Emma S

Lawyer Nancia you make my day. Not only do you inbody a superior sense of justification but your masterful referrances to both constitutional and historical facts leaves me in awe, if not speachless.

MadQuilter

Now THAT'S the kind of history I can understand and support. I shall be a patriotic whatever on my trip, lol.

NanaBass

How did you fold a stash. And how small of pieces do you keep for scraps? I am new to quilting and so far self-taught so if anyone has answers for me...

Did you use those boards to make your stash so neat?
I don't even know where to begin when it comes to mine. I have a three drawer wire cart and a three shelf cabinet with fabric. Then I have my UFO's sort of hanging around on my sewing machine table. Argh! Where do I start to organize it to look like yours? I believe I am with you folks. I need to use what I have before I buy more.

Colleen

Foxflower

NanaBass, I suggest you go to the nearest real estate office, buy the largest house you can find, and confiscate the extra bedrooms and their closets, the basement, attic, and the kitchen table from anyone trying to claim it as personal space. That should just about make it possible to keep your quilting and supplies organized as you develop in this art form. Don't forget to leave room for Nancia's Book of Humorous Justifications and Rules of Ordering Fabric. Then invite us all over. We'll help you move in.

Elisabrat, I joined late, but have still managed to buy a yard of fabric and a handful of scraps. I have shown definite restraint.

Nancia, you always have me laughing. What a gift you have. Keep it up!

DustysMomma

Nana, what sizes of scraps you keep is a personal issue, based on what you like to do with them. Some find that anything down to 2" square is acceptable, while others ditch anything under 12" square. Me, I keep everything. I stuff it in a Walmart bag & then use the little pieces for mug rugs.

Emma S

Nana: There have been a lot of discussions about folding fabric. The front runners are usually comic book boards and/or ruler fold. I personally like the ruler method, no cost and works well in book shelve type storage. Stated simply just take the length of fabric (same way it is folded on the bolt) and fold it again in half parellel to the original fold then take a ruler (I use my 6X24.) and wind it around the the narrow part. The end result will measure approx. 10X6. Other size rulers will work too depending on the storage space you have available. Hope this helps. Welcome to the group. The moratorium is supposed to end Nov 1st but I am hoping we start a new one for the coming year.

MadQuilter

I do not like things too organized and neat. Kills the creativity for me. I am a visual and messy person. Mine is folded to sort of fit in the cabinet, two stacks wide and some squished in the middle. I sort by color but have some specialty stacks by type (Halloween, big prints, large backing pieces, etc).

My scrappy bits (too small to fold and too easy to get lost) I keep in two bins (one for darks and one for lights). When the bins get full it's time to do a scrappy.

Tiny pieces (> 1 1/2") I keep by color in plastic bags. Those get used for appliques and for crumb blocks.

My UFO tops are hanging over the banister and I pull them off as I get to them. It is not a good idea to keep UFOs on the working table since they tend to distract you AND remind you of yet another thing that is not done. Do yourself a favor and pile them somewhere else. Maybe put each project in a bin. That way you only have to focus on the one on the table.

paulswalia

OH, I just give up.......LQS going out of business and all is 50% off. So 12 yards came home with me yesterday and I'm tempted to go again today. At least I had some guilt........no, not really, I loved every minute of it.

PaperPrincess

As outlandish as this sounds, I was amazed to meet several (well, 3) gals in my quilting group who actually did buy houses next door/across the street and move all their quilting stuff in there. They all did long arming for hire, so I guess they had a bit of a reason.

Foxflower

Wow, and I was just being facetious. But, the beautiful thing is, even if you have limited space, limited funds, and can't organize to your own satisfaction, you can still create beautiful quilts and enjoy the process.