It hardly seems worth it to keep this broken rack and I do believe these clothes will return to the little closet. You will notice that I have bags of bed quilts hanging up there. More are stuffed into drawers and rolled up under my bed. Sigh.
What I was really trying to clear out was the bigger hall closet. Once I got all those clothes out, I thought there would be oodles of room for my yarn, batting, dyeing and painting supplies. There might be, but now it must be reorganized too. It never ends.
I don't think I want this yarn on top of the yarn shelves, since I can't reach them without a ladder and the majority are open bags, inviting dust. The satisfaction I was hoping to experience in getting rid of clogged up closets hasn't happened yet.
In fact I am faced with another dilemma, a familiar whine from me. What will I do with all the products I make from this yarn and this fabric? I seriously have no more room for more quilts and sweaters. O dear.
Storing our quilty/sewing stuff is a dilemma... but I've decided it's a good dilemma to have! What caught my eye was the batting. What on earth to do with the batting?? It's so fluffy. And then there are the scraps.. what to do with the scraps that may be just right for smaller projects. Oh my.. I'm sure many of your readers will relate.
ReplyDeleteThis is like the Sarurday morning cliffhanger - more to come.
ReplyDeleteHow about contacting churches and/or charities who hold silent auctions? They are always looking for stuff.
ReplyDeleteJanet
Hallo Melody,
ReplyDeleteI had to laugh loudly when I saw your "things". They look like mine!
the drawers, the wool, the quilts and the clothes.... only that I live in Germany but precisely the same.
And not to forget my shoes.... and bags and yarns and needles...
I think there is nothing wrong about it, but we will never stop clearing and organizing as many other creative women in the world.
Keep on blogging. Regards Ulla from Germany
Now you know why I have a store on artfire.com and do 5 shows a year... to sell my stuff, so I can buy more supplies and make more stuff! I did some reorganizing yesterday so I could get piles of fabric and yarns off the floor... now I'm looking at your yarn storage and realize I need more containers, but then I would need more places to put them... it never ends! But congrats on letting go of the clothing you haven't worn... I do that from time to time, but mostly I wear things until they fall apart!
ReplyDeleteI once made little baby quilts with the fabric leftovers. There was a whole group of women doing this with their scraps and we gave the quilts to a hospital for the premature infants. They were also in need of tiny hats and socks and gloves which were gladly kjnitted by some of the women ... ;)
ReplyDeleteMaybe that is one idea for you. You can also always sell your products. Or stop making them if you have more than enough ... ;) No, I know you cannot stop doing this.
Jule
I have been working on the same issues! I have been a good girl and have not bought any quilting fabric since May 4th. I am going to try not to buy anything until I work at the quilt shop in October, but that doesn't mean I don't have bunches of fabric already! I have plenty of fabric in my stash! I have been trying to get rid of stuff and going thru closets as I have been remodeling every room in the house and getting rid of some stuff, but there still is more! One rule I made for myself is to not buy any more storage containers. If I need a storage container I must have too much stuff. I force myself to empty container if I need one and not buy another one. I am sure you will eventually wrangle your closets and whip them into shape!
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking Dave and the handyman need a new project....like building you a studio where every single art-related item could be stored or displayed. It could have a little garden in front and be covered with vines and inside there would be huge cabinets lining the walls that would hold everything. How's that for a fantasizing? He must be getting bored now that he's no longer boating..or riding the motorcycle..or painting the house. :)
ReplyDeleteEtsy? I'd love to buy a pretty shawl. Others probably want lovely things, too.
ReplyDeleteI must sympathize on the closet...my bedroom one is crushing my soul, but I take things out and nothing changes. I must be too good at fitting stuff in. My whole sewing room looks like this - too much hand me down fabric.
I donated more than half of the commercial fabric I owned to the Linus Project here in Maine. They were delighted to come pick up the carload (7 or 8 big totes) of yards of fabric. They had intended to sell it but decided, when they saw what nice stuff I had purchased over the years, to use it at their monthly sewing sessions to make quilts.
ReplyDeleteI know you prefer to sell and not donate, but donating to a charity auction might be a good thing. The local police or fire department might have the quilt program where they give a child of domestic abuse or fire a quilt to comfort them. There is also St Jude's. Lots of sick children there who could use a colorful Melody quilt.
Hey Melody,
ReplyDeleteYou do fold your quilts on the bias. Correct? So much easier on the fibers and so wonderful to see the "fold creases" hang right out!
I love your blog and all the things you share with us. Thank you!
Maggie in Arizona
You get such joy from the creating and making of items...perhaps you would feel great satisfaction if you donated the finished goods to charities so they could use them for auction. I know I do.
ReplyDeleteI'm so happy to see that I'm not the only one who is supporting the economy and keeping the yarn and fabric makers gainfully employed. I've recently realized that my collection is obscene and it's time to quit adding to it. I need to knit and sew, so my answer is to make things for charity - knit sweaters for children at the crisis nursery, make quilts for hospice and other organizations in need and try to whittle this down before I die and leave my children all this "stuff" to get rid of.
ReplyDelete