LinneaMarie Posted October 12, 2009 Report Share Posted October 12, 2009 I'm in the same boat as all of you!! I have a 17' x 25' studio. Do you think I'd have enough room??? Noooooooooooooooo!!! Of course, buying 243 bolts of fabric at once did not help. And then I've got all this random sh** from everywhere. I have things like an afghan that my grandma started and did not finish. (She passed 11 years ago.) I can't knit, but can't part with it. I even have some old pictures and frames in here! YIKES! About 5 years ago I bought a whole house full of fabric. Just the fabric, not the house! All vintage from the 40's, 50's, 60's, 70's, and 80's and some 90's. The lady NEVER quit buying even though she quit sewing. There were about 25 huge boxes in the attic. I did say "no" to the poly double knit!:o Eeeeww, remember leisure suits?? Funny how we used to think they looked sooo cool!:P:P And books?? Well, I am almost as much a sucker for books as I am for fabric!!:P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stagecl Posted October 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 12, 2009 Yes, I remember the leisure suits. My Mom and Dad wore different styles of them. I remember working in the fabric store and we called the polyester double knit "bullet cloth" because you couldn't destroy it:P:P:P Kim - I am impressed that you only have one tub of fabric! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lizh27 Posted October 12, 2009 Report Share Posted October 12, 2009 Hi Cheryl, I am having a yard sale on Ebay, as we speak. Got a new Millie and decided to quit all my other hobbies. Does anyone out there want an electric potter's wheel and kiln? Liz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stagecl Posted October 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 12, 2009 Liz, I always thought pottery would be fun. But when ever I tried, my vessels were the leaning one way or another:o Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sewershere Posted October 12, 2009 Report Share Posted October 12, 2009 As a long-time 4-H advisor/leader, here's a suggestion that I really appreciated: how about contacting your local 4-H, girl scout/brownie, or favorite school/teacher and finding out if a donation of (whatever) would be useful? I run this little project called a "Quilt-A-Thon" (for lack of a better term). We meet at the Ag Building and invite 4-H members, past members, past and present leaders, friends of 4-H and any person interested to join us in constructing quilt tops. The kits are all cut, ready to sew, and when the finished, we ship 'em off to Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Through the kind and generous donations of folks like you, we have become a self-sustaining project, and even our arts & crafts projects have benefitted from these donations. Nothing goes to waste! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bunny Posted October 12, 2009 Report Share Posted October 12, 2009 my name is Bunny, and I am truly addicted..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnnHenry Posted October 12, 2009 Report Share Posted October 12, 2009 I had the bright idea that if I got some of my stuff "out of the way" by renting a storage space, I would better be able to get the rest of my house looking like someone human lived there. So I did. At the time, my (baby) sister advised me not to pay storage fees on stuff that I would eventually throw away, and I assured her I would not. Well, guess what? She was right! That's exactly what happened. I ended up renting that storage space for more than five years , and I cringe when I think about how much money I spent storing stuff that I didn't really need. Decide who can really use the stuff and donate it accordingly. The homeless shelter got a bunch of my Tupperware--I used to sell it, it was traumatic to get rid of it); the battered women's shelters (old clothes), and tons of stuff to Goodwill. And the surprising thing is that 99% of the stuff I don't miss. Occasionally I will recall some little thing that I discarded, but most of it is long forgotten. The rule, according to somebody, is that if you haven't used / worn it in a year, you don't need it. Just my 2 cents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meg_marsh Posted October 12, 2009 Report Share Posted October 12, 2009 Guess I am somewhat lucky - small place - no room but alas, it is still too full of stuff - am constantly going through...... donate, trash, save (it's hard to get rid of at times). Yes I have a storage unit, but I only allow the Christmas stuff and boxes I have to keep in the unit. It isn't even full and I plan to keep it that way. When we moved out of the big house a few years ago, it was criminal and I never want to do that again - took days and when I saw the amount of wasted money - I was literally sick!! It taught me a good lesson - the must have's list has become smaller and smaller and the clothes closet has not gotten any fuller - actually less full over the last couple of years! - fabric stash stays about the same - work hard to complete items before buying more fabric (only somewhat improved in that area). I also make sure to go through everything completely at least once a year - this has helped the most: true spring cleaning!!! There are some wonderful charities in the area & when in doubt, leave it on the curb and the landscape people in the area will always take and sell/use - who knows, but then I don't have to deal with...... at least not in the dump. Good luck to anyone who really has to go through years of living in a house - one of the toughest jobs out there!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stagecl Posted October 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 12, 2009 Meg, I am dreading the day my parents pass on and their house needs to be cleaned out. They have lived in the same house for over 40 years! My dad has done some cleaning, but not enough. My mom is not one to clean out and give away. Ann, I did rent a storage unit and moved the excess in there to make the house seem less cluttered. But now, all of that is in the garage waiting to be moved:o:o Goodwill gets lots of stuff, so does my small group and the rest goes to the Science Center for children which does lots of art and crafts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
francine Posted October 12, 2009 Report Share Posted October 12, 2009 Every year we make school bags and fill them with school needs. We make sewing kits too. They go to a world relief that takes them all over the world to refuge camps etc. If you would like to know more let me know. I use alot of my "excess" this way. I can't imagine not being able to give my children anything. Making these kits helps keep me grounded! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sammi357 Posted October 12, 2009 Report Share Posted October 12, 2009 Not moving, just trying to clean up and organize, but have come to the realization that I have achieved SABLE. Stash Acquired Beyond Life Expectancy rof~in piles of fabric and yarn~lol! I am not nearly productive enough for this many bins of fabric! lol! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladybugquilting Posted October 12, 2009 Report Share Posted October 12, 2009 I share almost all of your addictions even the cake pans I love to cook and bake and eat and quilt, crochet embroider you name it somewhere along the way I've tried it at least once..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra Darlington Posted October 12, 2009 Report Share Posted October 12, 2009 I really feel like you are all my sisters.....we are so much alike! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stagecl Posted October 13, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 13, 2009 I agree with you, Sandra, we are all so alike. Tammy, I reached SABLE a long time ago and can't stop:P:P:P Is there a ten step program for craft addicts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharon M Posted October 13, 2009 Report Share Posted October 13, 2009 Originally posted by ladybugquilting I share almost all of your addictions even the cake pans I love to cook and bake and eat and quilt, crochet embroider you name it somewhere along the way I've tried it at least once..... me too! pretty much all of the hobbies mentioned in this thread, .... add to that Ukranian Easter Egg painting.... and I'm not even Ukranian! (I gave that one up!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltgirlcrsy Posted October 13, 2009 Report Share Posted October 13, 2009 When we moved 3 years ago, my husband "gave" me the entire lower level for all my stuff if a promised not to let it leak upstairs! Yea right! One of my sewing machines is sitting on the dining room table as we speak. I am helping a niece make a halloween costume and needed the extra room. Wether my husband is very sweet, (yes he is) or very intellegent and knows what is good for him, not a word is being said. When we moved my goal was that everything I brought in had a home in my quiltroom. Well, I filled it up and now many things do not have a home. LOL You are not alone. I have been taking extra "crafties" to my quilt guild meetings and putting them on the free table. That way it is easier to let them go if I know they are going to a good home. LOL Good Luck Chris APQS Millie, but I call him Hueston:cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stagecl Posted October 13, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 13, 2009 Everyone has such good ideas of letting go of those extra crafts and fabric! Need I say more...I just bought some fabric today. I had earned enough points for 2 yards of fabric....well...did I stop at just 2 yards? No way...I bought at least 8:o:o:o Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calicokat Posted October 14, 2009 Report Share Posted October 14, 2009 I did some major decluttering a few years back. I sacked like things together and gave them to someone I know enjoyed that thing - kitchen stuff, craft stuff, bathroom stuff, home decor, etc. I never looked back and I only regretted giving away one t-shirt, and that didn't last for long! Two specific give aways I remember are an expensive Mary Kay manicure set that lived under my bed with the dust bunnies and might have been used twice -- it went to a stay-at-home mom in my playgroup at the time who'd mentioned that she loved their nail polish. She was flabbergasted when I showed up to playgroup one week and said "Here, it lives with you now!" And 2 or 3 stuffed WalMart bags of my Cross stich stuff. I kept one book that had been a gift, and two pieces of unfinished work - and the rest went to another mom friend. She too couldn't believe that I was giving it away, but it was almost like the mastercard commercial: 3 sacks of floss, aida cloth, and patterns: $100's of dollars - getting it out of my house: priceless. And there's always goodwill! I have a big box of fabric going to them tonight. Sometimes you just have to sort and purge - it's the only way to make room for more, LOL! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
April W Posted October 14, 2009 Report Share Posted October 14, 2009 Okaaaaay...you have all guilted me into confessing. My sister recently came over and spent an entire day helping me "purge the unused things" in my sewing room/extra bathroom/guest bedroom/dining room and living room. Mostly fabric that I had moved 3 or 4 different times (as in houses) cross-stitch stuff, odd balls of yarn, crochet thread, magazines, UFO's. I couldn't believe how organized she can make me in just one day when it took me years to accumulate (aka hoarding) all that good stuff. But I really feel less stress now that I don't have to finish all those projects. Eight bags of fabric, yarn and batting went to a group of women who are making lap quilts for hospice patients. Ahhh...confession is good for the soul! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beachside Quilter Posted October 14, 2009 Report Share Posted October 14, 2009 Okay ladies, I guess I have found the missing "sisters from other mothers" I have been searching for all my life, LOL! So what about the jewelry making, scrapbooking, photography, printmaking, stained glass, herb-growing, etc....? A long time ago I decided to clean out non-essential fabrics in my sewing room; filled up my entire Suburban and took it to the sewing guild. They all wondered where I had gotten the donations (I was ashamed to tell them it was all my stash)! I really need Shannon and Meg to conduct a 12-step program. And April, will you send your sister to my house? How would she like a nice vacation in Florida??? My husband keeps threatening to call 1-800-trash to have a dumpster put in the front yard and pay me to fill it up. Glad to know there are others like me, but I do need help, or maybe an intervention!! Vickie Oliver Beachside Quilter APQS Rep SW FL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roberta Posted October 14, 2009 Report Share Posted October 14, 2009 Will I look bad if I tell you we just built a shed in the backyard to put all of my ceramic stuff in. The pottery shack. We moved 2 years ago and dh needed it out of his garage. I have not touched any clay since I started quilting but I know I will. I do miss it. I also have a closet full of yarn and crochet stuff and books to learn how to knit. Haven't touched them since I started quilting either... some day maybe I will have to courage to let some of it go, ha ha Every day I find my self shopping for new stuff too. Things I want to learn like making my own clothes. I have spent every day for the last 2 weeks looking for a dress form on Craigslist ... I need to stop.. I have no place to put it. Craigslist is a good place to sell your stuff locally, and they even have a wanted section for people who need things, and a free section for the things you want to donate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
witha'K'quilting Posted October 15, 2009 Report Share Posted October 15, 2009 No wonder I am so at home here in this group. I have the same problem...I mean addictions...I mean stuff as all of you. Whew! I knew I couldn't be the only one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinneaMarie Posted October 15, 2009 Report Share Posted October 15, 2009 Huh!!! And my DH says it's just me!! He says other people are "normal". Yea, right. Like he would know what normal is! Pshaw!!! And who wants to be normal?? Sounds boring!! Anywho, I'm glad I have lots of "sistas" here:P:P:P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stagecl Posted October 15, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 15, 2009 Linnea Marie, Did he read this post yet?:P:P I'll say it again...I am so glad I am not alone I should also add I just bought an oval bracelet mandrel to make some wire bracelets:o:o Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toni123 Posted October 16, 2009 Report Share Posted October 16, 2009 It sounds like we all suffer from the same disease. Like all of you was into a lot of crafts, then discovered quilting and had to give up something and it wasn't going to be quilting. After 10 years, still quilting, longarm business, teach quilting....mmmm! I am out of control still even getting rid of other craft items. I could stock a small fabric store w/my staff. My goal for 2010...buy as little as I have to and pull from my stash. That is between longarm quilting for my business, teaching, speaking at guilds, going to quilt shows, ect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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