Planning well ahead seems essential to someone who quilts. Looking for fabric and patterns (or portions there of) with an ultimate vision is realistic enough, but I wonder how many quilts to store in the noodles? I’ve about a dozen planned for family and friends before getting around to my own bed, about three in the works mentally and one in practice. What do I do to keep it all straight? What is a good plan of attack when planning quilts and how far ahead should one plan? Keep a journal or notebook?

I’ve been purchasing fabric ad hoc with the various projects in mind, but am afraid of forgetting what goes where and exactly why I purchased it to begin with. Quite honestly I’ve little room to store a ton of fabric, otherwise I would.

PS. I do this with music and the writ as well; having ideas and executing them are two entirely different things I find and imagine it the same here.

Quiltmaking is fluid - changing one's mind is almost mandatory. There is nothing written in stone at my house. I organize my fabrics, sort through patterns, dream and visualize. Then if I don't get right to it, I seem to change my for a "better" idea. Perhaps I need to write down my ideas, with patterns and a fabric swatch, in case my ancestors (or is it decendants?) have to finish it all off. My favorite thing to do if I need to let off steam is to paw through my fabric. Sara

Steve ... Dude ... RELAX!!!!!

first of all, you have absolutely no control over the number of quilts in the noodle. the ideas, intentions and desires will squeeze themselves into every available nook and cranny of brain space whether you want them there or not.

if making lists and jotting down construction ideas feels right, then do it. if that isn't your "thing" ... don't do it.

if you already have fabrics for a specific project, stack them together. if you already have the pattern, put that on top of the stack. just don't be surprised to find half or more of the fabrics gone by the time you get around to that pattern. you'll have "borrowed just a little" here and there for other quilts.

don't be afraid to change your mind.

you are allowed to obsess ONLY over the quilt(s) you're actually working on at the moment. the others can wait their turn. :wink:

you already have a day job, dear. DON'T turn this into more WORK. it'll suck all the fun out of it for you.

I couldn't have said it better Patrice! Well done!!

I am one of those that wants to make them all! Every quilt magazine has a sticky note or two in it! I know thats never going to happen but a girl can dream!

I did purchase little plastic baskets for projects that I have either been asked to make or definitely WANT to make and I have the paperwork in the basket and some of the materials (but as Patrice said, some of it ALREADY needs to be replaced as I have "borrowed")

Other than that, I am the most unorganized planner! And there's five ideas that jump into my brain for every project I complete!

If you always had a definite project in mind, had exactly the correct amount of fabric (no scraps), followed the pattern 100%, finished it in your original time frame, gave it to who it was originally intended, YOU WOULDN'T BE A QUILTER- YOU'D BE A SCARY INDIVIDUAL!! Enjoy your projects and don't sweat the small stuff. Life is so incredibly short, have fun.

I should have mentioned, Steve, that I keep a journal of all my finished projects, a photo album of sorts, I put a picture of the project, the date I finished it (don't always put the start date in), who it was given to (or sold to whichever the case).. and any other pertinent info I think of....I'm on my second album! My friends and family love to see it ...when they come by and ask me what I've been up to, I just hand them the album!

It's also perfectly ok to start something, set it aside for whatever reason, and come back to it when you want to, either to complete it or just do a little and set it aside again. One of life's joys is to go thru a box or drawer and find something you worked on. Sometimes you will want to get right back at it, and sometimes you will laugh yourself silly wondering how you ever thought it was a good idea(example from my sewing days-I started making my husband a blue plaid polyester blazer, refused to throw it away, but was in way over my head. It took about 20 years before I could actually bring myself to realize it was a dead deal and needed to be chucked :lol: )

Hi, Steve.
Maybe you could stack or bundle the fabric together or get a basket or (clear) box to store it in, then make a sketch of the basic concept for each project in mind. Don't forget to add notes about how you want to do specifics. Make sure you can see it and have easy access.

OR you could store all your fabric together (like in one of the big plastic boxes I used to use) and use a small swatch (WHAT? CUT IT?!) of each on the sketch pages/notebook? This way you could have all your fabric together and still have what you want to make a certain project together.

Hello Steve~
As a newcomer to quilting, I think what you're going through is pretty normal. When I first felt that real passion for quilting hit me hard one day, I found I couldn't sleep, would stay up half the night looking at patterns in magazines, design them over and over in my mind, think about colors and patterns, etc. I was driving myself crazy. I'd chosen or designed 10 quilts in my head before I ever bought my first real yardage! I tried to get all organized (what's a type "A" to do?? :mrgreen: ) and then it all became a little overwhelming and I had to slow down, drop all pretenses of being organized, and just have fun.

I started buying fabric because I loved what I was holding at the time, instead of looking for a precise fabric for a precise quilt. It was a lot more fun doing it that way. If I did happen to choose a pattern that I was going to start on, I chose the fabric for that quilt all at once if possible, and placed it in a basket. That worked for awhile. LOL Over time I got so busy making so many things, I started to borrow as Patrice pointed out, or I'd just forget what I was going to use. Didn't matter. I still managed to make approx 150 quilts in the last 16 years. LOL To repeat good advice...DUDE...relax! :lol:

Just curious -when yu lovely quilters "start buying fabric because you love what you're holding at the time" how much do you buy when you don't have anything specific in mind for its use?