Go Back  Quiltingboard Forums >
  • Pictures
  • Mission: Organization
  • How to organize my stash? >
  • How to organize my stash?

  • How to organize my stash?

    Thread Tools
     
    Old 01-14-2013, 09:55 PM
      #31  
    Senior Member
     
    vivientan's Avatar
     
    Join Date: Aug 2010
    Location: Singapore
    Posts: 331
    Default

    I had a bedroom renovated 2 years ago, to convert into a craft/sewing room. I just have too much crafts (I'm also a scrapbooker!) and sewing stuff lying around and needed a more organised space. Out of this, I custom made a cabinet just for my fabrics. I'm fond of buying FQs, and I sort the loose ones according to colours neatly in my cabinet. Those FQs and yardages which I buy as a set/collection get stacked together, as I like to work with fabrics from similar collections, so they mix and match well together.

    I'm not even sure why I keep buying fabrics when I don't have much time to quilt nowadays. I only see the volume increase, but never decrease. LOL.
    vivientan is offline  
    Old 01-15-2013, 10:36 AM
      #32  
    Power Poster
     
    gabeway's Avatar
     
    Join Date: Nov 2009
    Location: Kansas City, MO
    Posts: 10,490
    Default

    We put shelves in a rarely used closet - put the material on magazine boards and stacked it on end like a fabric store so all is easy to see.
    gabeway is offline  
    Old 01-15-2013, 12:13 PM
      #33  
    Member
     
    Join Date: Oct 2011
    Location: Kodiak, Alaska
    Posts: 96
    Default

    I would suggest taking a look at Jeni Baker's blog "In Color Order". She has a header called The Art of Choosing in which she includes a video on folding fabric. From fat quarters to 1-2 yards, they all end up the same size just fatter for the bigger pieces. She also talks about choosing fabrics using combos from the color wheel. Excellent information. I keep my scraps in one of those big plastic zipper totes that comforters come in. If I get much more I may have to start dividing them up by color. At least I can see what is in there without dumping them out. I also cut squares 1.5" to 5" and keep them in labeled mayonnaise jars on a shelf along with scraps of binding and selvages. Sometimes a scrappy binding is just right.
    Bearpawquilter is offline  
    Old 01-15-2013, 07:11 PM
      #34  
    Senior Member
     
    Join Date: Jan 2007
    Location: Michigan's Upper Peninsula
    Posts: 857
    Default

    This afternoon I puttered in my sewing room rearranging my scraps by color. I went from the tinited plastic boxes with covers for my precuts with all colors mixed together for the size to boxes by color.. I can tell at a glance that the colored boxes are precuts: 1.5 inch strips, 2.5 inch(light and dark), neutrals. In flat 12x12 inch colored boxes I corraled the cut pieces by color: 6 inch squares, 4.5 inch squares, various short strips and triangles. Example: blues in one box; purple, green and teal share another box. My flat 12x12 inch clear boxes hold WIPs.

    I am happy to accept scraps, launder them and cut them up for scrappy quilts. Yes, there is a special recepticle to receive these scraps until I cut them down. Scraps that I don't want to cut down at this time are in tinted shoe boxes by color grouping. I am finally at the stage where I wanted easier access to colors for design purposes. This is just one of the ways in which I have changed and "refined" my system at different stages.

    You will find your style and work out your own system. IMHO keeping up with putting things away will be the trick to being pleased with storage/access. Good luck!

    Last edited by kay carlson; 01-15-2013 at 07:18 PM.
    kay carlson is offline  
    Old 01-16-2013, 01:39 PM
      #35  
    Super Member
     
    Join Date: Jan 2011
    Location: Louisville, KY
    Posts: 1,215
    Default

    Originally Posted by mindless
    I use clear shoe box size containers too....for scraps & fqs. I found a canvas shoe 'rack' that holds 26 pairs of shoes or 26 shoe boxes. It's canvas, so it's sturdy. I went back & got 1 more & stacked them. (It's sad that I can fill all 52 boxes with stuff) Whats great about the shoe holder, is that I can stack up my boxes, & still get at the ones on the bottom without having to move any off the top of the stack first. (I always hated doing that) AND I can see everything that I have in them (love that)
    I bought a bunch of plastic containers at the Dollar Store. Hubby put up shelves for me and I have it organized by shades of colors. I also found a shelf at Target that is designed for putting shoes, hats, things like that. It has about eight squares and I am using it for storing FQs and charm packs. Works great!
    EllieGirl is offline  
    Old 01-16-2013, 03:59 PM
      #36  
    Member
     
    Join Date: Jun 2010
    Posts: 1
    Default

    I get signage board from a local sign shop. I cut the board to fit my fabric when folded in 4ths selvage to selvage with a little space on each end. Then I wrap the fabric onto the board. I store it on book shelves. I store them by theme or color. I can instantly see if something is out of place. Make sure you cut the board with the groves going across the board for stability.
    gpotts4202 is offline  
    Old 01-16-2013, 04:17 PM
      #37  
    Super Member
     
    Join Date: Jun 2008
    Location: Utah
    Posts: 8,844
    Default

    I've never worried too much about organizing my stash. I kind of have a system of putting similar sized pieces together and sorting them by color. I also keep all the fabrics I'm collecting for a specific project together in zip locs along with the pattern. I have one drawer for neutral backgrounds. And I'm not real particular about folding as long as they end up approximately the same size and will fit on the shelf. My stash probably isn't as big as some but this seems to work for me. You need to decide what will work best for you.
    quiltsRfun is offline  
    Related Topics
    Thread
    Thread Starter
    Forum
    Replies
    Last Post
    SuzzyQ
    Mission: Organization
    18
    02-05-2012 09:57 PM
    GiddyUpGo
    Main
    75
    10-14-2011 03:59 PM
    pineneedles4
    Main
    225
    07-08-2011 09:01 AM
    mackandblues
    Main
    26
    12-10-2010 06:19 PM
    craftybear
    Main
    72
    06-26-2010 04:33 PM

    Posting Rules
    You may not post new threads
    You may not post replies
    You may not post attachments
    You may not edit your posts

    BB code is On
    Smilies are On
    [IMG] code is On
    HTML code is Off
    Trackbacks are Off
    Pingbacks are Off
    Refbacks are Off



    FREE Quilting Newsletter