mic-pa

THis weekend Joann's has their plastic storage containers on sale at 50% off. That might work on your book shelves as they are clear plastic and you could easily see what you have. Just a thought. Marge

Butterfli19

I use clear rubbermaid totes and fold the fabric so they look like little bolts that I can see from the sides. I arrange them by color but keep solids separate. A couple times a year I go through them to remember what I have and am usually pleasantly surprised.

I have been in Justification Mode for the last 6 months. If I can't justify buying it - meaning do I REALLY NEED THAT - I won't, including fabric.

It's not easy, but it is possible. I just don't want to waste more $$ or fabric, and when it just sits there I feel it's wasted. And I have fabric that I bought 23 years ago. Not much, but some.

The good thing is....I love what I have!

judy_68

I have all of my scraps in those stoage bins fo walmart. They have 3 clear drawers so you can see what color is in it. they cost less than $10 on sale. I have all of my yardage folded on big book shelves so I can see what I have. I have 3 of them full.
Judy

bebe

use the garage your trunk a pantry, linen closet or whatevwer crack you have available!!!!hehehehehe

Bottle Blonde

I suggest stacking your out of season clothes on the closet shelf and using your dresser drawers for stash. A few over-the-door shoe organizers might help. - 1 for the bedroom door and 2 for the closet door - 1 on the inside, 1 on the outside. Good luck with this

amma

Over the years, we had lived in places with little storage...being creative was a necessity lol. I have turned couches sideways covering a corner, mounted a corner shelf behind it on the wall and in that corner were storage items that were hidden. I have place book shelves on top of chests of drawers, anchoring them to the wall for additional storage.
If your kids are young, put some of your things on the shelves of their closets, if they aren't using it.

Quiltgranny

I'm using a free bedroom as a combo sewing room and office, so space is hard to come by for my ever growing stash, too. I've had to resort to some measures I don't necessarily care for, but what's a gal gonna do? Here are a few things I've resorted to lately:

1) Our attached garage has become my 'annex' for flannels, fleece and batting. I've put all that stuff in plastic tubs.

2) I put my WIPs under my sewing tables in tubs.

3) I hung a few baskets by their bottoms on my walls to display some small things, like jelly rolls, charms, etc.

4) The closet has a metal shelf unit that stores most of my stash.

5) I put some of my stash up for sale, here on our board.

6) I've donated or given away some fabric.

Can you hang some of your pieces on hangers in your closet? Do you have a cedar chest or other type of furniture that could double as fabric storage? An ottoman would work as do those benches you put by your front door. Do you have any of those little round tables with a table cloth that you could store fabric under where it's hidden? Can you install a few shelves on your bedroom walls for fabric storage? I hang my finished tops on those clamp style skirt hangers behind my bedroom door.

Thanks for starting this thread. Lots of good ideas already. Best of luck to you. :)

Karla in CO

AtHomeSewing

When my daughter was in a sorority I saw some very creative use of space. The girls bought LARGE plastic storage bins that were 40" long and about 8-10 inches tall. The bins had wheels. They fit under the twin beds (which are 40" wide) and rolled out. The girls could fit an incredible amount of "goods" in those boxes. They could line up three or more under every bed. When my daughter moved into an apartment, she wanted to continue to use the "under the bed" storage for her millions of shoes but her bed did not have enough clearance. She got "bed elevators' and still uses the huge amount of space under her bed for storage. Somewhat like this:

http://www.amazon.com/Range-Kleen-Be...455675&sr=1-16

I have a sewing buddy that keeps a HUGE stash like this.

ginnie6

Some good ideas here! Thanks! So far I'm thinking that underbed containers would be best. Dh built our bed frame and it is laid out with "boxes". So I could fit maybe three on my side. That would give me a lot more space. And I could possibly fit one more three drawer unit in my sewing area. I don't need all that space yet but hey I gotta plan ahead you know!

Tiffany

You don't want to use these. Fabrics, especially natural fabrics like cotton, need to breathe. It's why we're not supposed to store fabric in bags or in plastic bins that seal shut. Of course, guess where most of my fabric is...in plastic bins. :oops:

Do you store anything under your bed? If not, there are some great bins out there made for sliding under a bed and according to one of my friends, you can fit a lot of fabric under a bed. If her husband ever looks under there, boy is he going to be surprised!! :lol:
EDIT: I see someone else already posted this idea, and with a link. Thank you!