The days are getting longer, the daffodils dancing in the breeze and Spring is almost here. This is such a hopeful time of year, when nature wakes up, and we can finally open the windows and feel the gentle warmth of the sun our our faces. It’s also an excellent time to have a spring clean of your sewing space! It can be daunting knowing where to start with spring cleaning. Some people like to do it bit by bit, others like to spend a day sorting, re-arranging, cleaning and organizing. Which camp do you fall into?
To help you get started and to stay focused, we’ve put together our top five tips for spring cleaning your sewing space and giving it a fresh lease of life.
1. Sort through your fabrics and de-stash
If you’re anything like us, you probably have more fabric than you could ever sew with in a lifetime. So why not decide to give some of it to a new home. We’re not suggesting you part with your favourite prints, but if there’s fabric you just know you’re never going to get to sew with, why not let it be loved and used by someone else? Quite often, guilds or quilting groups have swap tables, where you take along some bits to swap and you can take some different fabrics in return. Just remember, if you’re having a clear out, don’t bring too much back home with you! Or perhaps you know a friend who is new to quilting that might like some fabric to play with. Perhaps a school or charity would be able to put them to good use for creative projects. Or you could always have a de-stash on Instagram. Quilters love purchasing fabric and getting a bargain!
Do you have fabrics that you’re never going to use that could go to a new home?
2. Choose your favourite projects from the magazines, recycle the rest
Quilting magazines are often bursting at the seams with gorgeous projects, but they can take up an awful lot of space. It’s likely that you never refer to them again either after the initial read. So why not go through them one by one and tear out the projects that you truly love. You could put them in a binder to easily refer back to. Then either recycle them or see if anyone else can make use of them. That’s going to be a whole lot of space created!
Tear out your favourite projects and gift or recycle the rest to create more space
3. Tidy Up and Label storage
We love the motto ‘everything should have a home’ so why not apply it to your sewing space. Keep like things together and have fun with storage solutions. Use items such as baskets, jars, boxes, trunks, pouches, buckets. Pretty containers make storage more fun! It’s useful to label your storage too so you know exactly where things are when you need them in the future. Being organised now will save hours looking for something in the future.
A bucket is a great, creative solution for storing scraps!
4. Check Tools and Accessories
Looking after your tools and accessories is really important if you want them to last a long time. Are the blades in your rotary cutter sharp? If not, replace them. Is your ironing board cover in need of replacing? What about your cutting mat? Does it need de-fuzzing? (Top tip – use a toothbrush and some liquid detergent to do this.) Have you got plenty of spray baste? Have you got enough batting and interfacing for your future projects? Set yourself up for successful sewing by checking all these things now rather than when you need them and realise you don’t have enough!
Sharp rotary cutters are much safer. Check your blades!
5. Give your sewing machine the once over
Have you cleaned inside and around the bobbin recently? Does your machine need oiling? Make sure your machine is in the best possible condition with a sharp needle, ready to go. Your sewing machine will thank you for it and give you better results! You might also want to consider taking your sewing machine for a service. If it is starting to sound ‘cranky’ it might be time for a little TLC. When you get it back, it will be as good as new, with a whole new lease of life! Don’t forget we have a page in the Quilter’s Planner dedicated to sewing machine maintenance and inventory, so this will really help you keep on top of looking after it.
Use the dedicated pages in the Quilter’s Planner to keep track of your sewing machine details and tools
We hope that manage to do at least a little sewing Spring cleaning. It really will bring more joy to your sewing when you’ve created more space and everything is in good working order! If we’ve inspired you, do share your images on Instagram and tag us @thequiltersplanner so we can see!
