It only took me six months, but I finally organized my fabric scraps after our move.
It only took me six months, but I finally organized my fabric scraps after our move to this new town and new house. When we made the move, I dumped my two huge bins of scraps into a few shopping bags and tucked them away until this glorious moment when they would not only be sorted, but have a place to reside.
Bits and pieces
Why should one keep & organize fabric scraps?
Why should one keep and organize fabric scraps? Here are some reasons to consider.
- Fabric is expensive. Long sized strips, and smaller pieces can be reused for a vast amount of projects. The internet is a trove of fabric scrap project ideas.
- Out of sight, out of mind. The reverse of this is true as well. When you have your scraps visible, you are much more likely to use them and be aware of what you have available.
- Have a favorite color? It probably shows in the types of fabric you buy. Take a look at your pile of scraps and try to use up more of that color before you buy a few more yards.
- Many people cut their scraps to standard sizes. If you have a size of fabric you constantly seem to go to, make your life easier by making your own pre-cuts out of scraps.
Scrap bags
I ultimately made 9 bags of folded scraps.
I ultimately made 9 bags of folded scraps. They included the following (from left to right):
- All of my precut Layer Cakes (10” x 10” squares)
- All of my other-sized precuts
- Pinks
- Whites
- Yellows, tans and oranges
- Greens, teals and aquas
- Blues and purples
- Heavy duty fabric scraps (canvas, Sunbrella, etc)
- Utility fabric scraps (batting, white out fabric, mesh, etc.)
One of these things is not like the others…
Bag #10 holds all of my selvage edges & very thin strips of fabric.
There is also a 10th bag (but it didn’t fit well in the group photo above). This holds all of my selvage edges and very thin strips of fabric. I have a huge wish list of projects to make from selvage edges. Perhaps I’ll write a post soon showing you the world of possibility with saving those thin strips!
A place of and for my own making
Welcome to my fabric corner.
This is my fabric corner. The upper shelves hold my larger stash of fabrics, so pieces that are a fat quarter size or larger. The lower shelves hold my iron on top, and my fabric scraps in the bins below.
Dirty little secret: I just tuck larger pieces in wherever I find room.
I’d love to tell you that I have my larger pieces organized in some kind of fancy way, but I really don’t. I just tuck them in wherever I find room.
Behold! A place for everything & everything in its place.
Can you see how lovely the organization of these scraps is? The easy access and keeping them visible by my work space means I’m often including them in my daydreaming when it comes to new sewing projects.