I watched this video again while I was folding some bolts of material that I bought awhile ago on clearance. Thanks for keeping me company while I folded. 😀
Best scrap video I have found yet! THANK YOU! My mom left me a huge collection of fabric and scraps - clothes making, quilting, toy making etc. this is going to be so helpful as I go through it all to organize it to my space. You are a godsend!
Hi Robin. This weekend I purchased a stash from another quilter who sadly has decided that her arthritis prevents her from further quilting. It is a large stash. I researched several ways to fold and organize the pieces, and your method was perfect for me. I pulled out my 6 inch ruler and got started right away. No delay waiting for cardboard forms and no driving off to the dollar store for foam boards. I love how it all looks on my shelf. You really made me laugh when you said that if the shelves get full, no problem just buy another bookshelf. I may have to do just that.
It’s sad that a quilter has had to stop but at least their stash has found a good home. I still fold my fabric this way and my fabric shelves have never stayed this neat for this long. I love that I can easily see the fabrics. It’s also easy to sort your fabric however It works for you. Since this video I’ve bought a few more shelves. 😉. A few months ago I found a narrower white shelf online from Walmart that’s perfect for small bins that I use to sort my scraps. I say if a new shelf helps keep your are clean then it’s worth the cost. Plus your sewing room will look like a quilt shop 😁
You are so cleaver. I love the multi use tool there. The last video I watched you showed how to make carrots with the dresden ruler, now you are showing us how to fold our fabric neater using that 6x24 ruler. I am in the process of redesigning my sewing/craft room and I have been thinking about all the things I want to change. The way I fold my fabric will be one. Thanks Robin.
May 2020 Last month I magically went from slightly guilty fabric hoarder to life saving sewer in a week! Feel much better about my 200 lbs fabric now! 😷💕👍
It was a game changer for me. My fabric shelves are still very neat even after pulling fabric for projects for over a year. It’s no longer organized in groups but it’s still super neat.
Thanks Robin. Great idea. I am going to rethink my stash when I get to move upstairs into the new space. For anyone with cube shelving, you can try what I have done, which is similar. I cut a piece of stiff cardboard about a good inch or so smaller than the cube space. I fold my fabric onto the square in a similar fashion. My stacks then become little flat squares. I store my fabrics in a cube of solids, plaids, holiday, cartoon, precious, etc. Works great if you have a giant cube shelf. It is also deep so it was the best way to use the deep space. When removing my fabric, I shove the cardboard in and bring out the pile like a pizza oven :) cuz the pile can be very tall, that way it doesn't fall over.
Love your idea Jodie as I have the ikea cube system too and hate my fabric being stuck in the boxes which have to be emptied each time I am looking for a piece of fabric for a project. Thank you for sharing💕
I used to store my yarn in tubs to keep the cats out of it but like you said it is a pain digging through a bin to find what you want. Once again you can't really know what you have if you can't see it easily.
Nice. I still fold my yardage this way. It works perfectly for me. I’m trying to find my way for folding fat quarters. I’ve tried a few ways but they’re still not quite the way for me. I do have an idea though 🤔
I’m planning to move house and I will be storing my fabric in the loft space which is floored and has lights - will put in a heater. So it was interesting to watch you folding your fabric while I was visualising mine going into the bookcases. I’m glad I saw this video because now I know what I’m doing.
This way of folding fabric has been a game changer for me. I can now see exactly what I have without moving any fabric around. I like to visualize things before I do them too.
Oh my I need space like you. I currently store my material in totes as I don't have a lot of material at the moment. This was amazing your friend sent this all to you. Thanks for sharing.
I think you have developed a great system. I will use the idea slightly modified. I use clear plastic tubs for storage so I will fold the strips slightly longer or shorter to fit. Love your site Robin, thanks.
OM gosh I just organized all my fabric last summer and now I’m going to redo it this summer (and the dragonfly quilt). Because right now I have half of all my fabric in a back row. I’m using a 36 in deep huge entertainment center. Great video again. Thank you. Blessings. And I saw that dragonfly fabric you got.
I love dragonfly fabrics just as much as the butterflies. This form of fabric storage has lasted me the longest. Entertainment centers are quite deep but I bet it also holds a bunch of fabric.
I fold the longer pieces in thirds, rather than folding in both ends. Also, for the mini stack of 5 11 inch strips I would leave 4 flat and fold the 5th in half over the other edges for the "display" edge. Stack wobbles a lot less that way as the overall thickness is less affected. You might have to straighten it now and then as you shop the stacks. Great job!
Robin I loved the folding on ruler idea. I wish I could keep mine out of tubs. But living in the country after crops are cut. We have a fight with mice. The old house we lived in they destroyed fabric I had on shelves.
No fancy folding on shelves for you. You have to protect the stash. Do you have many tubs and are they all stacked together? I did that with my yarn when I had a large stash and It was a pain to get to the yarn I needed. If you only have a couple of tubs maybe you could lay them on their sides so you could stack the fabric as if It were a shelf. If I can’t see my stash I tend not to use my stash which is sad and expensive.
I have a cedar hope chest that I keep a large bolt of muslim, long bolts of different types of interfacing and like that used for my embroidery machine. Another large cedar chest used for panels and fabic. 1 Midsized tote full of Christmas and Halloween fabrics. 2nd midsized full of flannels. 4 more totes of fabric. (I have my grandmas stash too). Plus I have totes in attic of yarn and 2 down stairs. So yeah I got a bunch. Plus 4 drawers in an armoire that seems to be rodent proof. That houses my batiks and fat quarters. I think I covered all of them.
Thank you so much for this video! This was so helpful for me because I have so much material and it's all folded in different sizes and kinda chaotic! As soon as I finish unpacking from our move and have my other craft supplies organized, I will do this with my fabrics! Thank you again! Brenda Moffett
I need you in my sewing/quilting room to organize the tons of fabric I have!!! When we go back to Iowa, I am going to have Jim build me lots of shelves for storing most of the fabric and just fold it all. Thanks for sharing this video with all of us.
@@rsislandcrafts Gosh, I never thought of a "fabric folding party" with my hubby!! I am sure he would just love that. lol He might want to go back to work at the fire dept. instead of being retired and helping to fold fabric. But, because he loves me so much, he just might do that!! Thank you, so much, for writing me back.
I loved this video Robin. It is so useful to see how you fold and stack your fabric. I have mine in those big square boxes that fit into the Ikea cube storage units which means it is kept free from light but means when I lift out the box I have to mess around the fabric to find what I want. I am going to adopt your method and get rid of the boxes. I can stop the light with a cover of pretty fabric across the front of the cubes which I can remove when I am looking for what I want. I feel motivared😀 Thank you💕
Thank you! I'm glad my little system was helpful for you. I can picture the mess each time you have to find a fabric. You could always turn the bins on their side so the opening is in the front but I guess that's not any different than removing the bins. Any empty bins would be good for scrap storage if you're a scrap saver.
RsIslandCrafts - Robin Thank you Robin, I am a scrap saver and just cut down all my scraps into various sized squares and strips which I have stored in a plastic transparent bin in labelled ziplock bags! I am very pleased to have my stash under more control now. I am keen to get using it and making a few quilts which I will feel great about getting them from left over scraps😀
Just wanted to point out to use a heavy object, weight on the smaller pieces of fabric while you’re rolling up the fabric on your ruler. Works great and it stays nice and taught for you. I’ve done all of mine like these, on my 6 inch ruler but used a 5 pound weight on the fabric. Hope that helps some of you.
I never used to hoard fabric just for me. I tend to want to make things for others and it always felt selfish to keep things just for myself. As you've heard I did get over that lol. I realized that I deserve to have things that make me smile too. I'm glad I'm not the only one ;)
I’ve been separating by holidays, solids(ish), stripes, and everything else. My scraps are now separated by color and It has been a game changer for me. I firmly believe that we all have to organize our fabrics by how we use them. Even if those colorful walls of fabric in someone else’s studio that we all love looks amazing. If It doesn’t work for each person then it’s more of a hassle than a tool to help us.
Am in the process of putting together a dedicated sewing room. These are great ideas for storing fabric, and I intend on folding the yardage I have. But, I also have precuts in various shapes, as well as collections of fabric which are coordinated. I don’t want to separate these collections. Any advice how to store pre cuts and collections of fabrics ( fat quarters, have yards, and even one eights collections). I plan on putting them together on open shelves so I can see them. Also, how would you store left over 21/2” strips from a jelly roll? I made a large quilt from 2 jelly rolls, but have about 15 strips from the collection left over. Thanks for the great suggestions!
Congratulations on an almost sewing room!! I store various worth’s of strips in plastic shoe boxes. I cut my scraps into 1.5”, 2”, 2.5” and each have their own dedicated shoe box. Maybe tie each fabric line of left overs with a scrap of fabric or a ribbon before storing them?? I tend to store things in small clear bins. The kid keeps out the dust and I can see what’s inside. I also add a label to the front of the bin. They stack nicely on my bookshelves. Have fun!!
I'm sure it's one of those things that takes a long, long time to happen but I don't want to take a chance. Moving is not fun but setting up a new craft area/room is fun.
I watched this video again while I was folding some bolts of material that I bought awhile ago on clearance. Thanks for keeping me company while I folded. 😀
Thank you so much Anna. I appreciate that you rewatch my videos while you’re busy doing a task or chore. I like to have company when I work too.
Best scrap video I have found yet! THANK YOU! My mom left me a huge collection of fabric and scraps - clothes making, quilting, toy making etc. this is going to be so helpful as I go through it all to organize it to my space. You are a godsend!
Thank you. I still store my yardage this way. It makes much easier for me to see what I have and pull out fabrics and put them back.
Hi Robin. This weekend I purchased a stash from another quilter who sadly has decided that her arthritis prevents her from further quilting. It is a large stash. I researched several ways to fold and organize the pieces, and your method was perfect for me. I pulled out my 6 inch ruler and got started right away. No delay waiting for cardboard forms and no driving off to the dollar store for foam boards. I love how it all looks on my shelf. You really made me laugh when you said that if the shelves get full, no problem just buy another bookshelf. I may have to do just that.
It’s sad that a quilter has had to stop but at least their stash has found a good home. I still fold my fabric this way and my fabric shelves have never stayed this neat for this long. I love that I can easily see the fabrics. It’s also easy to sort your fabric however It works for you. Since this video I’ve bought a few more shelves. 😉. A few months ago I found a narrower white shelf online from Walmart that’s perfect for small bins that I use to sort my scraps. I say if a new shelf helps keep your are clean then it’s worth the cost. Plus your sewing room will look like a quilt shop 😁
You are so cleaver. I love the multi use tool there. The last video I watched you showed how to make carrots with the dresden ruler, now you are showing us how to fold our fabric neater using that 6x24 ruler. I am in the process of redesigning my sewing/craft room and I have been thinking about all the things I want to change. The way I fold my fabric will be one. Thanks Robin.
Hi Meloni. My fabric is still folded this way and so far I’ve never had a mess on my fabric shelves. Which is shocking.
first time for the window. Love that.
May 2020 Last month I magically went from slightly guilty fabric hoarder to life saving sewer in a week! Feel much better about my 200 lbs fabric now! 😷💕👍
Right? A large random stash has come in handy for many this year. Later on we get to go out and replenish our stashes. That’ll be fun!
I was mirroring you and re-folding my fabric along with your video. Just Incredible! What a difference this makes. Thank you.
It was a game changer for me. My fabric shelves are still very neat even after pulling fabric for projects for over a year. It’s no longer organized in groups but it’s still super neat.
Robin, your crumb blocks are so inspiring. I have so many scraps and you just gave me an idea. Thank you for sharing.
Wonderful! Thank you. I love sewing scraps and crumb blocks are meditative and relaxing for me.
I just wanted to thank you for your video. I watched it yesterday and was motivated to organise my fabric, and it looks great.
Awesome! It feels so amazing to have our fabric neat and easy to find. The rest of the craft-room? Well that’s total chaos 🤣
Thanks Robin. Great idea. I am going to rethink my stash when I get to move upstairs into the new space. For anyone with cube shelving, you can try what I have done, which is similar. I cut a piece of stiff cardboard about a good inch or so smaller than the cube space. I fold my fabric onto the square in a similar fashion. My stacks then become little flat squares. I store my fabrics in a cube of solids, plaids, holiday, cartoon, precious, etc. Works great if you have a giant cube shelf. It is also deep so it was the best way to use the deep space. When removing my fabric, I shove the cardboard in and bring out the pile like a pizza oven :) cuz the pile can be very tall, that way it doesn't fall over.
Love your idea Jodie as I have the ikea cube system too and hate my fabric being stuck in the boxes which have to be emptied each time I am looking for a piece of fabric for a project. Thank you for sharing💕
So you wrap your fabric around the cardboard but lay it flat like mine? That's better than having them stand on end up and down.
I used to store my yarn in tubs to keep the cats out of it but like you said it is a pain digging through a bin to find what you want. Once again you can't really know what you have if you can't see it easily.
I like the way you sort indeterminate sizes very helpful with sorting and storing scrub cap scraps! Thank you!
Thank you! So many of us are generating lots of scraps right now. I’m sure we’ll be seeing many new scrappy quilt designs later this year.
Thank you! This was super helpful!
You’re welcome. I’m glad It helped.
1st beautiful fabric and I do fold just like you some just a bit different ❤
Nice. I still fold my yardage this way. It works perfectly for me. I’m trying to find my way for folding fat quarters. I’ve tried a few ways but they’re still not quite the way for me. I do have an idea though 🤔
I’m planning to move house and I will be storing my fabric in the loft space which is floored and has lights - will put in a heater. So it was interesting to watch you folding your fabric while I was visualising mine going into the bookcases. I’m glad I saw this video because now I know what I’m doing.
This way of folding fabric has been a game changer for me. I can now see exactly what I have without moving any fabric around. I like to visualize things before I do them too.
My cats think the reason I purchase fabric is so they have a pretty place to sleep. They even try to lay on it while I am ironing or cutting.
Mine too. Here’s one of them trying to take over my scraps. m.ruclips.net/video/DWt7ZT41SxA/видео.html
Oh my I need space like you.
I currently store my material in totes as I don't have a lot of material at the moment.
This was amazing your friend sent this all to you.
Thanks for sharing.
The fabric has been wonderful for my charity quilts. I'm enjoying our little barter system. She has requested some fun knitting [patterns.
I think you have developed a great system. I will use the idea slightly modified. I use clear plastic tubs for storage so I will fold the strips slightly longer or shorter to fit. Love your site Robin, thanks.
Thanks Janice!
OM gosh I just organized all my fabric last summer and now I’m going to redo it this summer (and the dragonfly quilt). Because right now I have half of all my fabric in a back row. I’m using a 36 in deep huge entertainment center. Great video again. Thank you. Blessings. And I saw that dragonfly fabric you got.
I love dragonfly fabrics just as much as the butterflies. This form of fabric storage has lasted me the longest. Entertainment centers are quite deep but I bet it also holds a bunch of fabric.
I am soo happy you made this video!!!
I’m glad you like It. My fabric is still stored this way and I love It! No messy shelves ever.
I fold the longer pieces in thirds, rather than folding in both ends. Also, for the mini stack of 5 11 inch strips I would leave 4 flat and fold the 5th in half over the other edges for the "display" edge. Stack wobbles a lot less that way as the overall thickness is less affected. You might have to straighten it now and then as you shop the stacks. Great job!
Robin I loved the folding on ruler idea. I wish I could keep mine out of tubs. But living in the country after crops are cut. We have a fight with mice. The old house we lived in they destroyed fabric I had on shelves.
No fancy folding on shelves for you. You have to protect the stash. Do you have many tubs and are they all stacked together? I did that with my yarn when I had a large stash and It was a pain to get to the yarn I needed. If you only have a couple of tubs maybe you could lay them on their sides so you could stack the fabric as if It were a shelf. If I can’t see my stash I tend not to use my stash which is sad and expensive.
I have a cedar hope chest that I keep a large bolt of muslim, long bolts of different types of interfacing and like that used for my embroidery machine. Another large cedar chest used for panels and fabic. 1 Midsized tote full of Christmas and Halloween fabrics. 2nd midsized full of flannels. 4 more totes of fabric. (I have my grandmas stash too). Plus I have totes in attic of yarn and 2 down stairs. So yeah I got a bunch. Plus 4 drawers in an armoire that seems to be rodent proof. That houses my batiks and fat quarters. I think I covered all of them.
😂. Just a small stash, right? 😉. I lover cedar chests.
@@rsislandcrafts yes just a small collection. Grandma didnt help matters lol 😆 I love fabric
Thank you so much for this video! This was so helpful for me because I have so much material and it's all folded in different sizes and kinda chaotic! As soon as I finish unpacking from our move and have my other craft supplies organized, I will do this with my fabrics! Thank you again!
Brenda Moffett
Thanks Brenda! I’ve been using this system for awhile and it’s held up well. Moving is a ton of work but the perfect time to make a few changes.
I need you in my sewing/quilting room to organize the tons of fabric I have!!! When we go back to Iowa, I am going to have Jim build me lots of shelves for storing most of the fabric and just fold it all. Thanks for sharing this video with all of us.
Your fabric stash scares me 😂. You probably need more storage than I do. You and Jim can have a fabric folding party !!
@@rsislandcrafts Gosh, I never thought of a "fabric folding party" with my hubby!! I am sure he would just love that. lol He might want to go back to work at the fire dept. instead of being retired and helping to fold fabric. But, because he loves me so much, he just might do that!! Thank you, so much, for writing me back.
If you smiled at him and said please I'm sure Jim would fold fabric with you. He's a sweetheart.
I loved this video Robin. It is so useful to see how you fold and stack your fabric. I have mine in those big square boxes that fit into the Ikea cube storage units which means it is kept free from light but means when I lift out the box I have to mess around the fabric to find what I want. I am going to adopt your method and get rid of the boxes. I can stop the light with a cover of pretty fabric across the front of the cubes which I can remove when I am looking for what I want. I feel motivared😀 Thank you💕
Thank you! I'm glad my little system was helpful for you. I can picture the mess each time you have to find a fabric. You could always turn the bins on their side so the opening is in the front but I guess that's not any different than removing the bins. Any empty bins would be good for scrap storage if you're a scrap saver.
RsIslandCrafts - Robin Thank you Robin, I am a scrap saver and just cut down all my scraps into various sized squares and strips which I have stored in a plastic transparent bin in labelled ziplock bags! I am very pleased to have my stash under more control now. I am keen to get using it and making a few quilts which I will feel great about getting them from left over scraps😀
Thank you Robin I'll be refolding my stash today.
I don’t even want to think about how many times I’ve redone my stash 😂. It’s been this way for at least a year and so far it’s working pretty well.
Just wanted to point out to use a heavy object, weight on the smaller pieces of fabric while you’re rolling up the fabric on your ruler. Works great and it stays nice and taught for you. I’ve done all of mine like these, on my 6 inch ruler but used a 5 pound weight on the fabric. Hope that helps some of you.
Great tip. Thanks! I’m still using this method and I love how neat my stacks of fabric are even when I pull fabric from the stacks.
What a great idea! Thanks for sharing. My fabric is currently in a tote to keep my toddler out of it
I've been there before. Now I have to keep the cats out of things lol.
Some really great ideas in this video. Thanks!
I love it, Robin! "These are my favorite fabrics that I only use for me..." And I thought I was the only one! ha
I never used to hoard fabric just for me. I tend to want to make things for others and it always felt selfish to keep things just for myself. As you've heard I did get over that lol. I realized that I deserve to have things that make me smile too. I'm glad I'm not the only one ;)
Such a practical video thank you Robin!
Thank you!
I thank you for your precious tips!!!
🦩
I'm not sure how I missed this!!!
I was hiding It from you 😉🤣🤣🤣
Another great fabric video.
Thank you!
I fold and separate by color mostly. I also separate by seasons or type
I’ve been separating by holidays, solids(ish), stripes, and everything else. My scraps are now separated by color and It has been a game changer for me. I firmly believe that we all have to organize our fabrics by how we use them. Even if those colorful walls of fabric in someone else’s studio that we all love looks amazing. If It doesn’t work for each person then it’s more of a hassle than a tool to help us.
Thanks for sharing. I tried the comic boards and found them to be a pain. I like your system. I'm going to check out your scrap storage vid.
Thanks Debbie! I'm so happy that this system is still working for me. I hope you find you system too.
What a great idea
Thank you! I thought so too when I saw it.
Am in the process of putting together a dedicated sewing room. These are great ideas for storing fabric, and I intend on folding the yardage I have. But, I also have precuts in various shapes, as well as collections of fabric which are coordinated. I don’t want to separate these collections. Any advice how to store pre cuts and collections of fabrics ( fat quarters, have yards, and even one eights collections). I plan on putting them together on open shelves so I can see them. Also, how would you store left over 21/2” strips from a jelly roll? I made a large quilt from 2 jelly rolls, but have about 15 strips from the collection left over. Thanks for the great suggestions!
Congratulations on an almost sewing room!! I store various worth’s of strips in plastic shoe boxes. I cut my scraps into 1.5”, 2”, 2.5” and each have their own dedicated shoe box. Maybe tie each fabric line of left overs with a scrap of fabric or a ribbon before storing them??
I tend to store things in small clear bins. The kid keeps out the dust and I can see what’s inside. I also add a label to the front of the bin. They stack nicely on my bookshelves.
Have fun!!
I have that butterfly fabric, I have had it for some time. I just can't bring myself to cut it.
I find It hard to cut into some fabrics too.
Great !!!!!!
Oh, didn't know about the lack of breathing in tubs, lol. I may devise a new system once I get moved.
I'm sure it's one of those things that takes a long, long time to happen but I don't want to take a chance. Moving is not fun but setting up a new craft area/room is fun.
,All my material is in tote bags.
Is it hard to find what you need?
H
Hi!