Making putting things away easier
 

I will never win the "there is a place for everything - and everything is in its place" award.

However - I have found a few things that help me

1) Drawers work better than boxes (things with lids) for the things I use frequently. Drawers that are between 1 and 3 feet from the floor are my prime real estate for easy access.

2) Shelving works better than stacking. If I have to move ten things to get to the thing I want - I tend to leave the ten things wherever they ended up. Not a good plan - but it is what happens. It's also helpful to not need a stool or ladder to reach things.

3) Try to keep a few horizontal spaces bare. It's a good thing my washing machine is a top loader so I have to keep it bare!

4) Too much of anything can become a burden instead of a blessing. If I knew then what I know now - maybe I would have done things differently.


What do other "clutterers" do when things become overwhelming?

Don't let scraps build up, cut frequently! Hang rulers and other frequently used items. Making mini bolts on cardstock keeps fabric more organized than stacking. Keep your stash small and Make quilts. Finish one project before moving on...I have 1 true UFO.

sounds like my house :)

1. I label my boxes that are on my book shelves, I used labels that will come off easily.
2. I really like cubicles with each little cube labeled what color is inside or type like batik, charms, jelly rolls.
3. I gave away to the Indian Reservation in SD my extra fabric that I didn’t care for and didn’t replace it.
4. I keep thread, needles, everything in a certain place. I know where to look for things when I need them.
5. I keep fabric folded somewhat nice on my closet shelves (8’ x 6’) where I can see it.
6. I keep future projects in cloth cubes on the floor, stacked sometimes.
7. My small bedroom turned quilt room can be a disaster some days and I never ever care!!

I prefer everything in drawers, but much of my larger pieces of fabric are in shelves and I put the fabric I use less frequently on the top shelf or the bottom shelf. I have fitted out the closet with drawers until about 4 feet up and shelves above that. The drawers have my less than one yard pieces wrapped around cut down comic book boards and standing on end. I am sorting holiday and novelty fabrics are in labeled bins in the garage. My small tools and things are in labeled, colorful boxes on my window sill. Since I am only starting to feel good enough to to finish going through the fabric in the garage bins, I have been giving the fabric I don't want to my SIL to take to a woman at work who makes all kinds of things but doesn't have much money to buy fabric -- and since the fabric passes through DD's hands some of it gets redirected to her sister-in-law or herself. I put fabric that I am not sure if I want to keep in a bag, I look at it a week later and take out any pieces I decide I want and get rid of the rest -- I find I rarely take any of the fabric out so I am able to de-stash.

Wonderful ideas!

I keep a small tub handy and throw fabric in to keep it out of my way. When it reaches the top, I must put the contents away.

One of the most useless storage spaces in my sewing room is the kitchen base cupboard. I love the height and size (24 x 42) for cutting. I use the top 2 drawers for lots of stuff. The space underneath is hard to get to and I forget what I have there. I wonder if a couple of plastic drawer units would work there. I use command hooks on the flat doors and makes a great spot for my little rulers otherwise taking off the doors may be a solution. I'm off to measure......

If you could find totes that fit under the drawers - leave the lids off and slide them in and out like drawers.

I'm one of those people the phrase "creative clutter" was coined for.