A few changes

Tuesday I did a little in the studio: straightened up the fabric so I could put away three containers of fabrics that I separated out some time ago. Generally one container of solids goes into the camper when we are traveling--you just never know when you need something that can coordinate with the rest of the quilt. A big container with a variety of solids can really help out in a pinch. 

A second container holds stripes and plaids that I first pulled out to create a kit of, yes, stripes and plaids. Since I was working on that over the weekend, I decided to haul the container along. And it's good that I did because I needed another row to make the quilt a bigger size, which I decided as I was sewing the pieces together. Right now it's 72 by 80, but that could change.

The final container holds word fabric that I've been collecting since word fabric came out. Just a piece here and there, occasionally a few fat quarters, maybe a yard. Now, there's enough word fabric to make several word quilts. I made one top while at retreat. It takes much longer to piece a top improvisationally than to mindlessly sew 8" squares. 

Of course, no matter whether you're working in improv or working with easy one-patch blocks, you have to stop talking and sew. Yeah, there's a reason I didn't get as many tops completed as last year when I was a newbie. Maybe I was a little uncomfortable and possibly less opinionated. But that was not the case this year. In fact, I may have had a little too much fun. What do you think? Are you a little more introverted when you're around people you don't know?

Sunday Quilt Inspiration: pegboards

Since last week's organization ideas were so popular, I thought I'd add a few more. This one is all about pegboards. Here's hoping your craft studio finds a peg board or two.

Sunday Quilt Inspiration: studio organization

While beautiful and fun, these organization ideas won't break the bank!

Any kind of furniture with drawers: dressers, file cabinets, desks. If it has drawers, it will make a great piece to add to your space.

Furniture with shelves can hold a multitude of items: fabric, books and mags, baskets and boxes, tools. If you find a bookshelf, snap it up, paint it and voila! fabulous storage.

Don't forget cubbies!

Who doesn't love rolling storage? Or storage for rolls?

Cleaning Rewards~~a fast finish

Have I told you I've been cleaning in the studio? I have mentioned it, I'm sure. Truthfully, I think I'm mostly moving things around. And not necessarily advancing toward a cleaner studio. I don't know what to do with this stuff! Really, I don't. 

Here's the problem: I unearth stuff--fabric, patterns, UFOs, etc.--and look it over. It's almost always too good to toss out. I mean, I don't keep trash. But I also don't intend to use it. Ever. For example, I have over 50 Butterick patterns. Over, I tell you. And that's the smallest box of the "The Big Three"--Butterick, McCalls and Simplicity. 

Now there are some used patterns. Perhaps a little over half are used. Surely some are missing a piece or two. But nothing in that box is just pure trash. Well, not if you fit into a size 8-12. I don't. But even if I did, I don't have much need for the dresses and suits I wore when I was a young, energetic teacher. (Who just happened to be able to sew really well.)

So, the patterns. What am I to do with them? Really. Burn four boxes of patterns? And what about that 1964 pattern I discovered in my mom's box? It's getting kind of old and vintage-y. As is the 1973 and the Vogue Oscar de la Renta specialty pattern...still unopened. I'll make some kind of attempt to sell them. We'll see how that goes.

There has been one great find and this one I know exactly what to do with! This quilt block was another item found in one of mom's boxes. She had already quilted it so all I had to do was bind it and offer it to my sisters. Three of them wanted the small red block quilt from last month.

I added corners so it can be hung on the wall. If all goes well, I'll find another and each of the three who asked will get one. 

In the meantime, I continue to move things around. 

Milly is loading up! ~~ Finishes!

Today's finishes mean that Milly has gotten three dresses and several pair of shorts in less than a week. It seems that almost every time she shows up for a couple of hours, I get the urge to sew a little dress. 

She's not complaining, though. Well, when she's done with the waiting, she can whine a little but nothing too bad. 



This crazy loud daisy fabric been sitting around for a couple of years. I've cut into it several times to toss a few scraps into some colorful quilt or other, but I keep finding these the big pieces. Even after cutting Mill's dress out, I still have enough to make a pair of shorts. Maybe I'll just chop it to bits and add it to a quilt kit. Let's see what happens then.

Yesterday I got pretty enthusiastic with the cleaning and emptied another box of fabric. There are only two options--on a shelf (where I can see it) or in a box for donating. Occasionally I do put something aside to make shorts or a dress, but even those are rare. I'm determined to get my studio into a clean enough condition that I can find stuff and get work done.

The other thing that I got enthusiastic about was recovering this little binder. It holds my favorite recipes, mostly those written by the person I got it from, and a few recipes that I want to try eventually. (In some cases it's been years, but who's keeping track, right?)

The original binder

Front cover

Inside front cover in pretty stripes

I discovered this little piece of decorator fabric that I really like because of the soft colors, and added two other pieces that were hanging around (and almost match) to use as the inside covers. 

Back cover (same fabric goes from front) edge to back edge

I like the way it turned out. Plus it was fast and easy. I used Mrs. Bertha's suggestions from last Monday's guild meeting. I think I'll write a tutorial and include the tips Mrs. Bertha gave us. Look for that by the end of the week. 

Inside back cover

And here are a few more pics of Milly dancing in her new dress with her favorite toy--a cheap little plastic slinky. Goodness knows where it came from.

Link Ups!

My Quilt Infatuation (NTT)

Busy Hands Quilts (Finished or Not Friday)

Confessions of a Fabric Addict (Can I get a Whoop! Whoop!)

Fold, wrap, roll and fold

The last week I've been working in the studio doing a little cleaning and a lot of folding. I started with shelves that looked like this...

 and this...

and this!

However, I've been looking at ways that other quilters organize their fabrics and decided that it's time to take some action. So now they are beginning to look more like this...

And check this out!

Honestly, it's not quite as beautiful as it appears. Well, it looks great, but everything is much too crowded. In fact, an attempt to handle anything means contortions of mind and body to keep stacks of fabric in place rather than on the floor. One wrong move and I'm back to folding the same pieces, again or maybe again two or three times.

  
I'm working on that, too. Richard added another shelf and I'm moving some fabrics. All of my modern and specialty fabrics will go above the desk where I can see them, and that will open up a bit of space. I'm also considering moving the solids. Then there's this idea...

See how I have two sets of rolled fabric in the pink section? That, I hope, is the ticket. One row of large rolls in the back of the shelf with another row of shorter, smaller rolls in front. Not everything will be rolled. Smaller pieces are folded like fat quarters and stacked. The very small pieces will go into the scrap bins that may (or not) also go on the shelves. So much depends on the amount of space I'll have after everything is rolled and folded and stacked. I don't know that this is the best system, but for now it looks pretty!