Taming the Craft Supplies

I am a craft lover. I try about anything that does not cost a lot to try out. I also sew clothing and other things. As a result I have all kinds of items for all kinds of crafts.

There is all the skeins of embroidery thread for my counted cross stitching, threads of all colors for the sewing, bobbins galore, ribbon, flowers, glue sticks and fake hair. Doilies, binding, appliqués and paint. Stenciling brushes, paint brushes, embroidery hoops and buttons. zippers, seam rippers, fabric scissors, thread scissors and paper scissors. I have wonder under, interfacing, fiberfill and batting. Then there is fabric, baby fabric, heavy fabric, cotton calico and stretch T-shirt type. Scraps of fur, felt, brocade and denim.

It is all there, in "The Room". I began to get some clear, stackable, plastic boxes with lids, like Rubbermaid or one of the other brands (usually whatever I could find for a good price) If they are clear you can see from the outside what is in them and grab the right one. In one I put the things I use for sewing. Machine needles, pins, a tape measure, my sewing machine parts, seam ripper etc. In another I put all the flowers. I have ones for putting on clothing as well as the small ones for decorating.

Another one got the hair and another the zippers.

I put all the ribbon together in one, standing the rolls up on end and lining them up. This allows you to see the color and size without digging through them all.

I did this with as much of the craft supplies as I could. I have a large, under the bed type one for all my cross stitching supplies. The rolls of cloth did not fit in any of the smaller, so this way they can all stay together and be readily available.

I used to keep all the thread in a box, when I needed a color I had to dig till I found it, by then it was all unwinding and I was tied in the thread and the spools were all stuck together. I found two of the three drawer storage that can set on a desk. The drawers are thread height and I could put the thread in the drawers and not have to dig. My cones lay down in the drawers. I put my elastic in another drawer and the bindings in yet another.

These plastic boxes then sit on a shelf neatly and is easily grabbed for your project.

My fabric is another story! I have drawers full, boxes of scraps etc. Patterns are in another cardboard box. I still need to get this back room cleaned out and organized so it will be usable, but for a number of years now I have had the clear boxes and it sure makes a difference for me, even with the room a cluttered mess!

For more ideas see Works for Me Wednesday at Rocks in my Dryer.

Sewing Savings

I am a sew-er and have sewn since I was in 8th grade. Being the oldest of eight kids if I did not sew I had nothing new to wear. My older cousin passed down to me and from there it went down the family. Back then you could buy fabric for .25 a yard at the Grants store. (Yikes, I am aging myself). Patterns were .10 to .25 a piece. So clothes were fairly cheap to make. ( No!! I am not THAT old!!)

Today patterns are expensive and so is fabric, so it pays to hunt in different places and do some adjusting to the way we use patterns and fabric.

For patterns I hunt out the cheapest sales. Joann fabrics often has sales on certain days. You will need to fight the crowd, but it is worth it if you need a new pattern. I also have bought patterns on eBay or Sewingpatterns.com

Two other places I find patterns are yard sales and thrift shops. Look them over, but for a dime or quarter you can usually figure out a facing if it is missing. Over the years I have also traded patterns with someone else that sews, borrowed patterns or used a ready made outfit that I liked, but was not in good shape, and made my own pattern. (Remember to add the seam allowance!)

You can also save money by cutting out the fabric without cutting into the pattern. Patterns today are made with many sizes on one pattern. If you cut the pattern you ruin it for using other sizes. I fold the pattern and cut under it. I use the lines in the pattern but my scissors are under the pattern instead of on top of it. I then always have use of all sizes of the pattern. This came in handy last Easter when I was making 11 granddaughter dresses of varying sizes!

Now for fabric. I buy on eBay, yard sales and from discount shelves. I also have friends that sew and they know when they want to part with some fabric they can call. EBay may not seem like a good place to us who sew, we like to feel the fabric and decide. However, I have purchased some great fabric for great prices for dresses, a nursery, blankets and other things. If you need something odd it is a good place to look to get it cheap. We had a "Spring Chicken" birthday party for my mom and I was able to find two different chicken patterned fabric that was "quilt type" for a quillow and did not pay that much for either piece.

This week I went to a yard sale at a friends and she was selling tons of fabric for .25 to1.00 a yard. I bought 3 yard of a VIP fabric for .75! I went to a thrift shop and bought a nice heavy homespun type fabric, excellent quality, $1.50 for 5.5 yards. I will be using it for my tablecloth.

Another way I have saved money for fabric is rather odd to some. There are plenty of huge size dresses in yard sales and thrift shops. Do you know how much fabric is in one of those dresses? Some of them are really nice fabric that would make a cute little child's outfit. I have used those, as well as "scraps" of fabric. Pieces people think are too small, but for a child a skirt with different color pockets and a shirt from another small piece works great!

Hunt around! The savings are there, just have a good place to store them till you need them! For more money saving ideas check out Biblical Womanhood!