Sewing Room Makeover: The Fabric Stash

My fabric stash isn't huge (yet) but I still find that it is typically disheveled.  Which is strange since, theoretically, it should be the least handled of all my sewing room.

I realized that it was the actual handling of my yardage that caused the disorganization. When setting out to plan my next (five) project(s), I'd take out some yardage, measure it, see that I do/do not have enough yardage for said project, and repeat throughout my stash. Of course, the measured yardage just got haphazardly thrown back in the pile.

So I decided I needed to to handle my fabrics less. I shouldn't need to measure them every time I thought about using them.

I already had a package of Avery postcards laying around the house (for recipe cards), so I designed “Swatch cards”. I've uploaded them to google documents as a way to share them. :) If your printer has the capabilities, you could certainly print these on regular 4x6" index cards.
To download the fabric stash cards, go here:
Left Page
Right Page

After testing this system, I decided that half the cards should hold the swatch on the left side & half on the right side. That way, the thickness of the fabric is more evenly distributed in the swatch book. I will also make them double sided from here on out, so that I can re-use the card even after I've sewed up my fabric (of course, if you use pencil when filling the cards out, then you could just erase). I also added a space to notate the purchase date & fabric price. 

To house my swatch cards,  I got a 99 cent photo album for 4x6” pictures. If your stash is larger, you could divide your swatch books up by fiber type or even color.

 

So now when I'm looking for fabric to use for a project, I can just grab my swatch book & flip through. Each card has all the information I need. And what's even better, if I need to buy coordinating notions (or fabric) I can just slip the index card in my purse & take it with me into the store. For that matter, I can easily carry my whole stash around with me, if I so had the desire.