bought, such as curtains, bed linens, blankets, etc. I try to put the pattern with the chosen fabric into one of these. Then I can put them in drawers or on shelves and easily pull them out when I am ready to work on them. For random materials that I have not a particular project in mind, I group them together by fabric type and color.

Agree totally with Quilty Louise. That works so well for me too. Projects together in a bags or containers with the pattern, western all together, Christmas all together, novelties, other seasonal pieces, batik fat quarters all together, reproductions together, then sort all larger pieces of blenders/batiks as to color, then fat quarters trying to contain them sorted by color. husband and my friend all think they could help me but they just don't understand. Totally 1000% agree that if I did not play so much with the fabric (and the computer) I could get more accomplished. It is a brain thing, and whatever works for your brain...something that makes sense to you.

Our brains don't all work alike. When I worked at the first quilt shop, my boss and I could arrange fabric pretty much the same. The next shop I where I worked I never could figure out their rhyme or reason. One day I did the batiks so they made sense to me....WRONG thing to do. I think I was right, they thought I was all wrong. It might take a while for you to figure out what works best for you. Best of luck and have fun. Part of my stash in in storage now waiting for me to clear out a closet full of STUFF. I can't wait to get out my stored stash and get to arranging it again. Dealing with the 'stuff/junk' in the closet now is dragging me down.

Thanks for the information and links.

I think you have to apply polar notion method to storing fabrics as well. Make the different size of storage bin which makes you easy to select storage bin. Arrane the fabric on shelves as well so you don't have to put on all fabric and arrange them though as it is. Hope you will like my information.

I ruler fold my yardage, and it is sorted by color, kids, holiday, etc. All my fat quarters are in plastic drawers by color, holidays, kids, batiks, etc. and my strips are in clear plastic shoe boxes according to size. I have been quilting for years and have a whole room full of fabric. It changes as you get more fabric. I just like it organized so I am particular about everything being organized. My actual sewing room is usually a mess as I am working on projects and then cutting up whatever is left into squares or strips. It works for me. You will find the way that works for you. My "fabric room" has all the fabric and my long arm. My "sewing room" has my sergers, sewing machines, and embroidery machines, cutting table, and notions. When the kids left home I took over their old bedrooms.