Fabric Treasures

A friend asked me if I wanted "some fabric".   He said his wife used to sew but they were cleaning things out and making a room for their grandchildren to play games, watch movies and sleep when they come to visit.  He knows I make quilts and thought I might be able to use the fabric and they did not want to throw it away (that would have been horrible).  Of course I said yes.

What treasures!!!  I received several boxes of fabric,  mostly cottons --- perfect for quilting.  I love playing with these fabrics.  I love looking at them, touching them and organizing them.  There were all different colors, prints and solids.

To organize and store these fabrics I first gave each piece a straight edge.  Since some of the pieces had been used for projects by their previous owner, they had uneven edges where pieces had been cut out.  Any piece measuring ½ yard or more got neatly folded and put away with the other fabrics in my stash.

The remainder of the pieces were cut and stored with my other scraps.  I use 4 quart (shoebox size) plastic boxes.  Each fabric scrap is cut into as many of the following pieces as possible. Two 3 inch squares for 4 - patches.   Five 3 inch squares for 9 - patches.  One 4 inch square, tumbler, apple core and triangle for charm quilts (in a charm quilt each piece is made from a different fabric, but is the same shape and size).  Any leftovers are cut into 6 or 10 inch strips of various widths to be used in a string quilt. 

Sometimes there is only enough of a scrap for one of these pieces, sometimes there is enough for multiple pieces.  When a box is full,  I start sewing the pieces together to create a scrap quilt.

I was very excited to receive this wonderful gift.  I love seeing all of the different colors and prints and I love scrap quilts.  Working with these fabric pieces entertains me.  A couple of my quilting friends, who don't use scraps and would otherwise throw them away,  save their scraps for me too!!....I love them all.

Happy Quilting,
Laurel