Putting something away where "I know it belongs/will be safe" is the kiss of death for me. I lose quilt patterns for years, some of my favorite crochet hooks are still missing after 15 years. They always turn up when least convenient and long after I need them OR right after I have given up and bought a new one. Murphy's Law. Oh well.

heavens yes. When we moved I put my important papers in a safe place and still haven't found all of them (had to get duplicates). I have/had a quilt book that had a pattern I wanted to make for DIL - I found the fabric but not the pattern and now the fabric is hiding again.

Many years ago in my early quilting life I thought I wanted to make a double wedding ring quilt. I bought Quilting from the Heartland's templates large and small and one called Speedy Cut for the DWR. Move forward to about 1 year ago and I found a box of templates for rotary cutter and a few magazines. I went though them and the bug began nibbling again to make a DWR. I decided to see what fabrics I had in some shoe boxes that were set aside for particular patterns and maybe use them for something else. Now I will say here that I have never made a DWR quilt. I own one that my mother made for me but I've never made one(and have three different sets of templates).
Now this box of templates sat until I decided what to do with them. And sat, and sat....... I did cut some arcs (the whole not the pieced) back when I got the Heartland templates. They sat, and sat, and are still sitting. The only thing I can think of is that I heard about the difficulty of making this quilt. Back to the shoe boxes. I found in a blue hinged box the makings for a blue DWR. Pieced arcs, a few melons and three large centers(don't know what they're called) already pieced with the melons and arcs. This board gets the credit for sparking my interest in DWR's again(Myert, etc.);) so I decided to work on it some more. I didn't remember it until I saw it again. Soooo..... I finished sewing all the arcs that I could until I realized I needed the end pieces to finish over 40 arcs.
Now all the templates are still sitting and waiting in their packaging and some in ziploc bags with their packaging.
I didn't know which pattern I used. But I was thinking it was Heartland. No, it was Speedy Cut which was one piece with different markings for the different parts. And you guessed it, that is no longer in there. Everything is except the template. I distinctly remember it being there when I first rediscovered this box but not now. I've looked through the box 3 times and have finally taken all the templates and put them in their new home in an office file rack, easily accessible. All the ideas suggested above I have thought about except buying another one. I don't think they're sold any more. My next step, since I started and want to finish it, is to take an end piece and make a template and cut about 80 pieces (blue scrappy), which I don't want to do, but It's been a week of searching without any positive results.
If I wasn't trying to clear out some things, I'd put it back in the box for another 20+ years!:D

Aaahhh - you all have been visited by Aunt Helen! She comes and hides things while you look for hours, days, weeks, etc. Then that item appears in just the place it was supposed to be and you’ve looked at that place many times��������. She does this to make us think we’re going off the rails!!! So when this happens (to me all the time!) just blame it on Aunt Helen - she’ll return the item - eventually, especially as someone said, right after you buy a replacement. I have several rulers, etc. that I’ve purchased twice (or even more)������

Ah, yes. The "safe" place. I've used that several times and lost things for ages.

When we moved 2 1/2 years ago, I must have packed my 'safe place' without emptying it. Still looking for things that I thought I had re-discovered when I was packing for the move. Glad to know I am not alone. Sigh.

I'm almost embarrassed to say I found my ruler for the DWR.:shock: Because I found it in a place I would have never looked because I had no idea rulers were there and I thought I had seen it when I saw all the others! Oh well. Now I will work on my first DWR. Yea!

I cleaned out my sewing room for my adult son to move into. Took everything out and now I can't find two completed quilts, one twin size and one crib size, anywhere. I have searched through this house several times. It is driving me crazy!

Bear—could they still be in your car? I have left things in the trunk to go back for, then forgot because it wasn’t urgent. Then time passed and the trunk had long ago been forgotten as the last place I saw the thing.

At least it’s fabric and not raw chicken.

Have not found what I was looking for. However, did find some stuff I had forgotten about - and/or is in the " why do I have this?" category.