A Little More Organizing

One of my fabric cabinets is a little more organized! The doors still have strips but they are slowly getting used and more organized. Also, thank you to everyone who has been generously buying up our destash, it is giving me more room.

All my piles have been finding their way into small totes, purchased at Walmart for less than $1.00!

I am enjoying the process and I am sure I will like being able to see what I have, and I won't be cutting new strips that I have already cut.

Fabric Shelves Almost Finished

I have been working really hard to get this accomplished (you can read more about this fabric folding method here and here!). I am really happy, and I love seeing all the beautiful fabrics I have been collecting.

When I see this I see projects ready to be made!

As a result of getting more organized, I have decided maybe it is time to do a little destash.  I enjoy all types of fabric, but I have rethought some that I have purchased and have decided it is time to let some go.

I have already listed some on Flickr, mostly precuts that I am going to sell. Maybe you are interested? We also have a temporary destash page on our blog.

Organizing Solids

Have you been bitten by the solids bug yet?  I certainly have.  I've been slowly building up a little collection of solids {whenever I find I need a color, I try to pick up a yard or so if it is something I'm likely to use again!}.  But, as I started collecting solids, I realized I needed a way to keep them organized.

So, I've started using little scraps to make labels, telling me the manufacturer and color, that way I don't accidentally buy duplicates, or if I need more, I can get the closest match possible. I just pin these to my fabric bolts.

Also, I often back my mini quilts with a coordinating solid, leaving a rather large piece of fabric left over, so I've started just rolling that piece back onto the bolt to keep so it is handy for the next mini quilt or mug rug.

Have you started collecting solids?  If so, do you have a method to keep them organized?

Decorating Your Space

Look at that mess!  Head over to the Sew Lux Blog to read more about my sewing space as part of the Get Organized series!

And if you haven't seen the rest of the posts, there are some great ideas, so make sure you check them out {and fabric shop too...!}

Fabric folding

My cabinet with most of my fabric now looks like this!    

It needs to be more organized so I can see what I have, therefore, it will be used more effectively.

My plan is to fold and then arrange by color. This is another method of storage that I learned about from Jennie. I saw her fabric stored like this on a shelf at her little cottage house and loved it. She has sold me once again on becoming more organized!! She even ordered these comic boards from Amazon for me, I so appreciate her and her willingness to help me in this process.

 You can find out more about these here. I am so excited to see my fabric in a new way. Maybe, just maybe, I will need to do more shopping. We'll see!!!

I will show you once I get all my fabric folded and arranged, hopefully soon!

Storing floss

What I really like about this storage is that each color can be separated into it's own drawer, the thread is visible through the front for easy selecting, and  the drawer units are stacking or side by side. Oh, and I can't leave out the fact that they are very inexpensive....these were purchased at Target for $7.99 each.

For now, they can be side by side on my sewing table and when I have added more thread  I will be able to  stack the units.

 I also think they look so pretty in these drawers. After all, aren't they for making some really pretty things even prettier?

Didn't Jennie do a fabulous job on our new header for our blog? I think it's really sweet. Here are some flowers for you to enjoy, I am, thank you sweet hubby!  Thank you for stopping by and visiting and we love your comments.

New Place to Quilt

Remember this sneak peek I gave you? You may have actually seen these photos on Rhonda's blog, Quilter in the Gap on Sunday {and even though I'm showing them here, you should still pay her a visit!}, but I thought I'd post them here too!

So, without {too much} further ado, here's my new sewing space on one side of our family room/office:




Interestingly, our house is a three bedroom, but this time around I've chosen to put the sewing things out in the family room area. Since I apparently don't like to spend time alone, sewing by myself in another part of the house doesn't really work for me.




I've reorganized my stash of fabrics in hopes I will be inspired to create my own fabric combinations a little bit more, instead of just sticking to one line of fabric for a project. I'm also loving the way the mini bolts look, just for cuteness sake!




I've got a little cutting table set up, with some extra supplies as this also doubles as my drawing area {where the Embroidery 101 blocks get designed}, and iron storage, when the ironing board is put away {which it rarely is!}.




I've repurposed our coat tree into the perfect spot for all my bags to hang {no, I don't have a problem}, and am shocked it's already so full. I've also got my batting roll hidden in the corner!




My sewing machine gets to occupy her own table, with the works in progress in the back.




And, since this is a tiny little house, under the tables also gets to be a big storage area too.




What kind of place would be complete without a few pretty things? As you can tell, I really love violets!

I hope you've enjoyed this little tour. Now I've just got to put it to use and make some stuff!

P.S. I linked up with Thearica @ Pigtales & Quilts!

Stash Project: Organization!

Here is a photo of my fabric stash in its early days {sorry for the small size, I've also upgraded my camera since then!}. This was way back at our home in New York, when I first set up my sewing room.  A lot has changed since then.  Initially I had just acquired more fabric, but this move I decided to make some big changes.  I had seen those mini fabric bolts here and here. { I also did a little web search, and this is one of the earliest blog posts I found about them: here.}  So, I decided to join the fun and try them out, the result looks something like this:

That's all I'm going to show for now though, because there is a special post planned to show my entire new sewing area {and I'm not quite done anyway}.  But, the Stash Project of the Month post wouldn't be complete without an opportunity to link up and win a surprise yard of fabric {I'll do my best to make it suit the winner!} and the Lizzy bag sewing pattern.  Since I'm bending the rules for myself this month, I'll do the same for you.  You can either link up a blog post about something you made from your stash, or you can blog about your stash organization and link that up!  Can't wait to see what you've been working on.

When linking up, please make sure to follow our few simple rules, and visit some of the other great stash projects too! The giveaway will close when the linky closes, on August 8th {since I'm late in posting this, I'm giving you a few extra days to enter!}.

Sewing Table

For the time being we live near Ikea.  Have I mentioned before how much I {heart} Ikea?  On a little trip a few months ago while searching for a new computer desk, I got a big surprise: a new sewing machine table!  We were considering just using a table for our computer, and when we saw the Ingo table we couldn't help but admire it {and the price!}.  Josiah's suggestion, use a desk for the computer, but get the table too...for my sewing machine {am I a lucky girl or what?}.

I don't keep much at my sewing table {though, I'll be honest that it is often cluttered with WIPs}, but rather like a clear space for quilting.  I like having a lamp at one end so I have some added light while sewing, especially in the evenings.

Next to my machine I always have a pincushion {I rotate them around, so that way none is ever the collector of all the pins}, and a little paper mache box {I have plans to cover it with fabric}.  I use the lid as a thread catcher and the body to hold the things I need at my machine.  While there is room in the machine's storage box to hold these things, I find that it is irritating to have to move my project in order to change a needle, or put in a full bobbin, this way those things are at my fingertips!  Do you have anything you particularly like near your sewing table?

Featured!

Maybe you remember my post about my disasterous sewing room?  Well, although it always looks like that in the middle of a project, I try to keep it more organized.  So, when Shruti of 13 Woodhouse Road was hosting a sewing spaces week and wanted contributors, I volunteered.  Head on over to read my post on Notions Organization.  And, if you're interested, do your own post about notions organization and join the linky for a chance to win fun prizes!  And, for our readers, check back later for a fun little giveaway here too!