May Studio Organizing
Posted on May 12, 2025 by prairiemoonquilts in Studio Organizing ChallengeI’m not even calling this Task One this time — haha! I’m fizzling out on posting at all, let alone posting two organizing challenges! But I’m hopeful that things are going to level out sometime, and it won’t be quite so crazy around here.
I did get rid of a couple small piles from the last challenge, but what did I do? I made about five more! But there’s a good reason for that . . .
My friend, Amanda, came down and helped me move over the rest of my books and magazines, and then she and her husband moved the bookcase over for me! What would I do without good friends?
So, look! It’s here! Now I just need to get the books and magazines loaded back in it.
But I want to go through them all again, just to make sure they’re all still keepers. And just as it was in the old studio, I still want the rule to be: All the books and magazines have to fit in here, or they have to go (with the exception of a few special ones that have other dedicated places to be). So there’s another job to keep me busy!
While she was here, Amanda also helped me sort through my giant box of scraps. I swear we worked at least an hour, and you could barely tell we made any progress, so I still have a long way to go on that. I sent two bags of scraps home with her!
So since I’m still swamped with piles, and books, and scraps, here’s our challenge this time:
Choose a previous task to continue working on
If you’ve made progress in some area, but could still stand to do a bit more, pick one of those tasks, and make some more progress on it.
Here are three I can think of for myself right now:
- Processing scraps
- Sorting books and magazines
- Getting rid of more piles
I could also deal with paperwork, put away more fabric, and organize my embroidery floss, but I have more things to do than there is time to do them right now.
Are you in the same pickle? Do you have any tasks you can revisit and work on this time? I’ll be interested to know what you’re tackling.
If you’re stuck about what to work on, you can look back through all the previous tasks for some ideas by clicking HERE.
I’m trying to sort through all my fabrics to decide what I want to donate to my guild’s FYN — Fabric, Yarn & Notions — sale this fall. I started with all the FQs I accumulated when people convinced me I needed to have a wide range of fabric types. Guess what…I still have those fabrics kicking around. Time for them to go!
Well I had great plans for sorting and tossing in the sewing room after I completed a double wedding ring for grandsons wedding. Then I broke my foot and am now sporting a lovely new fashion accessory … a boot! This was definitely not on my list of things to do! Oh well! Making progress, so will get to it when I have better mobility. Life happens, doesn’t it 😜😜😜
Husband has just returned home from the US with more fabric! I’m not disappointed, but I haven’t been in the sewing room for the duration! The plus side of that is the house has been cleaned from top to bottom, the veg patch is coming on well, and the other veg in the greenhouse is also pretty good. The ladies at the quilt group were asked to make bunting for the village – we had a lot of mindless sewing done, the target reached and it was fun – such a nice change with other ladies ironing and cutting. Now it’s back to having proper me time and the vacuum is in the sewing room ready for action!
Well my goal was to get a closet sorted out in my group sewing room so I can move my daughter’s sewing stuff out of the room and into the closet (she seldom sews right now) to make the room less crowded and to have a bigger, more functional planning wall. I got the closet all cleaned out and a good share of sorting done, but I still need to sort some more and install the new planning wall. So my hope is to finish that in the next week or so.
I think each quilter knows what organizing they would like to do in their sewing space. Sometimes I find that I can do ‘something’ on the list, so that’s what I do. Right now I’m kind of sorting scraps into shades of colors as I saw a quilt along doing a color each month and making blocks any size you want. RSC-2025 by scraphappy. It really helps to have a little organization to do what I’ve given myself permission to do. 🙂 It’s because of you, Shelly, that I’m able to be a peace with myself in the sewing dept. Thank You.
My sewing room is really a mess. I need to do everything to get it in shape. I guess I just need to start. Good luck on your book shelf. I know I couldn’t get my books in something that size.
I am getting the dolls Breyer horses and beanie babies outta my sewing studio…. that’s my goal!
I had so much fun that day!!! I did take the scraps out of the bags and put them in one big clear bag for easier sorting. I seem to scratch in my bags like an old hen scratching in the garden. I have pulled out pieces and began cutting down to blocks!!
My next door neighbor is moving and putting her house on the market. She is a quilter and so was her mother so she has a GIANT stash collection. Luckily she has been gifting me boxes and boxes of fabric, as well as other quilting supplies. And I am very grateful! However, I can’t possibly keep most of the fabric, much less haul it upstairs to my quilt room. So I am going thru each box, piece by piece, and sorting the fabric by size. It has taken me 2 days, but I finally
have all the fat quarters, 1/4 yard pieces, and 1/8 yard pieces that I don’t want in a large covered box. So I will be bringing this with me to various meetings with quilters and letting them take what they want. Now my problem is where and how I’m going to store all the fat quarters I’m keeping😩.
Yes, books (and magazines) are on the agenda for me too! Plus a scrappy nine patch quilt that’s taking forever, but I’m keeping at it. Spending lots of time doing outdoor work and enjoying the great outdoors. A priority in the spring, summer and fall. Enjoy your posts. Thanks for keeping us motivated.