Lessons in Stash Folding!

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Last night on QuiltCam and on Facebook several asked how I do my stash folding and I thought it would be a good thing to share since I am deep up to my knees in it right now!  These are the purples and teal/turquoises.

Messy piles!

Actually, it’s not that bad..much of it just needs straightened and stacked a bit better. I haven’t done this in nearly 5 years --since we moved here ---and things get stuffed and crammed and out of order over time.

I know some use the “roll around a ruler” method….but I found that didn’t work with the sizes of shelves I had ---I needed something that was adjustable to any shelf depth.

I like very narrow stacks so I can simply slip my hand into the stack, remove part of the stack if what I need is buried down toward the bottom, lift what I need out, and replace the stack without disturbing it or the other stacks next to it.  The ruler method made the stacks shorter in depth and taller in height and would have taken up more shelf space.  I would need MORE cabinets to do it that way -- not a good thing!

So this is how I do it!

 

First, measure your shelf.  You need to know how deep it is so you know where to fold!  Mine are right at 15".

This is a 2 yard piece of yellow--- I grabbed it for photography purposes, and I think the fold lines will help clarify what I am doing.  I have the fabric folded in half so it measures 1 yard long.  This isn’t necessary – you can leave it in the 2 yard length, it just means more folding.  If I were folding a 6 yard piece, I’d definitely want it folded end to end first.

The selvages are together at the upper edge, just like the fabric comes off the bolt when you buy it, the fold towards me at the bottom of the picture. This way from fold to selvage it measures 22” tall.

Bring the bottom folded edge up to the selvages.  The fabric now measures about 11” tall.  There are 8 layers here.

Fold it once more, bringing the bottom of the piece up to the top fold.  It now measures about 5.5” tall, and there are 16 layers.

Remember the depth of your shelf?  Subtract about an inch.

I begin folding at the far right end by putting my finger at the 14” mark.

Here is the right end of the fabric flipped over my fingers where I placed them.  From here, you are going to continue the roll as far as you can go, maintaining the depth of your shelf minus that 1” or so….

This what I’ve got when I’m done rolling.

See how it fits??

I can fit 3 stacks across on my cabinet shelf.  There is a bit of a margin on the side where if I had a larger piece, say for a backing, I could stack that on its side to fill the space.

Close up of the reds!

I know it takes time to do this.  But I love how it fits.  Because I’ve done it to fit the depth of my shelf, there is no wasted space and everything is uniform.

And this is what I will be doing today ---yellows/oranges and greens are on the agenda for this morning!