Four things that help me!

When it comes to working with patterns, making them and fabric storage I have learned a few lessons and those are:

 1. Dealing with all the pattern inserts

First off I have a subscription to Burda Fashion and at one point a subscription to Ottobre so where do you put  the inserts once they have added up quickly. I place mine in a art portfolio that once housed my husbands art work. All of my pattern sheets are in their own poster board folder according to their month and subscription.

 It makes it a whole lot easier to get to my patterns now. All I do is slip the folder out that I need and get the pattern sheet. Once I am done the pattern sheet get put back and the whole folder slides with ease back into place. This system is a ton easier than leaving the sheets folded how they came and it causes less wear on the sheets.  

With this system I have room for additional patterns, maybe a new subscription or two.

2. What I use to trace patterns on to

I have learned that wrapping paper "does not" work for me especially if it has a pattern on the back. Most wrapping paper is made so the recipient of a present won't be able to see whats on the inside when wrapped. I use packing paper from Wal-mart or any other super store it is thin enough to see your lines to trace but thick enough not to shred when tracing like tissue paper. Plus is is CHEAP about five dollars for a big bundle.

3. Paper I use when making my own patterns.

I use a fat roll of architect tracing tissue paper (that I get from Dick Blick for a real steal) to draw out my patterns. When I have my patterns drawn and I want to finalize them I use gift wrap to lay under the tissue so that my markers that I use don't stain my counter top. Gift wrap is perfect for this because if you lay it blank side up under the tissue and draw on top of it with any marker it won't go through because of the shiny printed side keeps the ink from bleeding. If you write on the shiny side with a marker it will smudge, this is another reason I don't use it to trace patterns. 

 4. How do I get all my fabric folded uniform

I have saved a long cardboard insert from one of the last times I did a major fabric purchase and it what I use as my guide to fold. I spent a evening one day and unfolded and refolding what I thought was a lot of fabric around my "Bolt Folder" as I call it. When I was done folding all my fabric I was amazed to find out that I had room for more.

  To fold the fabric wrap it around the fabric bolt guide neatly, pull the guide out when finished wrapping around, then fold each fabric bolt over evenly in two and place to the side to start forming a nice uniform stack. 

 This gets rid of those "just can't get my fabric to fold properly" days. I have also found that some fabrics that are sheer of a suede type will not pull away from the guide. Solution: I have lamented my guide with Magic Cover laminate. Now when I go to the pulling the guide out step it glides right on out with not problems.

I have left the laminate ends on my guide as a extra sort of handle to help get the fabric pulled off.