When I am pulling fabrics together to make a particular pattern, I place all the fabric, the pattern, any notions, trims, and such in a large Ziploc bag and hang the bag on a pants hanger. (Ready to go.)
I just hang it in my sewing room closet along with others that are ready. This is especially nice when I go to sew the crazy quilt purses, because there is a lot of piecing as well as a lot of embellishing to do.
By Judy from Birmingham, AL
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Dollar stores are great. I rely on them to help keep me organized, particularly when it comes to handicraft projects. If you enjoy variety in your creative endeavours, you might like to keep projects and supplies organized by using the large plastic trays from your local dollar store. One tray, one project.
For organizing craft projects, I use binders for project ideas with protective sleeves. I also keep a list of items needed to finish a project.
Pencil boxes and lunch boxes can be turned into "craft boxes" for kids, holding paints, crayons, and other arts and crafts supplies. They are also handy when used to organize sewing notions.
I have been knitting/crocheting and doing other needlework for over 45 years, so I have lots of patterns and instructions to keep track of. I also love using computers, so I decided to put the two pleasures together and save some space.
Handy and convenient. I put a plastic grocery bag in a small wastebasket. Set any size skein of yarn in it, for the project I'm working on.
Keep a knitting or crocheting project in a bag by the door. Grab it on the way out to the car. If you end up waiting for children or killing time any other way, you can at least get a little bit done on your project.
I have a hard time reading the size of crochet hook I have! To solve this, I took a flag Post-it note and marked the size and covered it with tape to make it sturdy and then wrapped it around the hook. Also works great with knitting needles.
Do you have a laptop that is not working anymore? Save that case! Especially the type of case that unzips all the way to lay flat, and is lined with a flannel-like material.
I have recently made up my mind that I really need to organize my sewing/crafting room. It looks like a cyclone has gone through it.
Free standing jewelry armoires make attractive storage units for beads, jewelry findings, and tools. The armoires can be found for reasonable prices at Wal-Mart, thrift stores, and yard sales.
I do a lot of quilling and card making in quantity. One way I keep my "stuff" organized is to reuse large meat trays. I am always multi-tasking on my projects.
I purchased a one drawer plastic container (from Wal-mart or a dollar store) and I filed all my patterns for sewing clothes, crafts, projects, plus my quilt patterns.