I'm in the process of (gasp) actually organizing my fabric, and I was wondering how people have done it. Do you like open shelving or in drawers better? A good way to organize the fabric itself- dividers? by color? Just looking for your thoughts.

I have most of it in cabinets with doors. Keeps the light and dust off of it. Mine is mostly divided by color. Also by type, and size.

you can get those fabric boards from a member on here and for a good price. I have mine in photo boxes in a china hutch in my dining room. (don't have a real sewing area/room) there are thousands of ways to store the fabric though. just depends on your needs and desires and the fabric area. I also have mine divided by style. batik non batik and FQ's are the same way. only have probably 30 yards total and that is pushing it.

I sure like shelves better than drawers. I used the ruler fold method and really like it!

Mine are folded and sorted by light, med, dark color values. I have fabric pulled from my stash and put it with the coordinating project. I have mine in open wire racks where they can breathe (we live in a humid climate)and plan on covering with a clear shower curtain to keep dust and dirt away.

When we were buying a new tv stand at Pier 1, my husband suggested we purchase the taller cabinet that matched, for my fabric. Some of my stash is still on bolts, some are pre-sorted into 'these fabrics will make this quilt one day', some by 2 1/2" strips (left overs from completed quilts), some batting is already cut up into 8" squares for the next rag quilt I make, and some fat quarters are in a plastic container. Wow, that sounds like my cabinet is a mess, but it's not.

I just have mine in rubbermade containers.

I prefer my sewing area to look as tidy and neat as any other room in my house. In other words, I don't want shelves full of fabric, thread, notions etc. lining the walls. I have all of my fabric folded and sorted by colors. I use the main color of the fabric to decide which tub it goes in so if I have a dainty floral with a white background it goes in my white container etc. My fabric is kept in see through tubs (the size next larger to a shoebox) and I store them under my LA since I don't have a closet in my sewing room. I have skirted my LA so they don't show and I keep my LA covered when not in use. It is in an alcove adjacent to my living room so I want that area to look as neat as possible when I'm not actually using it. But that's just me, others are more comfortable when they are surrounded by their fabrics, equipment and other quilting goods. You have to decide just what will make YOU happy in the end. Good Luck

i have mine in a walk in closet to keep away sunlight and dust.

it is organized on shelves by theme and then color (batiks, 30s, repro, geometric, asian, etc)

I'm in the process of pulling all of my fabrics out of the rubbermaid bins and putting them straight on the shelf. A general sort by color works for me. Then I have some other shelves with different patterns (batiks, kid patterns, Halloween, etc) Let's see how that works.

Since I have made some major fabric purchases from Connecting Threads, a couple of QB members and the LQS, I have had to revamp my storage area. It is a computer armoir, with shelves and drawers and such. I purchased two white wire shelves, stacked them. They fit quite nicely, and I was able to get all of my fabric stored in the armoir.

I am in the process of organizing all of my fabrics. They were just shoved onto shelves and totes when we moved....then being so excited to have my own sewing area, I began projects and things just got worse. I began by cutting all of my scraps into block sizes. From one and a half up to six inch squares. I am now in the next step of ruler folding my larger fabrics after trimming off uneven edges and cutting those into block sizes. With the folded fabrics I am going by colors with the squares each size has its own plastic container seperated into lights and darks. It is a long process, but I feel so much better when I enter my sewing room now. Each person must find what works for them and it may take several trials to find it. I wish you luck.

I love using the open shelving. I use a closet, and instead of doors I put a tension rod and some curtains. It has some upper shelves and I've also added a bookshelf on its side on the floor, and on top of that I stacked shoe cubbies for my fat quarters and some of my yardage. I wrap all my fabric on comic book boards.

I have a picture of what it looks like here:
http://debzpicaday.blogspot.com/2011...57-of-365.html

I have mone in plastic shoe boxes by color, spme by project

I organized my sewing area last winter. I used a baker's shelf system and used clear plastic boxes for small pieces. I sorted them by color. I have a red box, a green box, etc. Larger pieces (at least 1/2 yard) I fold and stack.... again by color. I can see the edges of the fabric and pick what I want. I also pin a sticky note on each piece that tells me how much I have of that fabric (1yd, 2 1/3 yds, etc.)

I've found that I actually use the fabric pieces instead of just go out and buy something new.... It's saved me money and helped me use up some things I've had for quite a while.

Also, check out the scrappy quilt sites mentioned on the board.... there are some beautiful quilts out there using small scraps.

mine is in wall cabinets with glass doors - by colors, plus solids, pet fabrics, holiday fabrics and novelty prints that are a mish-mash of colors. The glass keeps it all clean and I can still see it all.

Same here on both :)

I have used the ruler fold method for quantities less than 4 yards. This method, I use my 6 X 24 inch ruler, and I start to roll the fabric on the ruler, then when finished, I fold in half. For fabric over 4 yards, due to bulk, I will fold it again in half the length of the fabric, so that it is about 12-14 inches, then I wrap it on my 12 inch square ruler, and store in same manner, this helps with the bulk, as it gets harder to fold in 1/2 the fabrics wrapped over the ruler. I do not use the boards or cardboard in the center, just feel it adds to the volume. Store fat quarters in containers that allow them to stand on end, so I can easily see the colors. Once the washed fabric is folded, I then sort into project group sets, then the rest of the stash gets organized, into color or season...I love Christmas...You need to organize so you can find the items...my brain is wired a certain way (often short circuits -ha ha)but I cannot find anything if I try to use another person's way....Good luck

My fabrics are folded and put on white bookcases that I purchased at Target. They have 5 shelves each and I have 3 of them. I have one shelf devoted to FQ and pre cuts. I fold my fabric using my 6" ruler. I fold my fabric in half length wise and wrap it around the ruler. It is then the perfect size to fit on the shelves with no over hang. I have my solids, dots, stripes and ginghams on shelves by themselves. My novelty and print fabrics are all sorted by either the color of the background or the color that is most prominent. My holiday fabrics are on a shelf by themselves. I do keep my flannels and knits in tubs as they tend to take up a lot of room and I need it for my cottons!

This picture was taken prior to tidying up the shelves so it is a little messy (plus there has been many additional fabrics added!)

Who has the fabric boards? I started to use some I purchased from Polar Notions but found it to be a bit pricey. I just inherited a huge fabric stash from a former quilter. My husband is planning on building me a new fabric closet but until then my stash is in plastic containers and drawers.

Clear plastic storage boxes and open shelves...great ones at Lowe's,

I love hearing how everyone stores their fabric. There are some great ideas here!

I prefer my fabric folded neatly on open shelves where I can see it. This is my personal stash last month. (We just moved and the paint on my new studio floor is drying (concrete, basement) and I'll probably get it put together next week).

I group my fabric by style: modern prints, homespuns, Civil War repros, etc. and then by either fabric collection (the modern fabrics I have are mostly complete lines) or color (like the repros). Except for pieces over 3 yards, I wrap the fabric around my 6" ruler and then fold it in half so the fold shows at the edge. I have a lot of smaller cuts, so it works well for me. Anything with more yardage is folded at 12" and then in half and stored on the lower shelves.

My husband put shelves in a "fair" sized closet in my sewing room so I can close the door. Fabric is folded and stacked, arranged by color. Looks great freshly organized. Alas when I am auditioning fabrics for a new project, it really gets messed up. But its fun to play in fabric!

I have my fabrics folded by color sitting on shelves. I am addicted to fat quarters so put them in one pile and then fold any yardage next to it. Love seeing my rainbow of colors.

I have metal bins my husband bought from Lowes and installed them in the closet of my sewing room. I separate my fabrics by color. And I have a separate bin for childrens fabrics. You can also stack fabrics on top of the bins so I have my solids separate and my white on white backgrounds fabrics separate.
This works great for me because you can see through the metal bin, the fabric can breath and it is away from sunlight.
I would never put fabric in drawers, you would have to rummage through to much to find a fabric, and I don't think the fabric can breath. If you put fabric on shelves make sure they are in a closet away from light. You want easy accessability and allow the fabric to breath and keep it away from sunlight.
Never store fabric in plastic bins. The fabric cannot breath and formaldahyde from the fabrics (especially unwashed fabric)
will accumulate in the plastic bins.

Beautiful!

I got the cubbies from Walmarts (4); nine to each unit; I stacked them 2 high so that gives me 36 cubbies. I also got some of the canvas totes that fit in them. I put projects in them w/a picture of it so that I know what is what. I have notions in some and some fabric stacked on shelves so that I can see what I have. I have large totes under my cutting table for fleece. The next thing I'm getting when I find what I want is drawers for my FQ to make them eaiser to see; especially all of my civil war ones. I have a tote for all of my "baby" fabric in it as well and one for patterns and one for pellon, fusibles, etc.

FYI; if you want more shelves. I measured the exsisting shelves and went to Lowes and had them to cut more and you can get the little dowls to fit in the wholes and you can very cheaply and easily add more shelves. I also did this to a book shelf when the shelves started sagging in the middle due to the weight of books;worked great and I salvaged the shelving unit.

I have mine similar to you. I have a LOT of fabric and could not afford the plastic boards to wrap them on so I cut a piece of cardboard and wrapped the fabric around it and slid the cardboard out. That way, everything is close to the same size, color coded and neat. I also measured each piece so I know what I have. At times, I wish I could close doors over it somrtimes to keep dust off but have no windows in that are so don't have a fade problem.

I bought chip board at a local craft store and I paid $.99 for each sheet My DH cut them in 71/2 x11 and then cut the left overs into 4 x 8. It was the cheapest way to go. I thought I had most of mine wrapped on the boards when I found a 30 gal. tote filled with material yuck. Have fun. Oh, I stored my on open book shelves. Happy organizing.

I don't like the light and the dust on my fabrics so they are in cabinets with doors.

boy I need to get to work.

I'm a big believer in re-use and re-purpose. I store pending projects in the clear zippered bags that sheets, pillowcases, and draperies come in. Then these projects can easily be stacked on a closet shelf or in a drawer. For fabric that is just part of my collection I like to sort by color and type (florals, batik, plaids, etc); these go into a glass doored bookcase. Fat quarters go in drawers and arranged by color, batik fat quarters go in separate drawer.

Mine are washed, folded, and sorted by colors in plastic bins from WM.
I would prefer a nice standup bookcase type of thing with shelves and glass doors. I would have them sorted by color.
I also like the setup from IKEA that has shelves with doors and a counter. I'll try abnd find the pic of it.
I need to stay organized because of my DD's cats. I have to keep everything picked up and put away when I am not in the room working. I have my little corner in the Great Room with the TV and such and no door to shut out the world.

I have mine divided by theme and color on open shelves becasue I love to look at my fabric & the hope is that it will deter me from buying too much fabric. I bought an 8.5 x 24 in ruler and fold the fabric around that--it stacks easily that way

Hubbie built a large shelving unit (10 feet long) organize by color on shelves, made a sheet cover to protect the fabric from dust & light. On the very top, I keep a large roll of batting, easy to pull down what I need and cut.

Everything is easily accessed and very visible when I need something.

I keep scraps in rubbermade containers under my cutting table, labeled by color or theme ( as in Christmas, kids, etc.)

I'm lucky to have a walk-in closet in my sewing room and DH added shelves to the back wall. For fabric pieces more than a yard or two, I fold them on a 5x24 ruler then fold in half and store together on a shelf. Pieces smaller than that but bigger than a FQ I wrap around those cardboard comic book board things and stand them like little bolts on the shelf. Just these two things have been very helpful in seeing what I have and a general idea of how much there is. Generally arranged by theme and/or color.

FQ's are still stored in plastic shoe boxes, but I'm looking for a better way to stack them on a shelf so I can see them.

Anita

I get the comic book boards from Amazon...they have different types and sizes. Search for "comic book boards."

Anita

curious as to what the ruler fold method is, but i have mine in a china cabnet and plastic totes

Hi,
I like to organize my fabric by colors & values, themes, batiks, reproduction prints, etc. I buy misprinted sign boards for .79 cents each. Which are 18" x 24" and cut to 9" x 12" to put flate folds on. For smaller fabrics I recut the 9" x 12" to the size I need. I usually get 4 to 8 boards off a board.( smaller ones ) I stand the large ones up in a metal cubbard with doors. Smaller ones are placed on shelves according to size.Clear tinted plastic can be cut to cover the shelves (purchased at Walmart ) to go from the top to the floor. This will help with keeping fabric from fading. Measure area and cut, then recut in half lengthwise. Put on shelf from top down. This way you can get into your fabric. Binding is usually wound on left over sign boards . This works well when binding a quilt as all I have to do is unroll as needed. Just do a search for blank sign boards, then misprinted ones. I try to recycle everything I can to cut costs. Hope this helps everyone. Smiles.