Originally Posted by
bneuen
I'm trying to get a little more organized and find that I have many patterns and am looking for a system that helps me know what patterns I have. I also have patterns I have printed from the internet as well as the patterns that are 5 x 7 size. I'm hoping to get some organizational tips from those of you who have the organization methods mastered.
Looking froward to hearing your comments and suggestions.
Boy and I glad you started this thread because I just did this!! I was over run with patterns too and I had to do something. Here is what I did and I hope this helps you get started.
First I broke down the steps it would take to make a huge job doable in small chunks that I could pick up or put down anytime I had a minute. I found a long skinny box that was the perfect size for sorting all sizes of patters. I made card stock dividers for art, landscape, Applique, Home Decorating, nine patch, strip, baby/girl, baby/boy, preteen, teen, college/young adult, crazy, and so on.
I had stacks and stacks of magazines I'd saved and I took 10-20 of them and put them by my chair to sort out each night after dinner. I was shocked to find out I'd saved a whole magazine for one stinking pattern!! So I tore out what I wanted to keep, stapled it together with the pattern sheet and filed them as I tore them out. I worked really hard at thinning the heard as I went and only kept ones that I think I'll make at some point. I found magazine after magazine that I had no idea why I'd kept it so I made a donate, recycle pile and put my keepers directly in the box. Taking it one stack at a time and filing them as you go makes a huge job small and manageable!
After that was done I got a stack of sheet protectors for my large binders and labeled the binders accordingly. This might make you crazy but I did a purge AGAIN! I was shocked when I laid out a stack of say all nine patch patterns I noticed that I'd saved loads of the same pattern just in different colors! So I purged each section again before putting them in the protectors. Like the others I put dividers in the binders for like baby/boy or preteen girl and so on.
Now I can go right to the binder I want and find what I'm looking for. It's easy add a new pattern once I see that I DON'T already have it. Plus I've learned a very important thing . . . be more selective on what I keep so I don't have to do this again!!! Lolol.
I hope this helps.
StashBuster109 aka Sarah