**SENSIBLE STASHING SUGGESTIONS**
09-07-2011, 07:19 AM
#21
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Take time for God today
Posts: 966
I just finished my sew room redo, I used my grandkid's metal
storge cubes, wire rack boxes,from home schooling material. You put plastic tub in it and it's great.
There are cheap, you have to put together - a pain -
then add zip ties to make strong - got the idea from a store that did it. Wire boxes attach to one another.
You can add one on top of the other or across. I have two
6 high, for school I used 3 across 3 high you can even have one on top of other and a set attached taller than the first one. 2nd way fits under a window, white plastic tub. Fill them and pull in and out like a drawer. Love them. They come in white, or red,green, yellow, blue mix. I really need to find out how to get a picture on here. Mine are white wire boxes and white tubs silver pulls, plastic.
Tubs from Dollar General.
storge cubes, wire rack boxes,from home schooling material. You put plastic tub in it and it's great.
There are cheap, you have to put together - a pain -
then add zip ties to make strong - got the idea from a store that did it. Wire boxes attach to one another.
You can add one on top of the other or across. I have two
6 high, for school I used 3 across 3 high you can even have one on top of other and a set attached taller than the first one. 2nd way fits under a window, white plastic tub. Fill them and pull in and out like a drawer. Love them. They come in white, or red,green, yellow, blue mix. I really need to find out how to get a picture on here. Mine are white wire boxes and white tubs silver pulls, plastic.
Tubs from Dollar General.
09-07-2011, 07:54 AM
#22
Member
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Texas, Mississippi and Ca.
Posts: 30
When I have small scraps, I cut them into 1 1/2 strips for a future rail fence quilt. (sometimes) i go ahead and sew 5 stips together and then make the squares for this quilt. I then put them in a small plastic bin with the directions for this quilt.
Depending on the size of the scrap, I also make 2 1/2 inch strips and put them in a separate small plastic bin. These are handy when I decide to make a table runner or other scrappy stuff.i.e. toppers, table runners.
All other fabric gets wrapped around pieces of cardboard or foam core that is cut 6 x 10 inches. This makes the colors easy to mix and match when picking for a quilt.
There is also a pattern where you sew the scraps onto a piece of muslim at an angle. These are really fun. I make the squares 13 inches. I now have 5 of these squares.These are lots of fun. Like everyone else, I have many projects started.
Depending on the size of the scrap, I also make 2 1/2 inch strips and put them in a separate small plastic bin. These are handy when I decide to make a table runner or other scrappy stuff.i.e. toppers, table runners.
All other fabric gets wrapped around pieces of cardboard or foam core that is cut 6 x 10 inches. This makes the colors easy to mix and match when picking for a quilt.
There is also a pattern where you sew the scraps onto a piece of muslim at an angle. These are really fun. I make the squares 13 inches. I now have 5 of these squares.These are lots of fun. Like everyone else, I have many projects started.
09-07-2011, 08:31 AM
#23
Super Member
Join Date: May 2011
Posts: 4,688
I use the 8x24 ruler and wrap pieces greater than a yard around them. Most pieces I fold in half twice first, but I have space for the 22" single folds so I do that with the 3yd+. For anything less than a yard, but FQ or larger, I fold so it is about 11" wide (1/4 WOF) and fold it around a 4x12 ruler. I put them on shelves by color (until I start a new project when I have a tendency to grab a little bit of everything). I break the color rule for holiday fabrics, since I put them in bins or cupboards together.
My scraps go in a bin until I get the time to cut them into squares or strips (I try strips first since I can always do squares from strips).
Enjoy your stash!!!
My scraps go in a bin until I get the time to cut them into squares or strips (I try strips first since I can always do squares from strips).
Enjoy your stash!!!
09-07-2011, 09:08 AM
#24
Super Member
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: SC
Posts: 1,909
Originally Posted by ckcowl
as for keeping small pieces-
keep what you will use- pass on the rest-
if you are an appliquer- really small pieces come in handy=
if you do charm quilts/scrappy quilts-
if you only make big block quilts- need yardage then pass on what you won't use-
fabrics multiply like bunnies.
scraps are usually what is left over after you complete a project- if you made alot of flying geese blocks and have a bunch of little corner triangles-which you would never use- then toss them in a box to send to someone else when it is full-
if you have pieces you think you will use in another project then put them away-
you could have totes for different sizes- or you could just stack them up on a shelf.
some people sort by color- some by theme- some by size- it is up to you what will work for you.
if you keep your fabrics on open shelves protect them from sunlight-which will fade the fabrics-
what you should keep- what you should just get rid of is totally dependant on what kind of quilts you make-
if you are unsure- keep it- sometime down the road you may find a use for it- when the scraps are piled up like crazy and you haven't used a piece in a year it is time to sort them out-and pass them on...don't throw them away- someone can always use what you won't
keep what you will use- pass on the rest-
if you are an appliquer- really small pieces come in handy=
if you do charm quilts/scrappy quilts-
if you only make big block quilts- need yardage then pass on what you won't use-
fabrics multiply like bunnies.
scraps are usually what is left over after you complete a project- if you made alot of flying geese blocks and have a bunch of little corner triangles-which you would never use- then toss them in a box to send to someone else when it is full-
if you have pieces you think you will use in another project then put them away-
you could have totes for different sizes- or you could just stack them up on a shelf.
some people sort by color- some by theme- some by size- it is up to you what will work for you.
if you keep your fabrics on open shelves protect them from sunlight-which will fade the fabrics-
what you should keep- what you should just get rid of is totally dependant on what kind of quilts you make-
if you are unsure- keep it- sometime down the road you may find a use for it- when the scraps are piled up like crazy and you haven't used a piece in a year it is time to sort them out-and pass them on...don't throw them away- someone can always use what you won't
09-07-2011, 09:18 AM
#25
Junior Member
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Boston
Posts: 225
I sort by color and if there is a small amount of one color, I combine it with another (i.e., yellow and orange) I keep in clear plastic bins -- I also put an index card on the end so I can list and read anything in the box ("batiks', large for backing', etc.) We built shelves in the baement that are the depth of a box. Two shelves keep it all -- I also have one for odds and ends, samples, freezer paper, fusibles, small pieces of batting, interfacing, etc -- all listed on a card.
I have a small rolling cart from an office supply with drawers lableled, 'needles and pins', 'thread', 'patterns', scissors, etc (includes tweezers and anything that cuts)
I have a small rolling cart from an office supply with drawers lableled, 'needles and pins', 'thread', 'patterns', scissors, etc (includes tweezers and anything that cuts)
09-08-2011, 03:22 AM
#26
Super Member
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: long island ny
Posts: 1,337
Reading through all these suggestions makes my head ache. Everyone sounds sooo organized. I have a huge stash and it is nowhere as organized as theirs. But I love to rummage, always finding something I didn't knowI had. I know it is time consuming but It's always Christmas for me. Good luck
09-09-2011, 09:15 PM
#28
Power Poster
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Northern California mountains
Posts: 12,538
You have to adapt your stashing to your own space and quilting needs. One friend of mine folds her long pieces in fourths lengthwise then folds them with a raw end out so it is always ready to have something cut from it. I stash by color and use. Besides purples and greens etc., 2 drawers each, I have sterlite drawers for corderoy, batiks, denim, precuts (which are the 4x4 etc pieces I have processed from scraps) and novelty fabrics, mainly for making charity quilts. I have friends who have massive space in FQs, which does not work for me. My DH was pointing out today that my stash investment is way higher than my machine costs, but at any given time I can ceate several quilts from my stash with little searching. Generally, I know what I have.
BTW, in the last 2 months, because of moving, I gave away several large bags of scraps. When I started quilting, I got several bags from other quilters to help me get started.
BTW, in the last 2 months, because of moving, I gave away several large bags of scraps. When I started quilting, I got several bags from other quilters to help me get started.
09-09-2011, 09:32 PM
#29
Super Member
Join Date: May 2011
Location: Southern Idaho
Posts: 1,171
I don't have yardage so I keep my fat quarters in clear totes from JoAnns. They have rollers on the bottom to move easily. The scraps are thrown in a basket to do something with. Scrap quilts me thinks. :roll: I envy people with yardage.
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