On the shelves

Oh! It feels a bit embarrassed to show you this post! It is for sure not a bragging post, but to share how I organized the cloth on the shelves. I must admitted I am quiet happy about this arrangement since we moved in! Of course, there's always a long wish list and want is always more than need! Between 2009-2013, all my fabrics are storage in the plastic bins. It was great that I get to protect them and seeing them from the outside of the plastic bins. Oh, I never really want to touch them because they are so well organized! At the time, every so often I'd needed to run to store and get a few more bins, because they fill up pretty quick at the time ( The truth is they actually never stop filling up the space).

When we moved in our home. The upstair loft is a perfect space for all what I need, a space to sew and work! The space is really small 5'x9'. To work around the space, I took a trip to Ikea and purchased a {Bill Book Case} and a CD case.  The Bill book case gives 6 nice shelves space. If you work around with the fabric folding direction. It would fit 5 set of fabrics, BUT the bookcase is heavy! The first time, I mounted the book case to the wall and stashed all the fabrics in; it didn't held up 24 hours. Everything came off from the wall, so I went to the hardware store and got a sturdy L shape mounting part and it has been working nicely ever since!

The CD case, is so perfect for all the fat quarters! If you are a fat quarter buyer, for sure check the CD case out ( I am not able to find the link via Ikea site), but it is in the section when you find the Billy Book case in the store. I would buy a second one if I have extra space in the wall space! Mine is full! I organized these in the colors. They are likely imperfect cuts and so easy to pull out when I have a small project going on. I never feel sorry for being clutter with them! Simply full the stashes out and set them back! I constantly add a few fat quarters or small cut pieces in them as I go along.

Here, I break down a few category for organize fabrics:

-By themes ( Holiday, animals, etc)
-By designers
-By companies
-By colors     ( red, blue, green, yellow, etc)
-By values    ( Low values, dark values)
-By Designs ( Dots, stripes, floral, fruits, text, etc)

I definitely am a person who organized mainly by Designers. I have hard time to break a full collection apart. I think mainly I love to see the designers collections together and seeing their changes from season to season. As you know, I am a DS fan! I have set all the DS fabric on two shelves and it is so much easy for me to pull fabric out! I did a little color arrangement within each collection, but not serious sorted by values.

For the low values prints: I break them into two sets! The one on the left is with simple printed design  with colors and the other set would mainly be black, gray, and white. I just finished this arranged a few months back and it works great for me. I know what I am looking when work on a project or when I go fabric shopping I could recall what stash or print is a more "need" than want!

A little collection of the Cotton and Steel fabric. I have hard time to shop with this collection because I really love to own every piece, but I know I need to pick and choose. I have the full collection for the basic and some from their second collection. This is the only collection that I organized as a company! Since their fabrics work so well together!

This is a crazy spot of the shelve. I can't tell you what I was trying to do here! I have some prints that just received lately and haven't been able to find a place for them.  I have small selection of dots together then the unsuccessful brown stash.  It is the most challenging part for me! Any prints that purchase as a single print like being organized by the color. It is so much easier try to find a home for them.

The most cute and sweet prints that I have been collected over the year from Atsuko Matsuyama, a Japanese designer. Her fabrics have very similar values and colors, so within this designer I sorted the fabrics by colors. This collection is still in the plastic bin and just not being use much.

A little bit of Kumiko Fujita fabric! I love all the text prints that KF designs, but I need to be so honest that I am always late for purchasing them when they are in the shop. I hardly use any of them because I feel if I use them they will be long gone!

Some of these fabrics were for my shop in the past, but now I have stopped selling them. I keep the remaining fabric in this bin and also store some yardage fabric in here.

I keep the feedsack in the plastic bin, mainly some of them are aged and the fabric colors are discolored. I try to protect them away from the sunshine. Since some of the prints are gifted from friends I really try to use them wisely.

All the Suzuko Koseki's fabrics are in the bins as well!  Oh! no secrete! I really just admire the colors, the design, the texture of the fabrics! My hope is making a Spiral Feathered Star Quilt soon!

A bin of Kona solid is a must! I think it helps to break down all the saturate and busy designs. A fat quarter would go along way for me as I like work on small patchwork.

 The most gorgeous 30's reproduction fabric! I was very lucky to start the collection early and slowly purchase them over the years and also was able to purchased a few through friend's destash. I foun, not everyone likes 30's reproduction fabrics, but the true is they are quiet similar to the feedsack; a few things different would probably be the colors, texture and the originality. I used this for Fifi's birthday quilt, which was a perfect collection for her!

So, This is my scrap bin. Very small! I have another small box! Whenever I have scraps I try to cut them down to 1.5"x1.5" and store them in my stamp quilt box. It is a ongoing project and hope someday I'll have stamp quilt to show and tell.  I don't really sort the scraps into colors as I try to go through them after a few projects. I don't have bins after bins of scraps!

If I never have a chance to redo the studio. I look forward {a book case with doors} and possible space under the book case. It would be nice to protect them from the light and dust. I love seeing them as I walk to the space, but yet my concern is the colors might fade as it is over expose throughout the days/ years. I also fancy a cutting table in the future; even a small one!

What's your shelves look like?

xxc

Cloth Lover !

 {Kumiko Fujita:Rainbow text prints}

 {Lecien: basic dots}

 { Love Osaka}

 {Sugar Flower}

 {Personal 1st stash from 2006}

 {DS collections}

{Feedsack Fabrics}

Are you cloth lovers? I think 99.999999999999% who visit here, are!  I hope you'll like this post today. I have been wanting to challenge myself to write this post for a very long time! I hope at the end you can share your two cents with us!

I have stashes that have been sitting around for a very long time. When I finally have my own studio space last summer, I realized my stashes are very big! I will never compared to other people, but to myself! It has been growing and will continue to grow! I really don't want to fill the shifts, but the empty space is getting less month after month.

Recently years, I've getting into different idea about colors, patterns and designs on the cloth. Each year seem more simplify and clearly knowing what really I would repeat using the same print from project to project. So lately, I narrow down to a few thoughts on my notebook and I'd love to share with you!


Do you go with designer only? 
I do! I have almost all the Denyse Schmidt fabrics and continue to purchase her fabric line as she releases! I love the retro and classic colors that she uses. Of course, all the stories behind her each fabric lines is really attache to me. The charm and the colors always plays well with other fabrics as well. However, I rarely use them!  I am so afraid one day I will run out! So the true is I used to purchase a full yard bundle and plus a fat quarter bundle. The fat quarter bundle is to play with and the full yard bundle is to keep!I called myself the royal fan!

Do you get peer pressure when you buy fabric? 
Oh! I am not really  actully a peer pressure buyer! Although,  I don't really have friends to sew with or shop with, but I have many Instagram friends would show their stashes when they have acquired new stash  I always ask questions when they share their new stash. Maybe simple question like do you like the new line? how's the color? how's the cloth texture?  When I see the same fabrics flowing around everyone's photo. I start do a little research on the colors and the designs then I would go ahead purchase some prints.

What kind of fabric attract to you?
If you ask me a few years earlier, I'd say anything Denyse Schmidt. I probably didn't realized what fabric designs and colors that I am attached to until 3 years ago. I was getting fabric that think I must have at the time. I wasn't a picky buyer! Now, I am attracted to fabrics that have nice contrast in colors and simple designs. Since the earlier stashes that I purchased likely are in large prints. It is hard to do the fussy cuts, play with paper-piecing and hard to see the nice design of the fabric when the face got cut in half.

Do you buy a full line fabric anymore? 
Yes! But not always! It is hard to keep the fabric budget when try to buy the full line of fabric. If you have noticed that the fabric price has gone up so much in last few years. When I first started I paid $7.25 a yard and now it is $11.25 in retail store or you could find some online store for $10.50 or $10.75 a yard. But the true is, it will not stop me getting new fabrics! I look at getting new fabric as investment to my works. I always need new colors in the stashes and there will always be one of the colors that I have been looking for. I don't remember when was the last time purchased the full line of fabric, but have eyeing on few collections that recently released. I really like a few fabric shops out there that are selling fat eighth bundles, fat quarter bundles. I could get a taste of the fabric line before invested big money into something that might not work later. There's always more "want" than "need"!

Where do you buy fabric? 
99% of the stashes I have is purchased are from online shops. Yes! There are many oopys purchases! There are time when I received the fabric is not what I thought from the listing descriptions or the cut is funny! Sometime the half yard is cut in 17"wide rather than 18" wide or the fabric isn't being handle nicely! Likely I step away that shop. I've always wish I could live in a city that runs many great fabric shops. The  only time I could shop in an actual fabric store is when I travel during the summer! I always make a stop or two in the local fabric store and just get a fat quarter; sometimes, I could get a few prints if the store carries great collections. I do wish to build the stash in the shop rather than in the computer monitor.

Is it worth to collect feedsack? 
It is a very hard question to answer! I say Yes to cloth lovers who likes vintage look and uniqueness. Feedsack fabric is hard to come by these days. The price is very high if you purchase from some online shops! I have been very lucky, since I lived in many small towns and was able to discovered feedsack in the thrift stores from time to time!  I also have friends who are feedsack lover as well and they live around the world. They often kindly share their treasure with me and it helps to build the collection. Feedsack fabric do carry its own distinct colors and patterns that the reprint fabrics cannot mimic. They also have nice textures and the history that come with it.

Do you like the fabric world now?
Yes more than No! I like the how each designer come with their own personal collections and expended their concept into the next collections. I also like being able to have options!  Recent years, mix and match is very popular! I love to see everyone's mix and match in their quilts, bags, patchwork, clothes. I think that's where the personal creative start! The No part would be; Gosh! I can never catch up with so many great prints! Again there's always more "want than need". I try to be careful with all the new fabric shopping! It is easy to go on hundred of dollars if not careful planned!

What's your fabric shopping cart looks like?
I have a few shopping carts that fill with fabrics that I "want"! However, there are more window shopping than actually purchasing now. It is nice to be able to see all the want fabric together!This year, I try to be a picky shopper when purchase fabrics now! I have been going with more basic designs, small scale prints, and colors that I have almost none such as oranges, purples, browns, greens. I even have add a few charm packs to the shopping cart and thinking maybe I could start with a charm pack and to see the colors and texture in person before inquire the large bundle, so I won't feel bad if I purchased the full bundle and wasn't quiet the same.

Last, Do you like Japanese fabrics? 
Yes! I do! Some of the Japanese fabrics come with very rich colors. I can't stop tell you how much I love Suzuko Koseiki's collections. I love the finest fabric texture that she uses in her fabric.  If you have noticed that many American designers have used Japanese fabric printing company to print their fabric collections! Yes, the quality is great and I like how all the fiber woven has not flaws in them so far! It seems like some of the Japanese fabric price has marked higher than other fabrics. It is roughly $4-4.5 a fat quarter ( Also could seen some are priced at $5.00, but I have seen $3 a fat quarter 30's reproduction in the retail shop. However, I am not encouraging or discouraging on the fabric consuming. I really think it should work on best of your personal need! Sometimes, a little "want!

And you?

xxc