Comic Boards and Fabric Organizers
 

I hope it's okay to ask opinions on using Comic Boards or the other product called "fabric Organizer" that looks like it's more plastic. The price difference is quite huge. Does anyone have the "plastic" ones? Do you comic board users use 2 comic boards at once to make it stiffer? I'm trying to decide whether to purchase the comic boards and just 2 at a time when folding the fabric OR whether I should just purchase those fabric organizers a bit at a time...........I noticed they seem to have 25% off sales, but not sure if the difference is worth it. I can't seem to find out what the plastic ones are made of?

Anyway....just a pondering and want to know any opinions you might have! Thanks!

I do not use either have my fabric folded and stacked on closet shelves. I am sure someone will respond with answers soon.

I use the comic book boards - Silver edition - and like them a lot. it's nice to see my fabric lined up nicely on the bookshelves making it easier to select fabrics for projects.

I have both, the plastic and the comic. in my opinion, the plastic is too thick. I now use only the comic, and only 1 thickness.

I use 1 thickness of comic book boards, too. They help stabilize the fabric so it can stand up like a book on a shelf. For larger than 2 yd. pieces I "ruler fold" with my 6"x24" rotary ruler, and stack those folded fabrics horizontally on a shelf.

I go to the Dollar Store and get my boards, 1.00 each and you can cut several boards. Depends on the size you need. They work Great!!!

I'm using the comic boards and they seem to work fine. It's been a long process but worth seeing the fabrics lining up.

I used comic book boards, then quit. Too much folding to get the fabric on them, then too much unfolding and adjusting to get the fabric ready to cut. Now, I just ruler fold my fabric and stack it on the shelf. Takes up less room too.

this makes more sense...I never did use the boards, just ruler fold as mentioned....I can stack full height of shelf that way.....but each finds what works best....

What are you buying at the Dollar Store? I am confused. But curious!

I use magazine boards. They are a bit larger (and maybe stiffer?) They are the perfect size and I use one per fabric. They measure 8 1/2 x 11. I keep an old rotary cutter with a used blade and cut some in half to 4 1/2 x 11 for smaller than 2 yard pieces. I buy mine on Ebay which saves me time, energy, and money.

interested to know is it $1.00 a pack?

I have recycled the cardboard bolts that the fabric is wrapped on by the fabric manufacturer. I need to find something else to use since the closet doors in this apt are a little under 22" in depth (size of bolts are usually 22"). Thanks for posting this question.

Folded and on the shelf is what I do, also. I was having trouble with my stacks leaning (have one very deep shelf) so I bought, also at the $ store or at a discount store, aluminum, disposable cookie sheets....stand those vertically between your stacks for stability!!!! Works wonderfully....and who knows? Someday i might make cookies! (nah--not until I can't hold a needle or push the foot pedal! :) )

I bought the plastic ones and like them fine (just not the cost). I also use the Dollar Tree foam boards and cut my own. I used the leftover pieces to wrap my FQ's on!

I do this too and keep the fabric in drawers. As pretty as fabric filled bookshelves are, my house gets dusty too fast to risk the fabric getting dingy.

I also use comic boards that are acid-free. I purchased them in lots of 500. I have all of my yardage fabric (except fabric that's more like a bolt) folded on comic boards. Instead of having them standing up, I folded my fabrics the other direction. That way, I can get more on my shelving units.

I ruler fold, then stand my fabric on the shelf like the comic board users do. My shelves are 12" deep so I use my 8 1/2" wide ruler to fold on. Works great and I can get a lot more fabric on a shelf. I do have 2 pieces of cardboard that I use to open a place to put new fabric in. I can't see wasting space and money to leave folded fabric on. Just try different ways and do what works for you.

I have always used the acrylic one from Polar Notions. They are wonderful and worth the long-term investment. They hold several yards of fabric, never bend, and the edges will not wear/tear like cardboard ones do. I know they cost more than the cardboard but they are well worth it IMHO.

I have been given the plastic advertising signs for businesses then cut them up for my boards, I also ruler fold a lot of my fabric these two methods sure take a lot less room.

I bought some comic book boards. Had my fabric all stacked up neatly in my totes, and could flip thru them like a filing system. Then I would pull out my fabric to use it. After a while, it got to be just too much trouble to keep refolding it. Also, since my stash is not all that large, my fabric fits nicely into the totes by just folding the pieces.

I think she's buying foamcore board. Someone else once posted that that is what she uses.

I have fat quarters folded in the shoe cubbies, more material than that is on the comic boards. and long lengths of fabric is on acid free foam boards I cut the same size as the cardboard bolts from the stores.

someone gave me a few of those plastic ones i use them......i fold my pieces of fabric around them then slide them out so all fabric is folded in 3 sizes ...small one ....med one for around 2 yards and then i got a big one and flat folded [like they ruler fold but the board is the width of the shelf] the shelf is neat ...somewhat color organized ...but nothing gets lost you can see it all...

That's what I use from Dollar Tree, the foam boards.

I bought a whole pack of those comic boards and I did like them. I don't care for them anymore. I think it has to do with your 'neatness' factor. I don't have it. I am very neat with my house, but when I am digging into my box of fabric, I pull out a piece and spread it out and then hate to fold it back up.

I use the foam board from the dollar store. I cut in in 6 piecesric on. and it is wonderful to store fabric on.

I use the comic boards single thickness - purchased on Amazon. I then store them like books on a book shelf. Makes it easy to store by color, fabric type etc. It took me a while to organize but now I can see what I have at a glance. I force myself to put things back where they belong. No longer waste time finding the perfect piece that I know I have but don't know where it is. Find what works for you.

I tell myself it only takes a few seconds now verses how many minutes later!

My shelves are 24" in depth and I really didn't need the bolts to be that long. I just cut a couple inches or more off the ends and split them then taped with duct tape or like a cap.

Question: The comic boards that I find on the internet say that only one side of the comic board is acid free. They also don't tell you which side is the acid free side - not that it matters with fabric.

are your comic boards acid free on both sides?

I buy foamcore boards at Dollar Tree. I cut them into 7 X 10 inch pieces. I get 8 boards for $1.00. Love using the boards!!

I use something like the comic boards. Mine are the boards that you used to get some fat quarters and other precuts on back when the companies first started doing pre-cuts. I just saved them and cut them to sizes that would work with the drawers that I have.

I use the boards for anything larger than a fat quarter but smaller than 2 yards. I wrap my fabric on them, pin a label showing yardage and stand it on end in my cheap plastic drawer units from Target. Anything over 2 yards is ruler folded and stands nicely in the bottom drawer of one of my units. Fat quarters are also ruler folded and stood on end. When I open a drawer I can see immediately what I've got--sort of like what people do who file their fabric on hanging files in a file cabinet, only mine aren't on hanging files. It's quick and easy to shop my stash since I have one 3 drawer unit dedicated to yardage and another one dedicated to fat quarters and precuts (most of which are homemade from my scrap heap). I can store between 200 and 300 yards of quilting fabric between the two drawer units and they fit under/beside my sewing tables which is great since my sewing area is really small. I live in an old house and have a dog, so dust is always a concern for me, that's why I went with the drawer units rather than shelves.

The only problem with having my fabrics so well organized is that now that I can see what all I've got and it's so easy to get to that I don't get to experience the thrill of fabric shopping as often as I used to in my pre-organization days! :D

Rob

http://www.quiltingboard.com/mission...s-t179823.html

This is a link to a board I started in 2012 about the comic boards. (Can't believe it's been 4 years!) The boards still work perfectly!!! Still GLAD I did it.

About half way down is a picture as I was working on the fabric. The cabinets are full and overflowing...need either more cabinets or need to use up the fabric!

Good Luck!
Nancy

I love the comic boards. I use one board for 1-3yd pieces, half a board for anything more than 1/4yd but less than one full yd, and I put any yardage more than 3 yds on a regular bolt. I store my fabric in book cases I find at thrift stores. Here's a pic of one, I took out the bottom shelf to stand the regular bolts with the comic boards on the other shelves.
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Cari

I use the comic book boards in the 8x10 size and 8.5 x 11 size. I use the larger size for two or more yards. I love how they work. I put 1/2 yard cuts up to 2 yards on the 8x 10. I used to wrap the fabric and then use a pin to secure, but I've found you don't really need to pin - especially if your bookshelf is full of fabric "books" haha

See Cathyvv's note........it doesn't say on the package (it's a gift, so I won't open it).......is there a right and wrong side? Yikes! This is interesting. Thanks for the link to the survey...I'm looking at that next!

Quiltinghere...thanks for the link to the survey. Very informative! P.S. Did you use 2 sheets or just 1 sheet?

I use the comic book boards for my personal fabric stash. For my charity stash, I don't. The charity stash is a disorganized mess and I fold the fabric all different ways. I constantly find fabric I didn't know I had.

The comic boards force me to put my fabric away in a neat and orderly fashion every time I get it out (even though I don't want to). I have used 500 of them and am about to order another 100. These are the ones I use https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I use a Size 19 rubber band to hold the fabric on the comic board. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1 It keeps the fabric in place when I am moving them around and allows me to get a small piece such as a fat quarter to stay on. Anything that doesn't fit on a comic board with a rubber band goes with my scraps.

I do have to ruler fold wide backs. I have gotten as much as 9 yards on one comic board back.

We have a local comic shop. I just go there and get the boards. Someone thought they might take up too much room but they won't take up anymore than the package of the boards (approx. 1 1/2" thick).