I cut 2 inch squares and using one of my quilting safety pins, I pin through them all (sometimes I have 2 or 3 pins like this for different projects). To carry them in my purse, I will attached them with a smaller safety pin to the upper side (near the side seams) so they are out of the way but always with me if I happen to find myself near a fabric store.

The dots are actually for the printer to use in checking color and lining up the print. You can notice them on boxes from the grocery store also. My husband used to teach printing.

If you are carrying a lot of them, buy an inexpensive photo wallet or whatever they are called and put one in each of the pockets (or even 2 back to back).

I just snip a little piece and stick it in my pocket!

In addition to the list I posted previously, ( http://www.quiltingboard.com/t-87101-5.htm#2177764 ) I've added the red lens glasses for viewing tones. The problem is that I am up to 3 brag books. This dos not include the FQ's, remnants, or scraps from the old square dance clothes I plan to slice into. It has helped many times to have the swatches with me. I've seen fabric I love, and want,, check my books, only to realize I already have it. I'll lust over a lovely piece until it goes on sale, or I have a coupon, but forget that I have it, until it goes on sale again. Ah, grey matter, inside and outside of the head. Glad I started my "system".

I have 5x8 inch index cards. I cut small 1" swatches of each fabric & glue them to the card with a glue stick. I then carry in my purse and they are always with me.

I usually am working on several items at a time (some non-quilting), and nearly always need something--matching/contrasting fabric, thread, buttons, etc. As I carry a fabric purse that I have made, I pin a piece of fabric to the outside of the purse (otherwise I would loose it in the bottom, or forget to look for whatever). This also draws my attention to the fact that I need to look for a particular item rather than just add more fabric to my stash. I leave the fabric pinned to my purse until I've found what I need, no matter where I go-fabric store, Wallyworld, thrift store, yard sale,you get the picture, I go as I never know where I might find whatever I'm looking for. Of course, if there is something that I can not resist, it manages to find it's way into my shopping cart!

i take my pieces and staple them to a piece of paper...that way they are all visible at the same time, and the paper can be folded and carried in your purse very easily...

Love the idea of the CD holder/photo book. I usually cut little squares and sew them together and just throw them in my purse and hope I can find them later.

I like the brag book idea.. and I too have purchased material more than once.. funny though each time was in a different color though the same pattern.. still need to get a pair of those red lens.. guess now would be the time to look.. oh, and I too used to square dance.. for many years... I must say I do miss the excercise of it...

I cut a 2-3 inch cut and staple it to a 3 x 5 card and stick it in my purse and then I don't loose the cut in the bottom of my purse. Hope this helps.

I cut 4 inch squares, then pen them all together at one end with a safety pin. That way I can just flip them when buying material.

WAIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You DON'T buy all of the matching fabrics when you go the first time???????????????????????????

Holy moly! I buy enough to do a lap quilt, all of the matching fabric I like so I have a great stash. All I have to do is get off this computer, stop reading all of the great stuff on the Quilting Board and I could have several quilts, all done, all coordinated, all beautiful! I think the fabric is even more fun than the quilting!

I use the pages for collecting baseball cards, cutting samples of fabrics, and paper of what I need such as 1/2 yard of dark, medium or light. Better size to see the whole print. Also how much for backing if I find some at a very resonable price. These I have in a folder becide the seat in my car so I always have them ready for those quick stops. I tend to buy what I need. Use those samples for your quilt diary when done or to remember what is left in your stash.

I use a mini 3-ring binder. It has the patterns, clips of the fabrics I've collected to date for each pattern, and also has clips of significant fabrics in my stash in case I see a complimentary fabric. I keep my wish list in the same binder :)

I tape mine to a card side by side then it's easy to match
colors

I usually have some blocks made that I need to match for borders. So I just take a block with me.
I use fat quarters a lot and dont have border and binding fabric.
It would be nice to have samples of fabrics in my stash with me but have to many. But Becka you sure have me thinking about how to do it.
I use the wasted fabric from straightening the edges to match sometimes.

I wish I was so organized. I sometimes try to match by memory (guess how that turns out) and I absolutely hate when I buy the fabric, and then can't remember the pattern I was going to use. I know sometimes I have bought several fabric bundles for the same pattern but then can't even find the pattern. I need to be better organized!

I don't take small swatches usually. I take a bag or tote with all the materials I want to match with me. That way I have larger pieces to match with what is in the shop. I can see more what it would look like as a finished quilt. Our LQSs are used to this.

If I take smaller swatches or pieces there might not be enough to match will all the other materials I would want to buy.

ali

This is what I do. A dollar store purse size photo album. I cut off a corner of the fabric and put it in the album on 3x5 cards. I have all the fabrics for a quilt on one card and what color is needed to complete the quilt. On another card I have the swatches of fabrics that have not yet been designated for a quilt design yet. It works great for me.

This is how I do it as well, its tiidy, clean and I can put things together easy without trying to tax my brain !LOL

I usuallycut a 2" x 2" swatch, but with batiks, the design is sometimes too large to do this. I usually take the fabric with me if I am trying to match a batik.

For my last project I happily started buying small amounts of fabrics that I thought might work. As the stack grew, I organized the colors in one of those clear plastic shoe boxes so I could see the fold of each fabric when I opened it up. I ended up with over 20 pieces! (talk about building a stash). I was able to play with them at home and decide which ones I wanted to use. Now, here is the important part. As I bought each piece, I made sure the selvege had all the information about the fabric (company, line, pattern #, etc.). If it wasn't all there, I used a ball point pen to write the info on the selvege of each piece so I wouldn't lose it - I always have to add the Color number as it is not printed on the selvege. Then, when I've decided what I want to do, I can go back and buy more or use the info on the selvege to find more of the fabric on the internet.

I just gave some friends at retreat this wkd., one of those pretty purse photo things. It's very flat and clicks like a wallet. You open it and there are places for photos, but you can put fabric swatches instead....
They loved them! Wish I had a photo, but don't. They were on sale for 2.00something.

I usually tape 1 inch squares on a piece of paper & then they are there when you need them. Also write down how much fabric I need too. Works well for me.

I take my fabric to the LQS and pull bolts to look for what I need. The ladies there are very helpful.

I put all my swatches in a little baggy and stick in my purse.

I use a small flexible, soft photo album with swatches inside the clear windows.

This is my system, too - works FABULOUSLY - prevents purchasing excess fabric when budget's tight.

I have put my bits of fabric on a safety pin & put it on my key ring. That way I don't have to dig for it & may not forget to look while in the store.

Staple what ever size you deem appropriate to a piece of paper with any pertinent notes and fold up into quarters, into the purse and I'm off!

i used a checkbook/wallet type pattern, made it vertical rather than horizantally (so it opens like a paperback) with pockets on either side and stitched a pc of batting in like the pages... i can pin in anything i need to match... and i don't lose it...

was great on the last shop hop when i wanted 9 different red on white and 9 different blue on white prints for a couple qov i'm working on... i kept a scissors in the trunk of the car, snipped a little pc off each one as i bought it & pinned it in with it's batch.

I have used a note card and stapled a small swatch of each fabric to it. I will make note of how much I have of each and what possible color(s) I'm looking for.

I came up with my "Fabric Hunting Book". Its easy to make, divide by projects, fill and refill, and carry around, altogether it's compact and convenient

WOW neat idea, so what did you make the plastic sleeves out of for your fabric hunting book?

This book was made with clear CD sleeves in which I punched 2 holes and tied together with rope. You don't want the rope too tight so you can easily look through the pages. The CD sleeves I bought in Fry's Electronics

I found this great product Swatch Buddies. Their email address is www.swatchbuddies.com. They are very reasonable and can be used over.

Wow, I have to do better. Mine are in an envelope in my purse!

I don't do swatches much anymore, but I do keep scans of my fabrics on my smartphone. I scan the fabric as I bring it home, laying a clear ruler along the edge so I can see the scale in the scan. It's really pretty quick to do. I give the fabric a short descriptive file name and make sure the file names for any flannels start with FL. The scanned files are saved on my computer in a folder called "Fabric" and I try to keep them separated in sub-folders by type or sometimes by project. Periodically I copy the files to my smartphone so I can view them in the photo gallery there. It's a great way to have my inventory at my fingertips and I'll confess sometimes I just browse through the gallery for the joy of looking at the fabric. An additional bonus is that the background on my smartphone is usually the fabric I'm most recently in love with...

Yes, I wondered where you got those sleeves too - are they from a CD case???