Scrap organization

Organizing scraps.  It feels like a never-ending cycle, probably because as long as you are making new quilts, you are probably making new scraps.

Several years ago, I picked up a library copy of Cut the Scraps, thinking I'd just look at the patterns.  But I read the author's scrap method and it took over my thoughts for a few days, and eventually I decided that cutting scraps into usable sizes made a lot of sense.  So I started with her sizes (5", 3.5", and 2" squares) and quickly added in 2.5" squares.  I also cut 2.5" strips if I have WOF, and I'm about to add 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles to my sizes.  I like having precut sizes ready to go, and I've used my squares for several projects, including blocks for hivemates in the Stash Bee.

I had a small, 7 drawer stand came from a yard sale.  It had a country floral design that was not to my taste.  I painted it white, then used chalk board pain on the drawer faces.  I've written in the size scrap for each drawer, and I can change it around to reflect what I have a lot of at any given time.

The drawers are fairly small, but I like to use up my scraps, so that doesn't bother me. I also don't organize by color, as I know many do, mostly because I just don't have enough to warrant that storage method.  I still keep my 2.5" strips in a plastic shoebox, but this move has freed up many of plastic containers, so I can use them for small projects instead. 

My current scrap project are 2 jelly-roll-race style quilts made using strip scraps given to me by my friend Snow.  Both were pieced with purple sparkly "spacers" in between scraps.  I have decided I don't really like the jelly roll race pattern for scraps, so hopefully these will be my last using this method, which is part of why I said earlier that I was about to start cutting 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles--I think that will create a nicer look from scraps of strips than the jelly roll race.

One of these has just a bit of binding left to be hand sewn, and the other is layered but needs to be quilter.

Linking up with Scraptastic Tuesday at She Can Quilt.