I will be the first to admit that I break training when it comes to keeping my fabric stash organized.  I have a high cutting table (built especially for my height so as not to strain my back) and I am forever piling projects or papers on it – instead of using it for its intended purpose.  Part of my reasoning is that half of the table is out of my reach because my sewing room is the smallest room in the house.  The other part of my reasoning is that I am quite forgetful (thank you MS) and by having my projects right in front of me, I can remember what I need to work on next, after I finish a project.

During the summer, our middle daughter and I had to make a run to a dollar store for some items to get the kids ready for summer camps and I found baskets that I thought would fit perfectly on my sewing room shelves.  Once the baskets were in my sewing room, middle daughter wanted to help me with my organization of fabrics – I also think she was searching for fabric that she may want to use for a project 🙂

The dollar store that we went to wasn’t actually a “Dollar Store” as the products were anywhere from a dollar and up.  We purchased six medium sized baskets and two smaller baskets – they were $2 each.  Later, on another of my dollar store trips, I *did* find the same size baskets for $1 and snatched up six more of them as my DD had to overfill some baskets because I had more stash on that one shelf than I imagined (blush).

As my fellow quilters know, there are just some quilts and quilted projects (table runners, table toppers, etc.) that are just meant to be made from scraps.  The stash speaks to us, just as a pile of new fabric speaks to us.  Okay, I am going out on a limb with saying that – MY fabric speaks to ME – you don’t have to admit that yours does, too 😀

Here is the fabric I picked out of my stash for a fun quilt project:

Now comes my long overdue revelation – those one dollar baskets?  They are PERFECT for holding the fabric for the next quilt or quilt project on my to-do list.  And I can organize them by placing one inside the other with the most pressing projects in the top basket!

It’s a shame I am so slow in understanding how important it is to organize my fabric stash – but, it’s downright embarrassing to say that may of you may already be organizing your projects with some type of basket.  I have done well in keeping my stash organized throughout the summer.  Although, I have to admit that once I cleaned off my cutting table, I had to start piling finished projects or works in progress projects there – there just isn’t room for a larger basket and my shelves are all full to brimming over!