Quilting

Four Organisational Tips To Whip Your Quilting Nook Into Shape

An organised quilting nook is what luxury quilters everywhere dream of. A space dedicated entirely to crafting with all your tools close at hand – sounds like a dream, right? It’s possible to make this dream come true by making organisation a priority. These four tips will help you eliminate quilting clutter and prepare your space for your next big arts and crafts project.

Tip one: Put unused items in storage

Perhaps more than most other arts and crafts quilting requires a lot of space. Even if you only piece together one block at a time, you will need space when the time comes to sew all those blocks together. Lots of table space is necessary if you plan on using a machine to quilt the finished top and you’ll need lots of floor space to set up the frame for tying and finishing. Once you factor in chairs, tables, cabinets, and fabric storage the nook that started out so cozy is too packed to move around in.

Most quilters are not able to store all their materials in the same space that they work in. Set up fabric storage in another part of your house. Seal bolts and cut fabric in air tight containers to keep out insects and add in a storage-safe air freshener to prevent musty smells from developing. Take out only those materials that you’ll be using for your current project and be quick to put each item back when you’re finished with it. You’ll spend less time going back and forth from your storage space than you will digging through piles of fabric that you’re not using.

Tip two: Invest in space-saving furniture and storage items

Folding tables, expanding cabinets, and other space-saving items will do a lot to clear up space in your sewing nook. Tables and other surfaces in sewing rooms often turn into “catch-alls” where unused items get carelessly placed. Folding up a table when not in use will prevent this accumulation of clutter and give you a workspace that changes when you need it to.

Folding or collapsible storage items are easy to find. Tough plastic boxes with expanding trays are sold in sewing stores, arts and crafts stores, jewellery making supply shops, and sporting goods stores. Some of the best storage solutions you’ll ever find can be discovered in the fishing department. Look at fly-tying supplies in particular to find lots of clear plastic containers. These can be used to hold machine needles, pins, and all kinds of items for arts and crafts.

Tip three: Create a pattern drawer

Quilting enthusiasts quickly acquire a collection of magazines, printed articles, and handwritten notes. It’s time to get these organised in a manner other than a “piling system”. Dust off that blank pattern notebook and start putting all those notes into order. This step will actually take quite a bit of time to complete; make sure to throw away old bits of paper once you’ve added the relevant information to your notebook.

Not all of your patterns and notes will easily fit into your quilting notebook. A file drawer can be organised according to quilt size, pattern complexity, number of colors needed, seasonal theme, and so forth. This is especially good if you have lots of photocopied patterns or images printed from the computer.

Tip four: Keep only the good stuff

All collections of arts and crafts supplies can be divided up between the good stuff and the bad stuff. The bad stuff includes that mystery material, the bolt sold at a clearance sale that you just couldn’t pass up, and the big bag of old material that a relative gave to you. Most of this material simply isn’t worth keeping. It’s time to get rid of the quilting supplies that you’ll never use. If you don’t remember when you bought something or for what reason, it’s time to let it go.