Fabric storage...plastic bins or folded on the shelf?
#51
Power Poster
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Lowell, MA
Posts: 14,083
Ah, a fellow fabricoholic (well you know what I mean). I stored the majority of my fabric in plastic totes, most in clear totes so I could see what I have, but since the sewing room was in the basement, I wanted to keep the fabric safe from little critters (the small 4-legged kind) and from getting mildew,smells,whatever. Plus I could stack the totes, otherwise I would not have been able to move. Unfortunately, I had to give away over half my fabric when we moved to an apt. Every so often now, I will take a tote down from the stack,go through the fabrics, admire them, hold them, then re-fold them and I could then add a few more yards to the tote, plus pull out the fabrics that talked to me so I could make dresses for my DGD and more quilts. I'm glad I didn't let my DH talk me into giving away more fabric, because I haven't bought a lot of fabric since we moved, and then it was mostly to supplement the project I was working on.
#53
Super Member
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Missouri
Posts: 1,250
Fabric needs to breath, so fabric should never be stored in plastic containers. Fabric outgasses formyaldhyde which builds up in plastic containers. Prewashing fabrics does help by removing the formaldhyde, but still does not allow for the fabric to breath.
#54
I have a new sewing room and I have mine folded with a ruler and in closets with doors. Before I had folded in a 4'x6' cabinet with doors and rubbermaid bins. Never had a fading problem. Not alot of windows.
#56
Super Member
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: AZ and CT
Posts: 4,898
I have mine folded on foam core, so it can stand up. I keep the window shades down, so there's not a problem with fading. I have a 2nd, smaller room where I do my sewing where the windows have no shades. I claimed these rooms when the kids deserted the nest in CT. In AZ, my folded fabric stands up on shelves in a closet - thus no prob with fading.
#57
Super Member
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Indiana
Posts: 3,607
I don't know about the fading part. Mine is in a china cabinet I bought at Goodwill. My quilting room is in the basement so no natural light. My fabric was stored in many totes. When I took it out of the bins I really started using it. I hated going through the totes to find the right fabric. It is ruler folder and I love it that way.
#58
[QUOTE=ghostrider;5917726]I toss a dessicant packet into my fabric bins, the kind that come with electronics, shoes, and lots of stuff. Some people use the small ones that come with some medications, too.
Ditto...seems to work very well!
Ditto...seems to work very well!
#60
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 965
Thanks everyone for all of your input.
I would post a photo of my stash but I did on another thread and I tossed and turned all night after posting it thinking someone who knew me might see it.......so I can't post it again )
I like the idea of the bankers boxes for some of the fabric as it makes them a bit lighter to lift. I think I might be damaging my internal organs lifting all of those totes.
Now I will sort ..........
Thanks again everybody! Nice to know that I have some "sisters" on the board.
Carole
I would post a photo of my stash but I did on another thread and I tossed and turned all night after posting it thinking someone who knew me might see it.......so I can't post it again )
I like the idea of the bankers boxes for some of the fabric as it makes them a bit lighter to lift. I think I might be damaging my internal organs lifting all of those totes.
Now I will sort ..........
Thanks again everybody! Nice to know that I have some "sisters" on the board.
Carole
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Scraps
Links and Resources
8
04-19-2012 04:53 PM