Help! Storage ideas needed
 

Hey everyone! It's been a while since I was here, miss you all! Can you please share how you store fabric safely and efficiently? I also need help with thread! Thank you for anything you can share. I have a BIG project ahead of me this weekend!!!

Do you need to store it because you are moving or just to organize it?

My stash is folded and placed in a curtained closet that have four shelves. My small threads are in a craft plastic double sided case, my thread cones are in the bottom 2 drawers of plastic rolling storage unit next to my sewing machine.

I have some on comic boards and some in plastic containers. Solid color containers are labeled and some clear containers. If you are unable to keep your fabric away from windows or even indirect lighting put a dark cloth over that will repel any sunlight. I have some thread in thread containers and some Ziploc bags. All are labeled.

I have purchased those plastic Iris storage boxes that JoAnn Fabrics sells. Costco also has some similar ones for a good price too. They fit a 12 1/2" block perfectly and I use to store completed blocks for Block of the Month programs. I also use them to store fabric. I also use the same one that is made to hold thread. These are easy to label and stack on each other very well.

I have some extra chest of drawers that I use for storing part of my stash.

I have stackable slide out basket units, one on top of another, in the closet in my studio. I also have some rolling bins, like for children's toys, under my HQ16. I have sorted all my threads for embroidery, sewing/quilting/ and HQ each separately. The embroidery threads are in boxes in a linen cupboard, as I don't use them that often. My sewing/quilting threads are in boxes in the studio stacked under the desk area next to my sewing machine. The HQ threads are in zippered canvas boxes from a quilt show. Each box groups colors for ease in finding just what I want.

I keep my stash organized by color and type in plastic see thru totes. Love it. They stack efficiently and I can see thru the sides. The tops are white and there is a latch to keep the lid on. I can go straight to the tote I want with little hassle.

To protect my stash from sunlight I put up UV sunscreen over my window - works well to keep excess light off my fabric. I have metal shelves w/plastic coating on metal and folded my fabric by wrapping each piece around a 6x24 ruler. The solids on one shelf and prints on another. Then all pcs less than 1 yd are folded in a bin on 3rd shelf. Now I can see everything at a glance. It helps me be more creative to see what I've got. Threads are in rolling drawer unit. Notions in 2 carriers - one for quilting & one for m. embroidery. I spent last month organizing, refolding, going thru all fabric. This takes time and is worth the effort. I congratulate you on getting organized, it will help you as you sew. Duplicates are going to rummage sale in April Yeah! Dollars in and excess out. Hope you can use these tips. I got the ideas from this board. Everyone helps and I sure appreciate it.

Well--not being the queen of organization---in my sewing room the thread is sorted by color into large mouth canning jars and those and the larger scraps (1/4yd +) get stored in the top of a china cabinet. The bottom holds wools, my fusibles and some tools. There's a trundle bed in the room (covered usually with works in progress) and the trundle has no mattress but does have some bat and some fabric (wide backs and future I Spy fabrics) I also have some of those plastic drawers full of smaller scraps and patterns.
In the basement long arm room, I use a closet with shelves to hold tools and pantos, rulers on a pegboard (I do this upstairs too) and have 3 footlockers full of thread cones, sorted by color and each kind/color together with left over bobbins, in plastic baggies. Both rooms have window coverings that keep the sunlight off of the fabrics (although I'd like to be able to look out the window!).

Bought organizer from Sams (online) for my thread storage. It's also on wheels. I believe it is called a 10 drawer organizer on wheels. It's the one with different colored drawers and 24 dollars and change. You could use it for anything, but I got it for my threads.

http://www.samsclub.com/sams/search/...equestid=89245

I also use the acid free comic boards but store them in the comic book boxes. They are larger than the boards by about two to three inches on the top and the sides. They work so well for me. And are not extremely costly. And they stack two or three high. I store mine under my cutting table and under my LA frame.

My stash is ample, but pretty small. It mostly fits in a 4 drawer dresser. Large cuts (over 2 yards) in one drawer, flannels in another, batiks, novelty and solids the third, and all cuts under a yard, but over a quarter in the 4th. Everything is folded around my ruler, arranged by color and then stood on end so I can see everything when I open the drawer.
Everything else fits in a couple big bins, in my storage room. Scraps are sorted by color into shoebox sized, clear plastic bins.

I have a storage room with lots of tubs....and I'm outgrowing that. Bigger house?

I have a beautican's stand. I bought it online and it has dark black drawers, wheels, and the top has places to put your scissors and everything else related to quilting. It was about $29. My favorite toy.

I have a big old filing cabinet, six big drawers, and I have lots of my fabric on boards and filed in there. I'm looking for a second one.

I have an embroidery machine and sewing machine. For my embroidery thread I have a cabinet from IKEA called Alex drawer unit (cost was $119.00 + tax and it must be assembled). Someone here posted it showing one they customized for their thread. I just bought spice holders and use those so I can store my thread on its side and I can see the colors. There are three drawers for my thread and that leaves three drawers for my hoops and extra dish towels, aprons, etc to embroider.

For my fabric I use plastic bins. Again I went to Ikea, found some very reasonably priced shelves to put my bins on so I can see the fabric within the bins. Most of my fabric is on comic book board and it is separated by designs (Christmas, Halloween, Kids', floral, solids, sports teams, etc.). I am doing away with my larger flat bins because they stacked on each other and have decided it is so much easier to get in and out of bins if they are on the shelf and not stacked on each other. The shelves fit perfectly in the closet I have in my sewing room so I am able to close the door.

I have my material, many other things in containers I got at Wal Mart with snap lids and not real big as when full of material they get heavy enough for me to handle. They are clear and come in different sizes so have some deeper.
We have a number of animals and sugar sand so dust and these keep dust out. They stack well or go on shelves.
They are sterilite 24qt. 15 x 11 1/2 x 11 3/4 and have a range is depth and even sizes but fully stack-able and you can see what is in there.
Have my thread in contains no longer available at WM and also have to double sided thread container from connecting thread.

I have my vintage thread in those 60's/70's hold all holders (6 short ones for regular and small spools and 1 large one to hold oversize spools like star quilting spools) and also in a large tin. My modern, fancy and decorative threads and couching materials don't fit in those and are stored in four different 60's/70's hold all sewing boxes, one of those sulky double sided cases, another large tin (for isachord and aurafil) and a couple of cases that assortments came in and also one of those plastic 3 drawer units from Target. HMMM my thread and embellishment stash might be a little over-large LOL.

My fabric is stored in a couple of different places. Home dec fabric is stored in a chest of drawers in the guest bedroom. Cotton Quilting fabric that is fat quarter size or smaller is stored in one of those Arrow Suzi units--fat quarters are stood on end in a drawer so I can see at a glance what I've got, pre-cuts (including those I make for myself from scraps) occupy the other three drawers. Anything larger than a fat quarter is stored in one of those vinyl cases that a set of king size bedding came in. Silk and Cotton saris that I use for home dec and Crazy quilts are in a cardboard box on top of the radiator in the guest bedroom. Scraps for string quilting or crumb quilting are in a shoebox. When the shoebox gets too full to close I chain piece crumbs or pull out some foundation papers and do some string piecing--both activities are good for low energy days. Anything too small to crumb quilt with or string quilt with (narrower than the width of my index finger) gets put in a 1950's metal picnic hamper to use in fused collage or for stuffing.

Rob

Storage
 

File storage. I found this idea on this board and am so glad I did!

I have two of these carts in my sewing room and I love them...I store my fabric in a book shelf unit with a sheet draped over the shelf to keep the dust and light out...

All my kids moved out and I've taken over the boys bedroom with fabric (quilting and garment sewing)
We live in a 1915 Craftsman, and the room has carpeting that will not be removed, so the floors are uneven.
I bought some metal shelves from Home Depot, there are 4 shelves, each 2' x 3 ', 5 units.
My husband attached each shelving unit to the wall with zip ties that hook to an eye bolt screwed into the studs of the wall. No matter how uneven I make them, those shelves are not falling!

I store my threads in an Alex drawer unit from Ikea. The unit is on casters and rolls under my sewing table but can also be rolled beside the table to help support large projects. Some drawers have some spice jar holders in them (also from Ikea) that hold threads that need to be horizontal so that I can see the colours. thread cones do not fit in any of these drawers though.

Clear long narrow plastic boxes...under my bed, under my couch, on the foot pump of my antique treadle, in drawers that should have clothes in them, far corners bottom (and top) of my closet. Recently worked on quilts are filed into shoe boxes in my bedroom corner and even closer to being done ones are kept in large old baskets so they're handy. Just almost ready to decide which pattern are placed in clear stacking plastic cases Threads and such have their own boxes so I can find them easier.