RF Readers, Organization & School

It's great to see that readers have increased quite a bit lately. Welcome!! The US is back on top and Brazil has fallen to last place while France is no longer listed. 

The Heather Ross fabrics are being organized as I  continue to fold this week, clearing out the small cabinet and moving everything to the long rolling cabinet(s). Using the same folding technique as the 30's for these but for longer yardage, I've had to fold them in half length first to achieve the same look... just in case anyone is organizing their stash along with me.  The Aneela Hoey, Liberty of London, Kaffe Fassett & Tula Pinks are calling. I may be folding for quite a while but the process is going much faster now that I have the technique down.

I've moved forward with plans for the third, accelerated masters; classes began this week. I'll reward myself with some sewing room time as I progress. There are so many sewing projects on the to-do list that will keep me busy for months. It felt good to sort through the charms for Jane but I'm still undecided about the triangles and I was so sure I'd use the background fabrics for the longest time. I may have to think on that a while before I can commit to a final layout plan.

 

I hope you're having a terrific weekend,

Heather

Cabinet is Complete!

I've just finished folding of the 30's reproductions and couldn't be happier with the results. There were so many green fabrics that overflow had to go into the  bottom drawer. There are still black, brown and multicolored FQs to move, but there's still room in the 'shoe box'. Now I'm wondering if I should go back to the box and refold all those FQs, too. I'm in no rush to commit to that tonight. 

There's a small set of rolling drawers for scraps once I have some time to sort the giant rubbermaid container. It's just so nice to be able to view all the 🌈 prints together, they make me so happy.  Great grandma Gladys would be so proud!

There are some charms left to sort as I prep stacks for the top construction. I keep changing my mind about how to best compliment the triangles and am glad I didn't try to piece it as I went along. I understand that the process might feel overwhelming for some, but this is my first full quilt. Originally, I had no plans to attempt any triangles, had never appliquéd, and basically approached it as a great learning experience, which it absolutely has been. 

Happy Organizing & Planning,
Heather

Starting to Shape Up

The warmest colors are finished with roughly half of the cool tones to go. The cabinet is really shaping up! It reminds me of the ooh and ah factors of my favorite quilt shop, Erica's, that has sadly closed its doors. The sewing room is becoming more inviting every day - I can't wait to be in there regularly. 

I hope to fold some more greens and blues tonight or tomorrow and move on to the Heather Ross prints next week or weekend. Fingers crossed. 

Happy Folding,

Heather 

                                               

Folding Continues

The first folded fabrics were moved to the cabinet. I like the look, but will need to finish the reds for the first shelf and pinks for the second before I'll know how I feel about it for sure. It looks like the yellows and oranges did not travel well and may need to be re-stacked soon. Blues & greens were planned for the bottom shelf.

I may have to split the green 30s between the second and third shelves if is room available.  I found several stacks of smaller charms between FQs in the folding process. I'm considering cornerstones for the Dear Jane construction and changed my mind about the background fabric between the triangles and kites. 

Happy Organizing,
       Heather

Folding Method

When folding fabric to take advantage of vertical space, be sure to use the WOF (width of fabric) as the starting point. I have several cuts of the same fabrics and the folding techniques used by the sellers vary greatly. The most common cuts are FQs and 1/4 yards from initial purchases, 1/2 to 1 yard cuts in recent shipments, though I will take several small cuts if stock is low. FQs are not folded consistently between various shops.     

While the comic book boards were thought provoking, the acrylic ruler allows room for other cuts or items in front of the folded fabrics in the cabinet, maximizing available space. The board method would have also required pressing all of my cabinet contents and that sounds terrible. 😆

 Folding at WOF or half WOF (FQ)

FQs can be folded several ways

I prefer to use WOF as the basis of most of my folding options and find the consistency is helpful longterm in my projects. I originally planned to iron as I go along but that would take far too much time and seems like an unnecessary step. Once you have your WOF (except FQs), fold in half lengthwise towards the selvedge edges. Place your ruler at about 2 inch mark above the raw edge for FQ, a bit more for yardage up to 3.5 inches. Wrap the remaining fabric while holding the center or at least the ruler at the end of the fabric edges. If utilizing for FQs, you're starting with half the WOF, meaning you can skip the fold in half.

Carefully pinch as you go to avoid uneven wrapping. Continue to wrap the fabric around your ruler until finished.  If you prefer to tuck in the remaining 1-2 inches or the remaining fabric will not hold on it's own, tuck on the same side you finished on or use a wonder clip to hold in place. Pinch your fabric again, as shown above left and slide your fabric off of the ruler. 

The first few will seem awkward at first but the process gets better with practice. 

Happy Folding, Heather