Scrappy Success! 14 Best Ideas for Storing Fabric Scraps
If your scraps are taking over, consider different ideas for storage. Thankfully, I have come up with a system that works great for me, and I’ll share it with you (along with other smart ideas) right here! I hope you will find an idea that works for you, and when you have it all situated, I would love to see it! Tag me on Instagram @sewcanshe to share your success.
My scrap pile keeps growing because I know I can use those cute bits of leftovers. Check out the scrap buster sewing projects at the end of this post!
Keep your favorite scraps accessible.
I have found that if I’m going to use all the scraps that I keep, I need to make sure they are easy to get to.
I use this basket tower, and I love that I can easily move it around. Sometimes it is next to my sewing machine – like when I’m making QAYG fabric or crazy quilt blocks. Sometimes, it’s next to my embroidery machine, like when I’m making little ITH (in the hoop) quilt blocks and projects.
Organize your best pieces by color.
One thing you’ll notice in almost all the organizing ideas here is that fabric bits are organized by color. Doing that really helps when you are searching for fabric to use for an applique piece, a scrappy or low-volume quilt, or any other cute scrappy project.
If you have kids, ask them to help you organize your scraps by color. My kids used to love that. Maybe someday I’ll have grandkids to assign that fun task to.
Use clear bins so you can see your stash.
Lots of people (like our friends at Spoonful of Sugar) use lidded plastic bins to store adorable scraps. I love this idea, but my bins would have to be huge. Like Home Depot size, lol. Making them visible is a good reminder of what you have going on.
Feature your scraps in cute jars.
Along those same lines, Heather of The Sewing Loft uses these cute jars to store her fabric pieces on a shelf. That’s pure eye-candy for quilters!
Fill a shoe organizer with sorted scraps.
Once at a friend’s house, I spied this genius way of storing fabric scraps by color: a plastic shoe organizer! She kindly sent me a picture to show you. This is a great way to get started if you only have a few handfuls.
Store your scraps in pre-cut sizes.
I haven’t tried this tip yet – but it inspires me so much that I really want to. Lori Holt of Bee in my Bonnet presses and cuts her scraps into the sizes that she uses most so she can quickly make quilts with them. Read more about her technique here.
Store pre-cut fabrics grouped by size.
In addition to cutting scraps into common sizes and shapes needed for quilts you like to make, Amy Smart suggests keeping like-size pieces together. That way, when you are ready to make a quilt – like this 2 1/2” square patchwork quilt – you have all the pieces in one place.
Sew bins from scraps, for scraps.
I think it would be cool to sew bins out of different colors for holding the scraps of different colors. If you have a scrap shelf these would look cute, in all different sizes, lined up and filled to the brim.
Keep coordinated scraps together
Sometimes when I finish a quilt or other big project I have a bunch of coordinating scraps that I wouldn’t necessarily LOVE individually – but as a coordinated set, they are just awesome.
Make ‘kits’ from your coordinating fabrics.
One of these fabric sets might even be enough for a little quilt, a few zipper pouches, or potholders.
I keep these scraps sorted together in zip-lock bags, so when I need to stitch up a quick project, I already have coordinated fabrics set aside. You could also store those pieces in one of my folding fabric baskets if you don’t love the baggie look.
Label larger scraps with the size.
Becky over at the Patchwork Posse labels her fabric pieces to help her remember the size without unfolding and measuring each piece again and again. I have found this tip to be very helpful with my medium or large-size scraps.
Sew bags with zippers instead of gallon bags.
I have a few gallon size bags with scraps, and it’s practical, but also not pretty. If you want to make sure that your storage is presentable, usable, sturdy, and cute how about sewing yourself a few see-through tote bags with clear vinyl. It would be easy to organize and store bundles, colors, and project pieces in this type of zipper tote.
Bulk storage for useful (but less cherished) scraps.
When I have scraps that I don’t love enough to put in the tower, and they aren’t part of a coordinated set, they go in the treasure chest.
These scraps are great for testing the tension on my sewing or embroidery machine, sewing a ‘trial version’ of a project, or letting my kids sew with. Whenever people ask if I have scraps to share, I let ’em at it!
When my treasure chest gets too full to handle, I also have a friend who is happy to clean it out. Yay!
Unusable scraps can be shredded into stuffing.
Stephanie of the blog Swoodson Says has a great solution for scraps that are even too small or ugly for the ‘treasure chest.’ She shreds them up with her rotary cutter and uses them for stuffing! Read more about her scrap solution here.
What about pretty shredded fabrics?
This is just a tangent, but what if the fabrics are too pretty after you shred them? I found this picture of shredded fabrics. If these were mine, there would be no way that I could hide them, which would be a problem. It’s a good thing those aren’t my shredded fabric pieces.
Storing Bigger Fabric Pieces
If you need help with your stash of bigger fabrics, check out 3 Ways to Organize and Store Fabric – there’s even a video where I show you my system!
Storing Quilt Blocks
When storing quilt blocks for a quilt that isn’t finished yet, the best thing I have found is scrapbooking bins meant to hold 12” stacks of paper. They are amazing! Tag me on Instagram @sewcanshe and show me your method of storing scraps!
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