There were 2 bins of batik scraps on my tables in the basement. I decided to go through and divide them by 'keep' and 'don't want'.
I think there might be a third box down there too and I'll look for that today.
This is a top view of the two boxes. I need to use my yardage and stop using scraps that I don't care for.
All of the pieces had been pressed at one time so this is pretty much stacked flat pieces, not crumpled up and wrinkled so there is a lot in these 2 boxes.
After sorting this is the 'don't want' pile that is pieces at least 2.5" wide (eyeballing, not measuring). There are chunks, strips and some full width pieces. I weighed it on my postal scale and it weighs 4 lb. 14 oz. (78 oz). Then I weighed a one yard piece of batik and it weighs 3.5 oz. 78 oz. divided by 3.5 oz. = 22.285 yards of fabric. Wow, that was a surprise! Even if I rounded one yard up to 4 oz. (4 yards per lb.) it would be = to 19.5 yards. If I was a lot younger I might cut it all into squares and triangles and see if I could get 2 twin size quilt tops out of that pile.
This is my 'keep" pile. It is 4 lb. 2 oz. (66 oz.) or 18.857 yards. Because the pieces are irregular shapes it probably relates to more like 13 -15 yards of usable yardage.
There was one more group, strips narrower than 2.5" any length and small chunks that weighs 1 lb. 2 oz. Well that was a fun evening!
I pre-ordered a few pieces of the Kaffe collective for spring 2024. The top left is by Kaffe, the 2 below it are Brandon Mably's and the 2 on the right are Philip Jacob's
Two more Philip's and one Brandon's. These will all fill in nicely to the stash I already have.
The orange cactus continues blooming. It is such a treat at this time of the year.
There is one bloom on the red/orange plant, no more buds. I have a champagne color still blooming too but none of the other plants have buds. I counted my cacti yesterday and I have 18 now. I think I would like to plant about 4 or 5 of the small plants in one pot. If it gets warm enough for the garage to be worked in I could get into the cabinet where I store extra pots and see if I have one large enough. Right now I have my mower and my paper recycling bin plus other things parked in front of it.
16 comments:
And now we know why we never get to the end of our scrap bins! There is always so much more fabric in them than we think. And scraps always seem to be so much more work to use than yardage. Anyone with any kind of stash can't sew fast enough to use up the stash either, so I guess we definitely should choose to ONLY work with the fabrics that we love as we get older. At least, that's what I'm telling myself right now!
Hi Wanda,
That was very interesting. I had not thought of weighing fabric to estimate fabric yardage. Have you thought about packaging your "don't want" fabric and selling in your pop up shop? Love your new purchases. I can't wait to see you next project.
I love your choices of the new Kaffe collective fabrics. When you buy a piece to add to your stash, how much do you generally buy? Also, if you love the whole line, how do you decide which ones to purchase? Love your cactuses! Carol
What lovely orange blooms--my cacti have not set bud again--do you feed yours at all??? [Just a note, when I planted my last batch all in one big pot they didn't seem to like it and I lost them!;000]
You do have a great collection of batik scraps there to work with and donate.
I have yet to scope out my bin of batiks--mostly darks I think...
45 this morning after lashings of rain last night;
We discovered a leaking window in our back room (tv room)--we think, as they are awning type windows, that the wasps tried to build nests in the cracks where they open out and the debris has mounted up in there..not sure as yet, but one will have to be replaced!! $$$, of course...
hugs, Julierose
the scraps do amount to more than you would think don't they - the batiks I have been using are in 4 project boxes packed full and I keep thinking when I get done with this quilt I should be able to downsize it to 3 boxes but they have seem to remain full the whole time I have been making this quilt
It was a fun read today too. I can see how you made your sorting into a fun job for us to see. And my oh my those new pieces are beautiful. Wishing you a fun Sunday.
JJM
Into each quilter's life, some thoughtful sorting is required and you've done well with your Saturday sorting!
What a wonderful idea to combine some of your cacti in the same pot!
Hugs!
I'm sure you can find someone who will love to use all those batik scraps!
Good for you Wanda...good for you...I struggle giving away any piece of fabric...and I live in a fabric store!!!And now I struggle to reach the top shelf without falling and the bottom boxes...Oh, dear...You and I both know there is no triler hitch to the hearse!!
Bravo for scrap sorting. For me, it is hard to give up even the tiniest scrap! Maybe these will show up in your store the next time you have a sale (;-)
I still remember you pulling some “ugly “ fabric and making something very beautiful! -Roxanne
I'm too chicken to weigh my scraps. I have a really hard time disposing of them, but it becomes a necessity after a certain point.
Isn't it amazing what our bins can hold! Happy that you were able to sort out the ones you don't love so they make the others easier to locate when you need them. And I'm with you in trying to focus more on my yardage stash (especially the ones I love) and less on the scraps.
When I first started accumulating fabric for quilting I was given quite a bit, then I found an ebay seller, a quilt shop going out of business, who sold fabric by the pound. She figured it at 3 yards per pound, but of course regular cotton fabric does weigh more than batiks. We won't talk about how much I bought.
I sort scraps, but never weigh them as it would be overwhelming. I sorted and used up a bunch of paired blues and greens with the free Maggie Pearl pattern and sewed at quilt retreat this weekend. I have another scrap sorted bundle ready to go to make a diagonal strip blocks quilt next. I started a quilt (Wallah) using blues batiks 5" squares cut from scraps and white 5" squares also. I am using the scraps, but probably not as fast as I would like, but they are being sewn. I commend your energy at sorting.
Wanda,
I'd sure love to take that "don't want" pile off your hands. These days I'm only working on scrap quilt tops for 2 different guilds, NMQA here in ABQ and my former HSQG guild in AZ (where they gave away >500 quilts to the community this past year). I'm about to turn 81 and just don't have the interest or energy to work on quilts for myself but am trying to use up my stash and others' stash or scraps.
Cheers, Linda E
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