Fabric overload
05-12-2012, 06:49 AM
#21
Super Member
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Knot Merrill, Southern Indiana
Posts: 5,781
That's what I was thinking too, if you are coordinator of a chapter perhaps the rest of the chapter people can help when you get such large donations. Either by doing the sorting/laundry work at their homes OR perhaps make an appointment to meet 2 or 3 three of them at a laundry mat where you can all sort and launder together and when done THEY can take some of the stash back to their homes to work. You can use the $$ you get from selling the "unusables" to pay for the laundry services (or the laundry mat owner might even donate the use of the machines for a day to a good charity!).
05-12-2012, 06:55 AM
#22
Junior Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: western NC
Posts: 175
In my guild of well over 100 members there is one long suffering member who, year after year, is in charge of charity quilts primarily for Head Start and the local hospital pediatric dept. She not only sorts, washes and irons the contributions, she devises simple patterns, cuts the appropriate pieces and gives out kits at meetings so that all one has to do is follow the directions. She seems to love the challenge and distributes the entire Head Start supply of nap quilts each year. Those quilts take a beating with constant rough use and laundering so they have to be replaced annually. She loves the challenge and to my knowledge has never asked for someone else to take over except during her recovery from a stroke several years ago. I hate people like that as they always make me feel like a useless slug.
05-12-2012, 07:45 AM
#24
Super Member
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Posts: 2,876
I also have a question and perhaps I'm not understanding. If you are the coordinator, why are you keeping so much fabric? Shouldn't it be going to the chapter members? Perhaps you have a fabric keeping problem?? Or I'm not understanding the problem.
05-12-2012, 08:17 AM
#25
Super Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: S. W. Indiana
Posts: 7,484
Now, I know some people will have no sympathy for me at all, but bear with me...
I love fabric. LOVE fabric. But I have almost reached burn out. I am an assistant coordinator for my local Project Linus, and we frequently get donations of fabric. The coordinator is a knitter, so she has no interest in fabric, so it all comes to me (lucky me!).
Recently, we got a whole bunch from a lady who was "downsizing" her stash. Her daughter and son-in-law brought me about 10 big plastic totes of fabric that she had purged out of her stash -- of 80 totes!
It was really interesting seeing some of the older patterns. There was some from the late 70's and early 80's, as well as more recent stuff. I always separate out the cottons, specifically the child-suitable stuff. Unfortunately, no matter how much I try to explain that we only want fabric suitable for making kids' quilts, I always get a lot of upholstery weight and apparel fabric. I always take it cheerfully, though, and pass it along to other charity groups.
My problem is that I pull out everything I think I would possibly use, wash it, and iron it. It destroys my sewing room and kills my productivity. Takes forever to get it all ironed, especially when they are big pieces (great for backings) that get twisted in the wash and dryer and are that much harder to iron.
I finally got everything squared away, and this week we got another big donation from the husband of a quilter who had passed away. Now, of course I can't say no to fabric. I simply can't. But after driving to go get it, I spent about six hours sorting through it all. There was a lot of good stuff, I won't lie, but probably 75% of it is moving on.
I look at the fabric I kept out and I am too tired to even think about sewing. How sad is that.
I do intend to try to sell some of it on the board to bring in some funds for our PL chapter. I'd like to get this fabric into the hands of people who can use it, especially for charity quilts.
All through the sorting I kept thinking about the woman who left this stash. I tried to send her appreciative thoughts and let her know I liked her taste in fabric. Then I tried not to think about someone who might have to sort through my stash some day, lol.
Definitely need to move some of my fabric along!
I love fabric. LOVE fabric. But I have almost reached burn out. I am an assistant coordinator for my local Project Linus, and we frequently get donations of fabric. The coordinator is a knitter, so she has no interest in fabric, so it all comes to me (lucky me!).
Recently, we got a whole bunch from a lady who was "downsizing" her stash. Her daughter and son-in-law brought me about 10 big plastic totes of fabric that she had purged out of her stash -- of 80 totes!
It was really interesting seeing some of the older patterns. There was some from the late 70's and early 80's, as well as more recent stuff. I always separate out the cottons, specifically the child-suitable stuff. Unfortunately, no matter how much I try to explain that we only want fabric suitable for making kids' quilts, I always get a lot of upholstery weight and apparel fabric. I always take it cheerfully, though, and pass it along to other charity groups.
My problem is that I pull out everything I think I would possibly use, wash it, and iron it. It destroys my sewing room and kills my productivity. Takes forever to get it all ironed, especially when they are big pieces (great for backings) that get twisted in the wash and dryer and are that much harder to iron.
I finally got everything squared away, and this week we got another big donation from the husband of a quilter who had passed away. Now, of course I can't say no to fabric. I simply can't. But after driving to go get it, I spent about six hours sorting through it all. There was a lot of good stuff, I won't lie, but probably 75% of it is moving on.
I look at the fabric I kept out and I am too tired to even think about sewing. How sad is that.
I do intend to try to sell some of it on the board to bring in some funds for our PL chapter. I'd like to get this fabric into the hands of people who can use it, especially for charity quilts.
All through the sorting I kept thinking about the woman who left this stash. I tried to send her appreciative thoughts and let her know I liked her taste in fabric. Then I tried not to think about someone who might have to sort through my stash some day, lol.
Definitely need to move some of my fabric along!
Keep sorting! Let someone else sew!
05-12-2012, 08:19 AM
#26
Super Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: S. W. Indiana
Posts: 7,484
I'm guessing she meant keep for the PL, and passing on unsuitable fabric to someone who can use it. Since she's the coordinator, it's logical that donations come to her first.
05-12-2012, 08:22 AM
#27
Junior Member
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: LaVista Nebraska
Posts: 170
I sure wish you lived closer. Our church has just started a sewing/quilting group and we are making lots of things for charity - Project Linus, Ronald McDonald house, the pillowcases, little dresses for Africa are the big ones. The others are our local charities - both maternity homes and an organization that helps pregnant women with classes and a "boutique" to use their points earned to get things for new babies. We have made tons of receiving blankets, burp cloths, etc. Some of the ladies are just coming to this new group to be social and to help......others bringing machines and supplies. It is going to be such a great group with lots of great ideas. Maybe someone closer to you has a group such as this. Good luck with all that you do. In your mind and heart you know that efforts will be appreciated.
05-12-2012, 08:58 AM
#28
Power Poster
Join Date: May 2008
Location: MN
Posts: 24,521
My DH made a comment about my stash one day that has stuck with me. He said why not let the quilt shop store your fabric and you go get it when you need it? Why bring it all home? LOL. I have cut down on my fabric stashing. I found less is better to get more quilts made.
(But I usually only buy stuff when it's on sale or close-outs - so the shop wouldn't be storing it any longer. But it is easier to work when one has some elbow room.)
Last edited by bearisgray; 05-12-2012 at 09:07 AM.
05-12-2012, 06:05 PM
#29
Super Member
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Lost in my sewing room
Posts: 1,442
My DH made a comment about my stash one day that has stuck with me. He said why not let the quilt shop store your fabric and you go get it when you need it? Why bring it all home? LOL. I have cut down on my fabric stashing. I found less is better to get more quilts made.
05-12-2012, 07:05 PM
#30
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Granbury Texas
Posts: 321
I agree with this comment. I have received two such donations from friends/family of friends. I went through it and kept what I knew I would eventually use. I then packed it up and took it to my quilt guild and let them pick through for their preferences and what was left went to another source for her choices. Needless to say it didn't take long for the stashes to disappear and no one complained about having to wash and iron their own pics. Now as far as the guild, if we were to keep it for a universal project, we would take turns at tasks, sorting and washing being among them.
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