Have you ever started a project that you thought would be easily done?
 

I thought that I could organize my sewing room and remove much of the fabric that I had inherited from my mother in just a couple hours. BIG MISTAKE. I started on Saturday and am still digging through fabric. I have now removed more that a dozen large rubber/plastic totes filed with fabric that is mostly poly and very dated. (My mother died more that 10 years ago.) I have moved almost all of my quilting fabric onto the shelves in the closet, but I still have the scraps to sort and reorganize. I have fabric in the kids old play room and in the attic. A friend suggested that I have a "Yards" sale and sell as much as I could. That would give me money to purchase more fabric! HA HA!! I am wondering why I thought I could do it all in a very short period of time. My DH is going to help me sort through the fabric that I have removed from my space, and we will try to sell some and donate some. So dear QB friends, as you sit at your machines sewing, think about me and wish me luck on finishing this project!
I will post pictures when I get it all finished!

I once did a quilt that was described as Fast and Easy. It took 12 weeks sewing 40 hours a week to complete. If I could have gotten my hands on the person who defined it as fast and easy ... well lets just say they would have been "altered".
Do consider holding a garage sale for your goods or make a really big drop at Goodwill. Hanging on to them just clogs up the working space.

Sometimes what we think is going to be easy really isn't! :) Good luck cleaning out.

Keep in mind that if you donate the fabric that Goodwill and Salvation Army charge people, yet shelters,churches, and missions give it to people to use. Not only that, but some of the shelters and such have programs to teach people to sew and help them gain skills to get back on their feet. ....just something to keep in mind.

Most of us have been there, done that and have the tee shirt, hee. hee. Might not be organizing a room but lots of other quilty stuff.

You could make braided rag rugs, out of some of that fabric. :)

Just cleaning my quilting room takes forever, so I feel for you for tackling this big problem. This is why we shouldn't hang on to all of our stash. We need to de-stash once in a while so someone else doesn't have to for us.

Isn't it amazing how the jobs that should be "quick and easy" never are???

I organized some of my stash .... and wouldn't you know it - I can't find a piece of fabric that I had set aside for a specific purpose. It will show up, but ......
Congratulations to you for getting through all that organization! and to DH for helping!

These projects do take forever and then it's a little depressing because you rather be sewing. But you room will look so muchnicer when you are done.

I bought some large flat Rubbermaid totes that kinda/sorta stack. Then I keep all the stuff for each project (read UFO here) together. But the people who cut all scraps into strips or squares right away so they are ready for next scrappy project just take my breath away. I'm going to use some garment (not 100% cotton) fabric and make place mats etc. "Note to self buy more totes for UFOs no, I mean projects).

Put the radio on. It will keep you moving. Use a large ruler to ruler fold fabric. It will miraculously reduce the "bulk" of the fabric. You can also put a "free offer" post on this site and offer it for pick up only. Lots of schools have quilt clubs for the kids and would love to get the fabric.

I feel your pain! I did the same thing earlier in the year. What I thought would take a day took a week to sort and get back to normal. Hang in there you'll love the results!

I'm a newbie and have looked at block patterns and thought they would be so easy. Not!

Sounds like you are feeling a bit down, maybe like you are losing your mother again. Take a deep breath. Think about how Mom would want all this fabric to be used by someone. Do you have a local senior center or home where folks who can't afford to buy fabric might use it or at least fondle and love it? Relax and enjoy the time you are spending with your mother, who is undoubtedly beside you. Then let it go. I am sorry for your loss.

Still cleaning my sewing room. There is a pile of junk in the hallway. Husby has been very patient. I'd rather do my projects!

Good luck!!! You do have a task ahead of you.

I was just sorting through some old fabric - from prequilting days and I found a cut out maternity top, never sewn. My son will be 27 next month, my first grandchild is due in August and the fabric is 100% cotton. I think I will stick a couple of squares in a baby quilt as a private joke. (in my defense - my son was seven weeks early!) Cleaning/sorting/restashing never takes "just a couple of hours" when there are memories involved, but I'm not sure that's such a bad thing.

I started a Flying Geese for my GD, seems like it is taking forever. Didn't have enough matierial of the one color to finish it so had to chang it and use 4 rows of another color. I put 2 rows of the second color at the top and 2 at the bottom. I don't like it but she says she don't care.

One of my first attempt at quilting was a double wedding ring. Not until I was nearly finished did I notice that it was a pattern not reccomended for beginners. It was a wedding gift I actually finished shortly after the wedding. The couple did not like it, it did not match their decor. So it is still at my house. Sad but at least it is not in a dog house or worse.

Our quilting guild makes charity quilts for the needy. I make quilts for wounded soldiers. I have processed a lot of "dated" fabric. We do not use blends, but I don't mind some of them for my personal charity quilts. If they don't use it, I make some for the women's shelter and the police department. Yes, police departent. They keep one in the trunk of their squad car for those unusual emergencies, where someone needs cover or comfort. There are lots of really easy patterns that do go quickly. We don't waste anything but the ravelings. We learned a long time ago, there isn't such a thing as "ugly" fabric. Cut it small enough and it will work. There are too many needy and too little time.

Our local Senior Citizen's Center gladly takes fabric/yardage donations (and it's tax deductible for you since they are a not-for-profit 501c3) They make quilts, all sizes, shapes and colors from these donations and have a big fund raiser each year. They periodically will have a yardage sale that they then turn the income back as another fund raiser. They win-win from the donation and you get that tax deduction!

Lawd a mercy! Just give it away. What you won't use is wasted just sitting in your way and someone else might view it as a huge and wonderful gift. My grandmother used to say, "Bless it and let it go!" Here's a thought--give it to someone who is making "Little Dresses for Africa" and "Shorts for Africa." froggyintexas

I'm a fairly new quilter, but DID sew for years. Like linkd, I found burgundy cordoroy fabric that I bought to make something for my son when he was like 7 or 8 years old. He's now 40...lol.

Then my daughter decided she wanted to make sun dresses for her daughter. She never liked sewing but wanted me to teach her....again. So we bought 3 patterns and 4 fabrics. I pinned all of the pieces on for her and said now you cut it out. She said...you know how poorly I cut since I'm left handed. I said...either you cut or we are done. Guess what...we were done. So I had that fabric and patterns...her daughter is now 18. My grandaughter loves to sew and I gave her my old machine when I bought the Janome 7700. I gave her the 4 fabrics...which are very cute and said...here...you can make some purses out of this. Which reminds me....we still have to continue working on the dress she wanted to make. One thing about her is....she WANTS to do the work under my supervision. Nothing like her mother. LOL

All the time!

I have a worse story. A couple of years ago I found a box packed away in the basement. It had some fabric in it from when my kids were little. At the bottom of the box was a half-completed frog toy that I had started for my son when he was a toddler. He will be 43 in August. lol

We are doing a Trip Around the World Bargello class that involves sewing 2 1/2 " strips together and making 7 tubes to be cut the other direction in various widths. It really looked easy......LOL! I was very careful cutting my strips and I thought my quarter inch seams were fine, until I started measuring them! I've been stitching and froggy stitching and stitching and froggy stitching...you get the picture. It is taking me FOREVER to get my tube made and cut. So much for easy!

Been there done that !!! Donated much to the local Senior Citizen Center and they loved it. It was like Santa bringing them gifts.

Good Luck on your project...

Ah, that is a big job. I am sure it will be super nice when it is done! I am sorting thru and cleaning out myself. I have manage to collect too much I think. I am looking forward to have a neat and organized room. I plan on taking some things to goodwill tomorrow. It is so refreshing to clean out!

wow unreal and truley a sad story.Anything homade is the best gift ever,my awesome mil made me some quilts and some for the kids and iam so weird about them .I placed all thier baby quilts in bags and the ones we have out now iam always like becareful.lol .someone obvisly dont know how much time and effort and love that goes into them.Ill always cherrish mine and have them always,glad you still have it since they didnt like it though. Jess

Perging Fabric
 

I don't know if any of these ideas would work for you but I'll share just in case. Our quilt guild makes charity bags for children who have had to go into protective custody for something to put all their things in. We also do children's quilts for the local hospital. Our embroidery guild does pillowcase dresses for a poor country. I'm sorry but for the life of me I can't remember which country. One of our members takes them to her church and they ship them. Fabric donations for these projects are greatly appreciated. You might check with your local groups. At our quilt show we have a Stash table. We bring our "no longer want" things". We set the price we want and the guild gets 20% of what we make. It really helps us and it is also a profit maker for the guild.
Robin in TX

I have the applique daschund that my sister talked me into doing for our father... I did finally get it completed, but I have 2 partial ones to finish someday since the instructions for doing it were NOT simple... it took my second attempt on my own to make it come out right...

Went through my cupboards in my sewing room looking for a pattern. Found it in the second to last cupboard. Thought I was done--everything looked so nice. Then decided to organize my fabric. Both these projects have taken a week. I think I am done, but you never know. Awhile ago I gave away a lot of fabric and my magazines. A few new quilters were very happy, and it made me feel good. Every once in awhile you need to purge your stash.
Sue

It's sort of like remodeling the kitchen. A contractor tells you 4 weeks. Now you multiply that by 3 and then 4. Now that is a realistic time frame. You will feel so good when you near your goal and see the end in sight. Good luck with the purge. A yard sale sounds good.
peace

There have been some amazing people out there who have donated fabric to Goodwill. I am eternally grateful to them. Their donations make it affordable for me to buy fabric for the little dresses that I make to go to orphanages in Nicaragua and Africa. If people just tossed that out, it would be much less clothes for those kids!

I had to re-read this I was SO shocked! How RUDE! :mad: Take some comfort in the fact they didn't accept it and stuff it in a cupboard. At least now you've got the option of either giving it to someone who really appreciates your time, effort and expense or keeping it for yourself to look back on. It's their loss.