Wednesday, July 19, 2017

Dog Days

The Dog Days of Summer are almost upon us.........

Hot, Sultry, Humid days in the good ole' Summertime!

We are baking this week in the metro St. Louis area with indices well above 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

I can't think of anything better to do during this heat than to.........


 ORGANIZE YOUR SCRAPS!



Well, maybe you could nap in the air conditioning
 with a puppy like Lilly Mae......
that would be good too..........
but, I digress............



Let's be honest.......
What is keeping you from organizing your fabric scraps?

I want answers!
Please leave them for me in the comments below.

Various color mediums are organized
 in the stores for us......

Why?????

So they can be found easily!!!!!

That's the whole key for scrap organization!

If you haven't gone through your stash and scraps lately,
you will probably be very surprised at what you find?
And, hopefully, you will be inspired?
It's just like a trip to the fabric store!
Or a reunion of old friends!

Find an organizational system that will allow you to start working 
from your scraps and stash.

I in no way want to keep you all from Fabric stores, and quilt shops....
we NEED them!

But, give it a shot...........get organized and start making some
super scrappy quilts!

OK......off my soap box now.



Did you all know my friend Alycia of Alycia Quilts
is hosting another QOV Mystery quilt?????


And, yes, I am finding time to participate myself!
Alycia claims the clues take very little time to make!
I am holding you to that Alycia!


I recently came across this while shopping..........
REALLY????
Although nice..........
PLEASE!!!
Let's share our passion! 
LET'S TEACH OTHERS TO QUILT!

In other news..........that deals with my family.....
since this is my blog and somewhat of a diary of my life......



Sadly, I had to say goodbye to my 
beautiful cousin Kim
this past week.
She had a hard hand dealt to her in life,
dealing with the loss of her young son.....
being diagnosed with a debilitating disease....
and yet, she chose to live her life in the most eloquent and
 positive manner.
I will miss your enchanting smile,
our long midnight talks,
scrabble games, and
conversations about politics and cooking.
You were a great cousin and friend.
Til we meet again, Goddess of the Universe.
(That was her nickname....all in fun!)

At Kim's funeral, I was able to visit with some family I 
don't get to see all that often.
It was nice being able to visit with my cousins,
Judy, Charlotte, and Sharon
among many other family members
 for a while.



Stay tuned next week for Clue #2
for


Thanks for all of the encouragement!
Keep on Quilting!
Kevin the Quilter 




29 comments:

  1. So sorry for the loss of your dear cousin. May you keep her life as an inspiration to always press on in a positive way.
    This week, I have been organizing my scraps. I have all the cut scraps in clear plastic boxes with labels (large print) on the front. I bought some wire shelves for the bigger pieces and am trying to find a way not to stack the rest on the floor. Need some more shelves, but will have to buy them online as none around here.
    My 2 biggest problems: All the bags of scraps I have been given (thank you, thank you) need to be pressed and processed with my Accuquilt dies. I am overwhelmed. How to get it done.
    Number two is I am storing 2 1/2" squares in color and value order and need proper trays. I tried using the aluminum cookie sheets, but they are too slippery for the squares to stay put and are too flimsy and bending. I used cat food box lids, but they are bulky and take up tons of room.
    This is what is keeping me from being scrap organized.

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  2. I have yet to find a good way to sort scraps. I have several bins of scraps in specific strip sizes, but they get so frayed when I'm searching for a specific color that I almost need to trim them down to a smaller size. I've also found that cutting to specific strip sizes can be limiting if I need something larger than a 2-1/2" square. When someone comes up with a magic formula, please tell me!

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  3. So sorry for your loss and many gentle hugs and prayers for the whole family. I have a modified version of Bonnie Hunters - what works for me for what kind of quilting I do. I think the biggest problem people have with sorting scraps is that they really don't know how they are going to use them so they let them pile up to point it is devestating.

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  4. Sorry for your loss. We lost a very long time family friend (practically family) last week. Always hard. I've printed off Alycia's clues, but, I haven't had time to get started on them. I don't organize scraps, since I don't have that many. I did pull out any that would work for your Mystery.

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  5. Sounds like Kim was the kind of person that inspired many. Sorry for your pain, and that of the rest of the family, in losing her. Grateful to know she is no longer suffering.
    I organize my scraps by color, in baskets, and then I get lazy and they get all messed up. That is kind of where I am at right now. :)

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  6. so sorry to read your cousin Kim has passed away. Good that you were able to go to ger funeral and meet up with those you do not see often.

    Re scraps I have made fabric baskets for mine one for each colour except black, brown and grey they share one as have so few scraps of those. Small scraps still ned to be sorted though have one basket of strips and another of squares that will become HSTs one day

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  7. I m sorry for your loss, Kevin.

    I don t organize scraps bec I don t have scraps. Pieces big enuf to use get folded up with the fabric yardage, tiny bits get thrown away. I do sort my fabrics by color and by style..like batiks are usually separate, 30s kiddy prints , Hawaiian prints, doggy prints, plaids from shirts etc, get their own bin or shelf.

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  8. An interesting read, in both the blog post and comments so far, I sew 99% with scraps, I dont sort them, Ive been recently gifted scraps, and I just opened the bags and tipped them into a big plastic tub, Im at this moment using pieces from the tub, I sew scrappy so worrying about colours etc is never an issue, I just dip and pick, sometimes you can become so overwhelmed by all the scraps you push them aside and ignore them, instead when you have a spare afternoon or evening, pick up a healthy pile of scraps, give them a quick look over for size, then find a pattern you already have or have a quick look on pinterest and start sewing, before you know it, your scrap problem will be well and truly under control and you will have some great blocks or a quilt to show for it :)

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  9. I rarely sort scraps. I try to use them before they end up in a giant scrap pile. I'd rather sew them into something quickly than have to sort them out later.

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  10. Sorry for your Loss Kevin.
    Lily Mae is adorable! I'm an inside cat myself with this heat!
    organize my scraps? I aint got time for that I use as is. lol

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  11. Oh sad. Kim was a beautiful person on the outside, and I know she was inside.
    Heartbreaking to lose family and friends. Anyone really. So hard. I have a very tender heart.
    I can imagine then that she is with her lovely son, and they are hugging and safe.

    You are very good and sneaky with this whole scraps sorting deal. Do you do home interventions? Good grief, Mount Everest over here.... but "I am busy"
    I have been trying.
    It's just, .... clearing out the fabric storage facility on level two in preparation for the new kitten in September, and the baby shower for Lizzie, and visiting Lizzie since she is so round and wobbly (lol) and my daddy needs my attention almost every day bc he is 93, and .... 5 or 6 other things.
    BUT I am milling through my scraps bc Webfabrics up the road is having a summer camp and we are going through our stash. Still, I need a front end loader over here.
    Your puppykins is so cute and adorbs. I bet she takes good care of you.
    It is hot here in No Va 35 miles west of the Swamp better known as DC

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  12. Kevin, so sorry for your loss. You and your family are in my thoughts and prayers. By the way, Lilly Mae is a cutie! I have my scraps in plastic shoe boxes, one box per color, and two boxes of squares sorted by size. But I just throw leftovers from recent projects into one pile to sort later--though that may or may not happen. lol! I haven't made a lot of scrap quilts, so I guess I should start!

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  13. So sorry for your loss, Kevin. So glad you have Lilly Mae to help comfort you. I don't organize my scraps too much. I have two large baskets - one is pastels and the other autumn prints. Tiny bits go into a bag for dog beds or donation to the cotton shredder at a local charity.

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  14. I am so sorry for your loss Kevin. The loss of someone special to us is so hard to handle. I am sending prayers for a peaceful heart to you and your family. As for scrap organization, hmmmmm, I guess I handle my scraps like everything in life. I have good intentions of organizing by size, shape and color and then I pick up a piece that speaks to me and I am off on another totally different project. Since I have no business starting a new project when I have so many on "the list", I just let my scraps pile up in their cute baskets and tell myself I will play with them another day. Enjoy your day. I am looking forward to clue #2 and I hope I can keep up!

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  15. I am sorry for your and your family's loss of Kim. I will be keeping you in my prayers

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  16. So sorry for your loss. My scrap bins just overwhelm me by the sheer amount of scraps in them. I start to organize and then just give up. One of these days I will persevere!

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  17. Kevin, I am so very sorry for the loss of your beloved cousin Kim...she will always be cherished in your heart! Prayers for your whole family during this difficult time. Scraps...they get tossed into a basket under my cutting table until it is full then I take the time to press, cut and sort them into the proper boxes by size, and by color within the box. Makes it easy to grab the stack of colors in the right size for my next scrappy project.

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  18. I'm so sorry for your loss. Your cousin sounds like a wonderful lady. You have my deepest condolences.

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  19. So sorry for the loss of your sweet cousin. Sending hugs and prayers your way.

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  20. I'm so sorry for the loss of your beautiful cousin Kim.... Sometimes life is very sad and we have to compromise with it...
    Fortunately Lily Mae is adorable and very fun ! She makes me laugh a lot on your photos on FB and IG !!

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  21. Sending healing hugs to all -- losing a loved one is never easy. Good idea to get lost in the scrap bin for a while.

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  22. Lily Mae sure does look relaxed and as vutr as a button. I'm getting a handle on my scrap bins of 30+ yrs with a little help from a good friend. Just need more time to put them to use.☺

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  23. sad to lose her, but lucky you to have had the relationship to her at all! I don't have any close family members... and yours seemed like a gift. I know you'll miss her. LeeAnna at not afraid of color

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  24. Condolences, I am so sorry for your loss Kevin. Prayers tomorrow at church. What a sweetie Lily is. This is a week or two I have dedicated to my sewing room. It holds 42 years worth of fabric etc..

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  25. So very sorry to hear about the your family's loss. You've had a rough year on that front.

    I've at least made a start at organizing my scraps. They are sorted by size in ziplock baggies. Where I have lots of strips, they are split into two bags, one warm colors the other cool colors. I don't as well at keeping up with all the scraps. I've got a large, overflowing tub of scraps that need to be sorted and trimmed. Once I make some progress organizing the fabric closet, I'll get back to those.

    Stay cool and safe travels.

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  26. I"m so sorry about your cousin Kim's passing. She seems just way too young to have had to suffer like that and die so young. It's hard to reconcile that. I'm sure you added much to her life, though.
    What's keeping me from organizing my scraps?? A million other projects I've started... like your mystery, for example.
    Stay cool!!!

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  27. You - you are keeping me from organizing my scraps because you won't do it for me - ha ha ha - just kidding.... I do great for periods of time, and then I slack off!! and yes! Quick and easy Mystery - I promise - Hugs to you and yours <3

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  28. I, too, am very sorry for your loss...I am still trying to come to terms with the loss of both my parents 6 days apart.....dealing with the grief and assorted emotions from that trauma has probably been the biggest reason my life is so disorganized right now---including my scrap collection. Your cousin has ( I didn't say "had" because I believe she still "is") the most radiant, beautiful smile.

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