How to Organize Your Scrap Quilting Fabric Stash

[@42Grammy]

I REALLY love this video and fabric organization system. I think you just saved my sanity! I’m 66 and I still have fabric scraps from my high school sewing days. Remember double knit? My father made me a 5” square template out of Formica to evenly measure and cut blocks for quilts. I still have that template as well. I am incapable of throwing away any fabric. Period. I’ve attempted to organize in the past, but gave up and smashed it all back into the boxes and bags and took a nap. Or doom scrolled to avoid the task. 😂 I think this method will allow me to organize as I go instead of all or nothing. Thank you ❤

[@piecesofthepast]

It actually took me a couple of years of cutting and storing to get to the place you see now. I just stayed determined and cut some every day or two until I could see progress being made. Then there was no stopping me! If you watch the live video here: kzbin.info5AjlVnJm8pk you can see me cut my last scrap from the piles I had. At that moment, I was completely caught up in my scrap cutting and it was so satisfying! That template you have must be such a treasure! Thank you for sharing and stay tuned! ~Deborah

[@debmeyer5751]

Ohhh, so satisfying! Oooh, so amazing! Now, if I did this with fabric, I would also need to do it with scrapbook papers. Then the laces, art supplies...genealogy paperwork....tools... cat toys.... Thank you for the inspiration. Lets see, the cat is mostly gray....

[@piecesofthepast]

HAHA, you made me laugh!! So, you have as many hobbies and cats as I do, apparently...LOL. Thank you for watching!! ~Deborah

[@annettegraff8323]

Wow! I hsve a small craft room and need to organize so that I don't waste time looking for what I want! TY very much! ❤

[@piecesofthepast]

You are so welcome! Thanks for watching! ~Deborah

[@SpeakTruthBeKind]

Thank you for sharing your system. ❤

[@piecesofthepast]

You are so welcome! ~Deborah

[@debbieb3153]

I LOVE your system. I do not like searching for things so this looks amazing for me. I am just getting enough scraps where I was wondering how to deal with it. THANK YOU for sharing your wonderful process.

[@piecesofthepast]

You are welcome! It can get overwhelming very quickly! If you have not already, check out my scrap cutting video here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/a3LNnYmkf9Jrps0 Thanks for watching! ~Deborah

[@miriamnahom3963]

So amazing! My stuff is all over the house. I love the way you’ve arranged your fabrics.

[@piecesofthepast]

Thank you! 😊 ~Deborah

[@MartyLawless-kh2jd]

I love your system with mini bolts, but I don't have the patience for all that. I have a lot of "large scraps " - probably fat qtr size I inherited from my Mom. I keep them in clear bins, roughly sorted by color. Then bins for novelty fabrics, floral prints. holidays, etc. I have started to cut pieces for specific sizes from smaller scraps when I finish a project to make scrap quilts, but I prefer the crumb quilt method of "sew and trim." Not really organized, but works for me.

[@piecesofthepast]

Sounds pretty organized to me. Beats my original system when I first started of keeping everything in grocery bags. LOL. Thanks for watching and for the great comment! ~Deborah

[@jylromain6439]

You are so organized. I love it. I will say I hate this new youtube format. I have a terrible time navigating it. Just in case they ask you. So glad I found your channel. Second vid that I've watched and I'll watch more.

[@piecesofthepast]

To be honest, I have never been able to navigate KZbin very well. It is always so confusing to me, too. Glad you liked the video! Thanks for watching! ~Deborah

[@Rosalind-n4z]

Deborah I absolutely ❤❤❤ your organization system. I feel calm just watching this video!!! Thanks for giving us a tour of your Happy Place 😊!!!

[@piecesofthepast]

My pleasure! It is really so much better knowing that I can go pull fabrics I need instead of endless searching through bags of pieces. Glad you like it and thank you so much for watching and commenting! ~Deborah

[@deenagraham5488]

Nice organizational ideas! Thank you for sharing.

[@piecesofthepast]

Thanks for watching! ~Deborah

[@aprilmartin6586]

Great system you have for storing your fabric!

[@piecesofthepast]

I think so too! Thanks for watching! ~Deborah

[@LisaLisa-zl9vu]

omg that sock monkey is too cute!!!

[@piecesofthepast]

I know, right! That fabric is adorable. Waiting for just the right project for that one. ~Deborah

[@sandrawhitman2930]

Amazing!

[@piecesofthepast]

Thanks! ~Deborah

[@carolynmills513]

I organize by size also. If I need 2 yards, I have a few totes of that size. I don't have many scraps yet having only started a couple of years ago. But I have a laundry hamper at my cutting table that I drop them in when I'm there. Soon, I'm going to have to reduce the hamper into precut. Nice to see how you do that.

[@piecesofthepast]

Yes, I keep a basket by my cutting table, too. It always amazes me how fast that basket overflows with scraps! Thanks for watching! ~Deborah

[@kimgeisler-baker9139]

Love your skirt 😊

[@piecesofthepast]

Thank you! I didn't make the orange one, but it is similar to the ones in the video. 😁

[@cindywagner4623]

I’ve done the same with bolt sized cardboard, some been there a long time with no problem with discoloration. I don’t see a crumb bag. Beautiful storage, though.

[@piecesofthepast]

LOL, no I have too much fabric to go that small. Crumbs would make my brain explode. 1.5" is as small as I go. Thanks for watching! ~Deborah

[@pyfairy]

Great! Helps a lot!❤

[@piecesofthepast]

Yay! ❤️

[@paulaneary7877]

The mini-bolts are great. Where did you get those trays?

[@piecesofthepast]

Thank you! I used to keep them on shelves, like the larger bolts. I happened to find these trays at a dump site and brought them home. They are the trays that bread companies use to deliver bread to grocery stores. ~Deborah

[@deloresrast8543]

What about a fat quarter collection or left over layer cake or jelly rolls. Do you keep the collection together or separate it by color?

[@piecesofthepast]

Ah, in the video, I briefly show my fat quarters that I keep in bins according to color. Leftover precuts like jelly rolls, etc. get separated and stored by their sizes (strips, squares, etc.) by color. This is the best way I have found to locate a 2.5" strip of red, for example. Keeping leftover precuts together is much too confusing for me. Basically, my entire collection that is smaller than a fat quarter is my own personal library of pre-cuts. Hope that makes sense.

[@kifahmohammed4294]

Hi , please I am looking for Cheap fabric scraps

[@lauralewis8737]

Cardboard is full of acid and will discolor your fabric very quickly. I buy acid free comic book boards and use those to wrap my fabric around.

[@piecesofthepast]

This is a good suggestion. However, I tend to do things on the side of recycle and thrift, so cardboard was my choice. Thanks for watching! ~Deborah

[@sdlm2002]

Define "very quickly" please. Fabric and quilt shops have fabric on cardboard bolts, sometimes for years. I've never purchased discolored fabrics from bolts. Additionally, I wrap my fabric on cardboard with acid free printer paper glued to it. I've done this for years, and I've never had a problem. I tried the comic book boards and they are too flimsy.

[@launderedcotton8070]

Ive had some fabrics on cardboard from boxes for 10+ years. Havent ever had discoloration myself.