Houston, We Have a (Scrap) Problem

Do y'all remember the shot of my scrap baskets I posted last week in my Full Stash Disclosure?  I've been saving my scraps to someday be able to make a perfectly beautiful scrappy quilt.  I love scrappy quilts, especially when they are filled with cherished bits and pieces of fabrics you love.  Anyway, if you missed them last week, here's a picture of them, with scraps divided into warm, cool, and neutral baskets.  Remember, this is the "before" shot.

Divided into neat little baskets, I thought, "hmmm... these are totally manageable, and I probably have enough for a nice sized scrap quilt now."  I can probably bust these scrap baskets in a few hours.  Yeah.  Riiight.

Last night, I started sewing improv style (or slab style) and making 12.5 inch blocks.  And I kept sewing...and sewing...and sewing.  I've now finished up 32 blocks!

I've really grown to love sewing this way, and it's such a natural way to use scraps!  So, are you ready to see my scrap baskets after all of that sewing?  Here they are!

Yeah.  Almost completely full.  Still!  I don't really know how that's possible (I'm convinced they're reproducing when my back is turned), but I'm coming to realize that I may have enough scraps in these baskets for a couple of quilts, or maybe one gigantic one with an awesomely pieced backing.  

Y'all know me- I'm a one project at a time kind of girl, so I'm just going to keep at it until these baskets are empty (or almost empty).  

I laid out four of the blocks so you can get a bit of an idea of how the quilt will look.  I really love the whole fabric explosion look, and I love that I can look at the fabrics and see little bits of the quilts I've made and loved, that have gone on to new homes.

Full Stash Disclosure

Okay quilting buddies, I have completely been swamped by the first week of school (as you are all quite aware by now).  But, after reading all of the stash posts for Sarah's You Show Me Yours, I'll Show You Mine linky party, I just couldn't resist a quick post and a few pics.

You might be surprised that my stash is quite modest.  I LOVE fabric, but I don't tend to hoard it.  Every bit of fabric I have fits in this cabinet, which is in my foyer right next to the room where my sewing cabinet lives (our un-formal living room).  I just love this cabinet.  It's made of reclaimed distressed wood, and is just perfect for this purpose.

Although I have extra bedrooms that could be used as a sewing room, I choose to have an Un-Sewing Room downstairs, so the doors on this cabinet keep my stash hidden away when it needs to me hidden. And just FYI, my cutting mat and rulers stand up right behind it too, so everything is right where I need it!

Here's my stash!  All fabric bundles and sets are on the top shelf.  I've really been trying to bust through it, though I still have a few bundles left, including a full FQ bundle of Bonnie and Camille's Happy Go Lucky!  Once I use a bundle, the scraps get sorted by color.  I don't keep scraps from the same line together unless I can make another quilt with only that fabric.

The rest is arranged by color and folded as neatly as I can.  From left to right, the second shelf has pink/purple, blue/aqua, and green has its own tall pile (you can tell it's my favorite color).  The third shelf has red/orange/yellow, white/gray/black, and brown/tan.  On the very bottom, I have my ugly fat quarters.  These are ones that came in a grab bag set that I will never use in a quilt.  I use them for FMQ practice.  Then there's my leftover binding (which will be pieced to go on a scrappy quilt one day), some leftover camouflage fabric (which I'm thinking of giving away), and my Christmas fabric.

I don't worry too much about folding it all to the same size.  Since each color stack is relatively small, it's pretty easy to find what I need (and I pretty much know what's in there anyway).  These stacks have everything that is close to a fat quarter in size and bigger.

My smaller scraps and strings get sorted into three baskets- cool, warm, and neutral.  I've only recently sorted these out like this and I'm planning to start improv piecing some scrappy blocks in my spare time.  Eventually they'll make a great quilt!

So, that's it!  As far as stashes and scraps go, it's not a ton, but it's enough for me!