I can’t contain myself I have to share just a little bit of what I have been working on. I have been busy for two days organizing one section of the room and it is coming together so well. I was folding fabric off and on all day yesterday going through the bins of fabric that have been stacked on top of the dressers in the bedroom. It used to be that the fabric was on shelves and stuffed in small boxes lining the walls of the sewing room mainly above the quilting frame – this time there is going to be a lot less on shelves collecting dust and put away in plastic boxes label as to which colors are in what bins – still easy to access but not out quite where you can see it as much.
This is what it was like early in the day on Thursday
And before I went to bed Thursday night this is what it looked like – still a ways to go but almost all the big fabric bins are empty and now 17 plastic shoe box sizes full of fabric that is mainly a fat quarter or under – some pieces are closer to a half yard but most are smaller. I still need to go through the bin of wool and separate what I am pretty sure I will use and what I am pretty sure I won’t use and put those pieces in the same size boxes and on the shelf. Batting on the top shelf is also behind those two stripped baskets. Room behind things on the second shelf on the left for more but not on the right. On the right side second shelf are all my boxes of cut scraps labeled as always – 1.5″, 2″, 2.5″ etc. I can reach everything on the second shelf just fine and will need a step stool to reach things on the 3rd shelf although the things in the front I can reach just fine – I have long arms and I’m about 5’8”. These are 30” deep shelves.
My dining room is almost back to being just the dining room – I still have a few things on top of one of the corner cabinets (which actually are full of sewing things but they stay here) – on the corner cabinet at the left will be a plant and the tv will stay on the one at the right where I had the cutting table – Linking to Confessions of a Fabric Addict today and Crazy Mom Quilts . Also linking to Gone Stitching – Friday Night With Friends – I will continue working on my sewing room re-do.
These are the size boxes I had stacked up in the bedroom – I think I had 9 of them with two containing everything for two quilts in progress but I was able to complete empty one and the other still has everything I need for Handful of Scraps – I’m not sure how I will rearrange it as I don’t need it in that large of a box. I came to find that I have more Green fabric then any other and blue is the close second. Luckily when I stored the fabric in the big plastic boxes I divided it up by color so I was able to sort and put in the smaller boxes easily – I could have left it all in the big boxes but they are actually heavy for arms LOL and I thought the smaller boxes will be much easier to handle. Of course that is not counting the yardage on the bookcase at the end of the bedroom next to the hallway. And that yardage will need to stay there for the time being unless I put shelves back up in the sewing room which I am not tempted to do at the moment.
I have not gotten to the quilting frame yet. Mike has been working long hours this week and will cut my final piece of blue insulation board for the design wall today – he is off 3 or 4 days now so we can get things finished up. Hopefully the design wall will be completely finished by end of day. Then I will move the sewing machine table in and get the new desk in exactly the place I want it to be. We need to get Mike’s desk base and put it where it goes and then get the quilting frame in so I can redo the leaders and get it together. I wonder if it will all be done by Monday? We will see!
A question: do any of you use a quilt planner like the Fat Quarter Shop and other places are advertising. In a way I think it would be useful but in a way I wonder if I would stick with it and use it. I am not good at leaving myself notes on the computer – I seem to have to write things down and scratch things out as I do them. Here is a photo of one of them – you can click on the photo to see details (I am not affiliated – just interested in what you have to say or if you have links to others let me know) I would be interested in one that has a daily or monthly calendar in it as well as areas to jot down projects and appointments.
You are so very organized. I need to do a complete inventory of my quilting closet so I really know where I stand. I think a planner would be useful, but have no experience with one.
I know I will be looking all over the place soon for different things wondering where I put things!
Your room is looking so smart. Anxious I bet to have it completed and to in there creating. Never have had a planner like that but do have a bullet journal for everyday and a quilt one. I’m one who likes to write things down. If you do decide I would like to know after a few months how you like it
I will let you know if I get one and it if works for me
Oh and it feels so good to get organized doesn’t it! No I don’t use a planner, I am sure I would not write it down after the first couple weeks. In the time I would be writing I could get working on a project!
That is one thing that holds me back is wondering if I would use it daily – but I am forever putting notes in ten different places so this would keep all at one place? don’t know I’m on the fence
When I change where I put stuff.. I lose track of it… but I consider the roaming around .. looking for the lost.. as exercise. Having a lot of stuff does call for storage and occasional reorganization… and feels so good to have it done. No wonder you feel elated !
I know what you mean – when I emptied the sewing room and had to put things in 3 different rooms while we were doing the re-do I lost track of numerous things and had a hard time finding some – I hope with the reorganization I won’t loose things again
I keep a loose leaf notebook with graphed sketches of each quilt I make. Each also has swatches of fabric for front and back. I also plan out each step for making the quilt and cross off each step with date completed. I make notes for ideas or adjustments to steps. I also add a picture of the final quilt. Since I make many baby quilts, this makes it much easier to duplicate an idea
That idea would have come in handy back when I made a lot of baby quilts – I made the identical pattern for my nephews 2 kids, different colors but same pattern!
I purchased the Lori Holt planner, just to have the patterns. I do not use the planning part at all.
did the planner part have a calendar?
I’m afraid I can’t help with the planner, I know it wouldn’t work for me. I just tend to work out of my head without writing it down. You are really organized! Everything looks so pretty. I’m thinking I have way too much fabric and better start using it up! I do like the smaller containers as I have most of my fabric in them. I also have some in bigger containers and they are heavy to deal with. I hope to put them in smaller containers soon, easier to handle. I have a tall cabinet to put the rest in to keep the fabric dust free. I don’t display any, too dusty here in Texas.
my house gets very dusty and I live off a paved road – but have lots of fields in our area and that is probably where it all comes from – I leave windows open when I can as I like fresh air and do not like A/C – some of the dust the past six months has been from sanding and wood work of course – but it is always dusty in here – the small containers will work out well
So happy to see your sewing room coming together! At the moment, mine looks like a tornado just came through. After we moved in I had it halfway organized but I’ve been auditioning fabric and just tossing it in a pile if it doesn’t get used. Time to have a putaway session!!
I’m lucky I already had things stacked in other rooms using it for the last 9 months so I am able to just carry things down the hall and organize before I bring more in!
Moving day, such fun!! Looks good. I do not use a planner but have thought it might help with remembering things later.
That is what I keep thinking with a planner – I just might get one – I have looked in the stores here but they are not what I want – more are just plain calendars – or some are called coloring planners but I do not do much of the coloring zentangle? stuff so might order one.
Well be working all weekend on this I hope it will all be done on Monday or so.
Karen se ve todo tan bien ordenado.
¡mucho trabajo felicidades!
I’m sure it will not stay neat always!
So exciting for you! It’s been a long wait to get back in your quilt room, but I’m sure you’re going to love having it back and better organized and more efficient than ever! I’ve not ever used a quilt planner. I tend to have scribbled notes and notebooks everywhere!
Me too and then loose track of where all my notes are LOL
Your room is looking great, Karen! I store my fabric in clear/white plastic containers and find that works well for me…. Whenever I start a new project I love “going shopping” in my stash….
I do not use a planner….I am a big list maker, so that is how I keep organized, and I don’t think a planner would work for me, since I focus more on each individual project’s list….I have done this for decades and I think it is so much a part of my quilting process that it would be hard to change to something else….
If you do decide to get a planner, you will have to let us know what you think….
If I get one I will let you know if it works for me and if it is worth getting one.
How exciting! I don’t use any type of quilt planner. I just use a regular calendar for my lists and have pages of notes that I store with the projects.
I have been looking at calendar planners and things at the stores but none so far have enough of a list area by each day or week like these planners do – if I get one it will be for January – so plenty of time to decide on it.
Karen, I am not sure what type of journal you would like but check out these links:
allpeople quilt.com –they have a UFO Challenge, I am not doing the challenge but I am using their challenge project page.
Sewdyi.com –under free tab then go to printables she has months and then a chart at the bottom–I use these pages to document my monthly progress or lack there of
http://www.aqsblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Jan-October-ORG-reduced.pdf. This link takes you to lots and lots of pages you can print and put in a binder–you only have to print the pages you will use.
Hope this is helpful
thanks Judy I will check the links out.
That should be sewdiy.com
Your storage and reorganization looks wonderful, Karen! Makes me think I should go do some of that myself because it’s a little overdue! I don’t use a quilt planner either, but might go check out those sites that one of your commenters mentioned.
thanks Diann, I will be glad to get the organizing done and get back to quilting in the evenings again – I keep telling myself it won’t be much longer surely after we get Mike’s desk base and cupboard up on the corner wall of his area I can get the quilting frame put together and new leaders on it within a couple days – hope so! Yes I am looking over the links too and put in a search on pinterest and found some interesting things.
Interesting question about using a planner. I am thinking of designing one for myself to one: get an idea of what I have and two: what I want to do with it. My idea is for garment sewing as well as my quilt plans. Just yesterday I was thinking and sketching for this. Probably the main reason for doing this is that I like to make journals! Time will tell if my idea comes to fruition.
I am enjoying you r reorganization! Looks great!
last night after searching through some links that one one of the commenters left me I also searched Pinterest for ideas and there were plenty that people could print for free. I found none though that were truly what I wanted. I will either have to order one that is specifically aimed at quilters or print out a combination of pages from pinterest and possibly make one of my own also – Seeing as there are 2.5 months left in the year that gives me time to play around and see what I can come up with it – or order one. I love journals but have a tendency to start and then stop. Other than the blog that is which is after all my on line journal as it has more than just quilting in it.
I would love to empty my room and reorganise it but there is nowhere to put it all. I love your room and storage, it will be a great place to work.
when I emptied my space for the redo I had to put things in 3 different rooms – I had fabric in plastic tubs on top of dresses, the sewing machine in the living room and moved the rest to one side of the small dining room which made it so you could barely walk around the table – but it worked! and now moving everything back in –