It's no secret that I crave absolute organization. I'm always trying to think of more effective ways to organize my life and even more so my crafts. Call me a fabric snob, but I cringe when I see my beautiful fabrics "folded neatly" in piles. I don't care if they are all the same shape, the ends are folded in, and they are arranged by color. There is nothing "neat" about that. The problem with piles is that when you go to pull out one print, you also pull out all the fabrics on top of it. Ugh. (Also, I feel like the "horizontal stripes are unflattering" rule doesn't just apply to people!) I needed a new system, desperately and tonight, ladies and gentlemen... I have hit Fabric Nirvana.
After assembling my IKEA loot, I had more cardboard than God! I noticed that this particular box could be cut down to make my own bolts of fabric.
That 2 inch "spine" would make browsing my fabrics so easy! I cut the cardboard to 11 1/2" tall and 9" deep, making a "half bolt."
I folded my fabric width-wise twice.
I pinched about 2" of the fabric in between the cardboard ends.
Then I wrapped my fabric around my half bolt.
Once I reached the end of the fabric, I pinned it down with common pins.
For my fabrics that I have 3+ yards of, I made full bolts {top} For my fabrics that I have between 1-3 yards of I made half bolts {bottom}
Now, what to do about those pieces of fabric that aren't quite scraps, but certainly aren't half bolt material???
Make mini bolts! {These cardboard boxes can be found in tons of colors/sizes at IKEA. I used the DVD box which was $3.99 for 2 boxes.}
I cut cardboard pieces down to fit perfectly into the box {9 1/2" X 5"} and folded my fabric width wise to fit perfectly on the cardboard. Then I wrapped the fabric around and pinned it down at the end.
Blues & Greens {love} Generally when I'm working on a sewing project and choosing the fabric, I have an idea of the color I want first. Because of that I have my mini bolt boxes separated as such: Reds, Oranges &Yellows/ Pinks & Purples/ Greens & Blues/ Blacks, Whites & Black+Whites/ and Neutrals.
Micro Bolt! Because so many of my projects only need 1/8th of a yard (or less) of fabric I have massive amounts of these 4 1/2" strips saved. I used the IKEA CD storage boxes and cut down cardboard to fit perfectly- 4 1/2" wide X 5" tall- Exactly the width of my strips!!! Needless to say, my "scraps" will be much easier to browse through!
Ahhhh. Can't wait until all of my fabric is in it's rightful place :)
I hope this has helped my fellow organization freaks!!!