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.

Sewing Room Organization: Magazines

My next organizational challenge was my magazines. I needed them readily available. But contained. The first thing I thought of were these:

Image Source

I always see these advertised in Threads magazine. And it's true, they do appear to keep the magazines contained. But readily available for browsing? Not so much.

Even if I knew specifically which magazine contained the article I was looking for, since I'm a visual person, I'd have to look at the covers to know. I wouldn't remember, "Oh, hey. That zipper article was from the March 2011 issue of Threads" Which means that I would have to take all the magazines out & look at the one by one. Which means I'd probably get distracted before I even found what I was looking for & forget my reason for getting my magazines out in the first place.

So I continued my search. By googleing "magazine organizer" and this is one of the things I found:

I know the picture is kinda hard to see, but if you click on it, it will take you to Amazon.  The product itself is just a little piece of plastic that you slip your magazine into & then place it in a binder. It's perfect for what I need. I ordered mine from Miles Kimball. They come in a set of 24, but when I placed my order the site said they came in sets of 10, so I ordered 2 (and received 50!) I have plenty for my sewing magazines & I even stared using them for my Simple & Delicious recipe magazines (which I highly recommend!)

I love that they are easy to browse through.  When I'm in the mood for some light sewing reading, I can just grab my binder & peruse to my heart's content. What about you? Do you have sewing magazines? Do you save them? How do you store them?

Sewing Room Make Over: The Patterns

The first thing that I realized I needed to organize was my patterns.  My stash keeps inexplicably & spontaneously growing. And as I sew through my patterns, I realize that they end up bigger than they were originally. Especially since I prefer to make tracings, rather than cut the originals.

This thread on Pattern Review has tons of ideas & tips for storing & organizing your patterns.  I decided to implement this system.  But I keep my pattern pieces (and tracings) in 9x12" manila envelopes, and my pattern envelopes & instructions in a 3 ring binder.

My favorite thing about this system is that I can easily flip through my pattern stash. If I want to make a dress, I just open up my binder, turn to the pertinent section & shop away.  It's easy enough to slide the pattern envelope out to see what I need for notions & yardage.

I had a small quantity of the supplies that I needed already on hand. So before I fully implemented this plan, I used what I had as a practice run.  Here's what I used:

3 ring binder
9x12" manila envelopes
Sheet Protectors

After I was sure this would work for me, I went ahead & invested in larger binder(s) from Costco, as well as a couple more packages of manila envelopes.

I separated my pattern tissue & placed it in a labeled manila envelope. If it was pattern that I've used, I put my tracings in there, too. Also, if I made any alterations or construction notes, I slipped that page in there as well. I keep these in a space separate from my sewing space...I happened to have this box on hand.

The pattern instructions themselves stay with the pattern envelope. I decided to do it that way in case I wanted to look over the instructions real quick to see how involved the pattern is.

Then the pattern envelope (with instructions) is placed in it's own sheet protector within the binder. Easy Peasy.The only thing that I dislike about my binder is that there is so much extra room within each sheet protector.  It's a small thing, but I wish they fit more snugly rather than sliding around while I'm flipping through.

 

So there you have it. My new & improved pattern organizational system. How do you keep your patterns from taking over your house?

Sewing Room Make Over: Before

Actually, maybe this post should be titled "Sewing Space Makeover" since I lack an actual sewing room.  I've carved out a sewing nook along a wall in my kitchen, and since my kitchen is quite large (and the nicest room in the whole house) it works out quite well.

Mostly. Except for the fact that my upper sewing cupboard looked like this most of the time:

Yikes.

Granted, the doors were closed. Usually. But what a mess! I'd go in there to grab something and everything except for what I wanted would come at me. I'll walk you through the mess. On the very top you'll find 2 bolts of quilting cotton to make my sister in law a clutch.  On top of those bolts are the kits I bought to make said clutch. Why do I have entire bolts of fabric?? Well, my mother in law used to own a quilt shop & when they closed she kept a good part of the stash. Which I raid. And I usually bring home entire bolts since I typically don't know how much yardage I'll need. Also on the top shelf you'll find black serger thread, a little vial of oil for my serger & also my measuring cup that holds water to refill my cheapy iron.

Ok. Next shelf. Left to right. In the very front, yes, those are craft paints. Not sewing related, but I needed to get them out of my toddler's reach quickly. You understand.  Behind that are my sewing books (the ones that aren't stacked next to my glider, that is). Then my patterns, and lastly my stack able notions holder. Stuffed in there haphazardly is some belting yardage.

Ok. Bottom shelf. (Nearly empty) Spray starch in  the front, behind that are manila envelopes that hold patterns & tracings that I've already sewn.  Next to that are my Threads & Sew News magazines. Then there's the gallon ziplock bag stuffed with assorted elastics that my mother in law gifted to me (there's actually another bag, too, I think that's in the bottom cupboard...with my fabric. Why? I don't know.) And finally my cute little sewing basket with a nearly useless thread holder (that has since been retired) thrown on top.

So there you have it. 

I like organization. I really do. But I get overwhelmed by the process.

That being said, I've come up with some plans, and I'm excited to say my sewing space looks much, much better. I'm quite proud of myself, so, if you don't mind, I'd like to share what I've done. Stay tuned for the rest of the weekly series, where I'll share what I did with my patterns, magazines, notions & fabric to make my (sewing) life a little bit easier.