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Tuesday, June 14, 2022

I'm losing to scraps!

 I'll bet you all feel that scraps seems to multiply overnight!  I am inundated and decided to try to organize some of my scraps here in Sunriver.


I've been cutting 2-1/2" strips forever and had a huge bag filled with them so I decided it was time to organize them.  So I sorted them between lights and darks.  Easy, right?  But then the question became what to do with these sorted strips?


I went to Joann's and Walmart and bought a couple of containers but I can't say that I'm happy with them as a solution.

This is the bag (in back) with the lights in a Tupperware-type container.

The darks:



Here are other ineffective solutions:




So here is my question:  how do you organize your scraps?  I know some people keep colors separated but I'm not thinking that's the best solution for me. I like having strips separated by size but that box with the dark strips seems absolutely useless to me!  

HELP??!!!!!


Still being pretty stuck in the house with my boot, I'm getting lots of sewing done.  I added another border to the red appliqué/stars quilt and laid it on the carpet to decide on a border when my small (HA!!) puppy decided to plop down on it.


I'm still not convinced I want to do a border with purple vines and leaves, thinking that'll take be forever.  Might take it to the LQS to see if there is a border fabric that might work.

Not much else going on around here.  Still pretty cool and rainy, which I'm not minding.  My foot is feeling a little better--I've been icing it every day for at least an hour and I think that's helping the swelling.  I'm thinking next week I might try to kayak...will keep you posted.


Hope you're having a great early summer.

Stay well, be kind and be grateful,

Hugs,

Randy

14 comments:

  1. I'm with you, off to the shop for suitable border fabric. LOL I'm no help with the scrap sorting though. Sorry.

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  2. Hi Randy! I am sure sorry your leg is slowing you down. I use Bonnie Hunter's scrap user system...It really does help me to use my scraps!!! I dearly love your applique quilt!

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  3. Your quilt is beautiful! I think it’s perfect as it is (without a border) but it never hurts to have a good excuse to make a trip to your LQS. You might just find the perfect border fabric, and then you will have some left over scraps from that to cut down into 2 1/2” strips to add to your collection. I don’t have a perfect solution to storing but for what it’s worth……I have mine sorted by size. My 2 1/2” bin overflows. I do enjoy looking through a particular size for certain colors etc for a project but it does slow me down. Since you already have them sorted dark/light I would leave them like that for now. It’s nice to have the neutral/lights separated. They will be mixed up again in no time.

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  4. Your stars quilt is so fabulous and I think your puppy is even more fabulous! I organize "stash" by color, but cut strips or squares on their own, like you separated by light/dark, in clear shoe boxes or similar. I think the boxes you have would work great - but maybe lay the strips flat (instead of on end) in bundles of 10 or 20, each bundle gently folded over in order to fit the box?

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  5. I use big bins to store strips and then I have basket of chunks. It is not well organized, but there you go! that's me.
    Oh Zeke is so so cute! and big, did I mention big?

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  6. My present solution for dark and light strips is to make my Many Trips (Bonnie Hunter Scrappy Trips free pattern). I separated my strips into color families and decided to make it really scrappy. Also, I plan to make four patches in the strip style with the leftovers--[sewing a dark and light together and then cutting into 2.5" inches]. Nothing new, but my solution to "use up" what i have on hand...good luck
    "stripping" ;))) hahaha hugs, Julierose

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  7. I organize by “style” of fabric first, i,e, repro, Asian, etc. and those and everything else by color. Most of my fabric is smaller pieces like fat quarters, 1/3 or 1/2 yards and it’s all folded and lined up in drawers so I can see what I have. Larger “scraps” get folded up and stored along with the rest of the stash. Smaller scraps are put in bags and given away at guild meetings. I don’t have separate boxes or bins of scraps and that works fine for my style of quilt making. Best wishes with your organizing!

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  8. Oh yes! Scrap! It's a never ending battle to subdue them. Your bin of darker 2" strip is exactly the reason why I don't cut up all my scrap. The cut pieces get "hairy" after a while. I don't like that. So I keep my scraps attached to my yardage as much as possible. Surprised, aren't you? I don't square off the yardage after each project. Eventually the yardage gets small and I then keep them by colour in fabric baskets and in plastic bins. Whatever my friends gift me gets cut up in useable sizes (1.5, 2, 2.5, 2.5 X 4.5 and 3"), unless it's a piece as big as half a FQ. Those go into the fabric baskets by colours. I think a "workable scrap system" is something personal. We all work differently. You will find what works best with your style of sewing eventually. Keep trying different systems.
    Oh! and your red applique with stars is even better looking than before. Must be the adorable model on it. Lol. ;^)

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  9. The never ending challenge. I liked reading everyone's ideas. I think I've tried it all. No one way seems the best or more workable. My hardest part is finding some good patterns to use that actually makes a dent in the pile.

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  10. Most of my stash is Civil War repros. I keep small scraps jumbled in a basket under my cutting table. Larger scrap pieces (smaller than a fat eighth) go in separate baskets sorted by color.
    My thrift store shirt scraps are in baskets on a shelf in my sewing room closet--not by color. My batik scraps are in a large basket in my sewing room--all colors together.
    Scraps of novelty and other fabrics are sorted in a three drawer cart beside my cutting table--lights, mediums, and darks.
    Sometimes it all overwhelms me, and I want to box it all up and start over. LOL
    Glad you are seeing improvement in your foot.
    I hope you find a fabric you like for a border on your pretty project!

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  11. first, pretty quilt...no doubt you will choose just the right thing to finish...and organize scraps? they get cut up into a few usable sizes and stored in clear shoeboxes...the 2.5" and 1.5" are packed to the gills and so will soon rustle up some tops to thin the herd...oh and the nickel shoebox is full too...occasionally pull pieces from there for small blocks...good luck with whatever method works for you...

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  12. All my reproduction fabric strings go into a large bin unsorted by color... I. e. Random. All others into another container. I have not yet used any, but plan on doing so, SOMEDAY!

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  13. Yep, Scraps multiply while we sleep. Put them in bundles and ziplock bags in the containers. That's what Bonnie does sometimes. Love the red Quilt. I vote no border. Take care and heal.

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  14. Oh scrap! I am so behind on blog reading and I have missed so many posts. I adore the applique and stars and I agree that you will find a perfect border fabric and save all that extra applique time for a new project. Zeke looks so light in that photo. Almost blond! As for scraps - I organize by color until they are bursting out of drawers and baskets and then I just do a big purge and donate them all to my group!

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