Scraps Gone Crazy!

In keeping with the theme of reducing and organizing your stash, let’s discuss the “scrap problem”. Right now, my scraps are stored in a single plastic bin. However, when I take the lid off it literally explores from all the fabrics I have stuffed in there. This method also makes it difficult to track what colors and styles of fabric are there.

Since the Scrappy House blocks are made from scraps, this bin needs organized so that the blocks can come together more quickly. The first one was finished yesterday and only 18 more are needed in order to be caught up! I plan to work on them this weekend so that things are back on track by Monday.

The first one turned out really cute. This uses some of the modern fabrics in my scrap bag – do you see the little bird in the window? My plan is to mix up all the fabric styles. It will look nice and scrappy when completed. In order to give the final piece some unity, the same black and red fabrics will be used to create the border and corner stones that surround each block. The search is still on for these two fabrics.

Anyway, back to to the scrap problem. I purchased 8 clear plastic shoebox bins and will be organizing the scraps by the colors of the rainbow (black/white for the last bin). This seems to be an easy way to get them in order for now. Since I have so many vintage scraps, these will be organized in another set of bins.

How do you organize your scraps? Please post your suggestions in the comments section.

Keep It Thimble!

Stash Reduction Isn’t SO Bad – Is It?

What goes through your mind when someone says the words “Stash Reduction”? Do you get a sheepish look on your face and nod knowingly? Do you cringe at the idea of actually using your beautiful fabrics? Does it mean nothing since you don’t have a stash or even know what one is?

IMAG1157 — My Fabric Stash - January 2011

For some reason, whenever I think about my stash, I get a twinge of guilt. It does seem a bit … indulgent…to have more fabric in my possession than I can ever use in a lifetime. When people come over to my house I am a bit shy about showing them my stash closet for fear I will be judged harshly. However, most people obsessed with sewing understand where I am coming from and don’t judge me :). In order to alleviate some of these guilty feelings, I sort through my stash once or twice a year and either sell or donate the fabric. My goal is to not outgrow the current stash closet, because once that happens I will have TOO MUCH FABRIC.

IMAG1158 — Fat Quarter and Miscellaneous Stash - January 2011

There are many reasons that it’s hard to use the fabrics in your stash. One, you never know if you will see that same bolt of fabric again, so you need to get a yard “just in case”. Two, once you have the fabric in your stash, you have to find the perfect perfect project for it. Three, when you start a new project, you need to buy more fabric because you don’t have anything in your stash you can use (this is similar to looking at a closet full of clothes and not having anything to wear).

This year, I am making a concerted effort at Stash Reduction with a two-pronged approach: first, I don’t plan to buy any new fabric in 2012* (gifts are fine), and second, I will get rid of at least 300 yards of my stash by using it, donating it, or selling it. I have some projects in mind and I think I can do it – but it will be a challenge.

spledge — Stashbuster's Pledge (from http://www.patchworktimes.com)

Judy Laquidara at Patchwork Times created a Stashbuster Pledge in 2009. While I’m not ready sign a formal pledge, I think this is a great idea. Judy’s blog is very inspirational for people like me who hope to reduce their stash. She does a weekly stash report that I plan to adopt (although my reports will be posted every 2 months – first one post at the end of February):

Used the last two months:
Used Year to Date:
Added in the last two Months:
Added Year to Date:
Net Used for 2012:

Do you think I am crazy for doing this? Anyone want to jump on the band wagon and join me? Any ideas for stashbuster projects? If so, please email me or post in the comments!

Finally, I am pleased to announce the debut of “The Straight Stitch”, an advice column for those to love to sew, embroider, craft, etc. Please email me your questions and they will be answered! Feel free to ask me anything, I’m here to help you Keep it Thimble!

*Exceptions: it is from the thrift store, on sale for $4 a yard or less, needed for binding or backing, or it is the only non-stash fabric needed to complete a project.

Happy New Year and Poll Results

Happy New Year! I look forward to all the fun we are going to have at Keep It Thimble this year. Last year, I posted my 2011 Goals for KIT and accomplished about 25% of them. So instead of writing up another list of goals for 2012, I will actually do them, and you’ll just have to be surprised!

Here are the results of the poll I conducted just before the holidays. Thanks to everyone who participated. This information will be used to make Keep It Thimble a more useful resource for you.

What content interests you?

Flea Market Finds 23%
Tutorials 21%
Book Reviews 17%
Recipes 15%
Tool Reviews 9%
Giveaways 8%
Guest Bloggers 4%

What styles interest you?

Vintage 33%
Classic 25%
Modern 19%
Prim 11%

What projects interest you?

Quilts 26%
Home Decor 15%
Totes 13%
Holiday Decor 13%
Toys 11%
Accessories 11%
Clothing 9%
Crafts 2%

What activities interest you?

Quilting 26%
Wool Applique 24%
Embroidery 21%
General Sewing 19%
Making Clothes 7%
Machine Embroidery 2%

I was surprised that Flea Market Finds was so popular! That’s good information to know and you can be sure there will be more finds posted in the future.

Finally, here’s a fun new project to start for the new year – building houses from scraps. Jeanneke is a quilter from the Netherlands who has organized a virtual quilting group. The goals is to create one 4 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ house block each day. The fun part is that you will use your scraps! Thus, the name of group is “Building Houses from Scraps“. Check out the link for more information on how to participate. It is free to join, and has been so popular that she has extended “official” registration until Jan 16th. I don’t know if I can make 365 of these blocks this year, but it sure will be fun to try.

Keep it Thimble!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! Have a wonderful day and enjoy yourself. I’ll be spending most of it with a sugar high, regulated by a side of turkey. Ho ho ho!

Three More Sewing Days Until Christmas!

Three (actually two and half) sewing days until Christmas!! I am sure many of you are busily finishing up your hand crafted gifts so they are ready to be opened Christmas morning! But, what if things aren’t going as planned and you find yourself in the same dilemma as my friend Jen:

Dear Keep It Thimble,

I’m guessing most people are experiencing what I am right now, which is last minute Xmas-freak-outs. I’m trying to decide if I should give up on some of my gifts. I had planned on making PJ pants for all the kids, and reversible totes for the girls.

So far, I have 1 and ¾ PJS done. The third pair is not even cut out yet. Here is the clincher: Thursday and Friday will be spent getting ready for Xmas – so there is no time to sew. Do I have time to make 3 bags and 1+ jammies before then? What would you do?

–Jen, www.sewfun.com

Great question Jen, and I wanted to share this since I am sure many people are in the same boat. I, like you, had grand plans to make all my Christmas gifts this year. Last Friday, I came to the realization that I didn’t have time to get all my gifts finished.* So, I baked homemade treats for my friends and bought things from the store for my family (gasp). In the meantime, I decided that birthdays are the best time to give someone a handmade gift. That way you have more time to make each person something special and unique, and you don’t paint yourself in a corner and end up sewing like a maniac for 2 – 3 days (something you want to avoid at the holidays since there are other things that will need your attention).

In your case, I think you should try to finish up the PJs and then make the bags for either a birthday gift, or a New Year’s present. If it is a New Year present, you can put a book or a calendar in there – a new start for the year or something.

*Of course, it was my fault for procrastinating too much, and had I started them in September (as planned), things would have turned out differently.

Also, if you do find that you need to bake instead, here is a delicious (and easy fudge recipe):

gumdropfudge — Gum Drop Fudge - photo from Taste of Home

1-1/2 pounds white candy coating, coarsely chopped
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
1/8 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 teaspoons Spice Islands® pure vanilla extract
1-1/2 cups chopped gumdrops

Directions

Line a 9-in. square pan with foil; set aside. In a heavy saucepan, combine the candy coating, milk and salt. Cook and stir over low heat until chips are melted. Remove from the heat; stir in vanilla and gumdrops.
Spread into prepared pan. Cover and refrigerate until firm. Using foil, remove fudge from the pan; cut into 1-in. squares. Store at room temperature. Yield: about 3 pounds.

Nutrition Facts: 1 serving (1 piece) equals 74 calories, 3 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 2 mg cholesterol, 11 mg sodium, 12 g carbohydrate, 0 fiber, trace protein.

Originally published as Gumdrop Fudge in Quick Cooking November/December 2002, p9

Have a great holiday and remember to Keep It Thimble!

Your Opinion – Keep It Thimble in 2012

WordPress has this cool “Poll” widget and I thought it would be fun to get some information on what you’d like to see on Keep It Thimble in 2012. If you have a few minutes, please answer the four question below (you can select as many choices as you want for each question).

Keep it Thimble!

Christmas Stockings and Patterns

Only 17 more craft days until Christmas! Not much time left to get those handmade gifts completed for your friends and loved ones. This year I also need to think about Teacher Gifts – I need 11 of them! I was planning to make each teacher one of these little stockings and put a gift card and some candy inside, but it’s time for me to admit that I need to go to plan B. Right now I have 4 stockings and I won’t have time to make the other 7 before my son starts vacation.

No worries though, I do have a back up plan, but it involves buying it from the store (gasp!). However, I did want to share this stocking with you as I think they make very cute gifts and can also be hung on the tree. These stockings are great stash-busters and best of all, the pattern is free.

If you need a larger stocking, you can download this free pattern from the McCall’s website (but you have to join their mailing list first). I made a few of these last year and they are also cute. This pattern is nice because it is simple and you can get creative with the embellishments.

I am already thinking about Keep It Thimble’s plans for next year and hope to have some new features to roll out next year. More on this in a few weeks.

Keep it Thimble!

Christmas All Through the House

It’s official, we are ready for Christmas. The decorations are hung inside and out. A little bit more shopping to do and then I will be ready! My son contributed to the decorating as well by putting a wreath on his friend “Wickid Jack” (his spelling of “wicked”).

wickedjack — Wickid Jack's Christmas Hair

This year we have two trees – a traditional green one in the front window and a white and blue one in the den. When we got married, my husband started a tradition of having a white tree with a different color each year. We’ve repeated some colors, but so far we’ve had blue, black, purple, and pink. Next year I think we should do red!

In the entryway the little elves are ready to help Santa for Christmas. By the fireplace, a snowman is ready for a snowball fight (although my son pointed out that snowballs aren’t usually blue).

Santa is perched on some antique quilts, next to a basket of gingerbread men!

An antique grain scoop is the perfect place for some holiday foliage! This will be hung on the wall tomorrow – after I get the nails from the garage.

Last but not least, the fireplace holds lots of little Santas and Snowmen. Most of the items here were made by me – can you guess which ones?

Keep it thimble!

Flea Market Finds

Time for another edition of Flea Market Finds! I’ve been finding a lot of treasures over the past few months at thrift store and flea market, but haven’t had a chance to post them.

The first one is a old quilt I found at the local Goodwill! This is made of old feedsacks and features a pink border. There are a few holes here and there, but overall it is in good shape. Not sure what I will do with it yet, but it is a nice addition to my collection of old quilts.

Next is a set of tin dishes I found at one of my regular thrift stores. The large pan with a lid is an old lunch pail – it reminds me of the lunch pail that Pa Ingalls used in Little House on the Prairie.

Another great Goodwill fins is this this cute little teddy bear is a cookie jar. His badge says “I Love Kraft Marshmallows.” It was released in 1989 and looks fantastic in my kitchen.

The last treasure is a vintage sewing box from the flea market. As an added bonus, the box was filled with some old wooden spools, trim and zippers. It has a few scratches here and there, but is in overall good condition. It is the perfect size for carrying one of my wool crazy projects!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. Keep it thimble!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!