Monday, January 10, 2011

Design Wall Monday



Here are a few of the Civil War Diary Quilt blocks I have completed this past week. I am not even to the half way point of the 121 blocks in this quilt. They are 6 inch square. My goal is to finish this for my son's room this year. Note that I said to use in his room not for him to "keep." He has several quilts, just not queen sized. :)

I am still asking for any recommendations from everyone on how to organize closets, papers and general stuff! I have made this a goal for this winter. I have several places where things are stored like papers and photos. That is step one to consolidate to one space. I am currently purging papers that aren't needed in files so I have more room. I NEED TIPS AND POINTERS. ANY COMMENTS ARE WELCOME ON ORGANIZING! THANKS everyone.

9 comments:

Jamie Janow Elfert said...

Your blocks are great! For organizing, all my fabric is out in plain site, but papers are tucked away in the closets in filing cabinets. Good Luck.

Jo said...

Your blocks are wonderful. For organizing my tip is to make sure you can see all the fabric. If you have to dig for it, you don't.

Diane said...

good luck with the CW blocks I would break down the total # you need by weeks so you'd have an idea of how many need completed per week to keep you on track.
For organizing-you gotta purge the stuff you'll never use (seriously, you'd think ave. life expectancy is 300 for the patterns I have kept) and I just did another purge HA!
Also I keep my fabrics together and neatly folded, so I can just thumb through them on the shelf and see what I have.

Unknown said...

My method of organization is to just pull everything out of the space (like our closet in our office). And then go through it bit by bit deciding what is important and what is not. It's not a very dignified or efficient way to sort, but it gets the job done and when it's over the closet was way more organized!

Chris said...

Your blocks are wonderful. It is going to be quite a quilt.

Quilter Kathy said...

Each of my projects have their own box, with the fabric, finished blocks and instructions. I try to keep everything (including fabric stash) and other projects out of my sight so I can focus on the project I am working on...I am easily distracted! And I clean up and put away everything when a project is finished.

AnnieO said...

The blocks are so intriguing with your color choices! Great work.

For organizing, "like with like" is always best. Photo boxes are good--quickly go through the photos and chuck duplicates or bad photos and then label the package. For papers in filing cabinets, sort into categories like warranties (don't keep any for appliances you no longer have, LOL), auto repair, travel, taxes, etc. I like the hanging file folders to just slip individual manilla folders into. No need for fancy labels, just write on the tabs. We need to purge our filing cabinets of a lot of old stuff. Make sure you shred things with your name and any personal info, of course.

SpinningStar said...

The blocks are looking great. I decided to join in with the Brackman Civil War Block of the Week. At least those are 8" blocks and it is interesting to have to wait until Saturday for the posting of the new block.

As to organizing - good luck - I am in the middle of doing the exact same thing and it's hard. Here's some things I am doing...

I got some books from the library that dealt with organizing. I also recorded some of those shows. I generally look at the initial issue and then fast forward to the reveal at the end and then delete the program. But, I now have ideas for what I want the house to look like.

I try to pick a small area a day to tackle and do the sorting of keep, toss and donate. I have a donate box available for that next call. Then if things need to be in a different area, I take them there. My house is a bit of a mess right now, but I do see things thinning out every day.

I have a shred box - it is easier to toss stuff in there and continue sorting. Later, I can sit and shred for 30 minutes.

With financial papers - I use file folders with fasteners and a 2 hole punch. Papers that I'll keep for a long time (investment stuff) are grouped together. Tax related stuff are together and then there is the rest of the paperwork that I'll keep for a year and then toss. The key thing is that the papers are sorted as soon as paid and are secure so they don't fall over the place. And, there is a destruct date on the folder, so I only think once.

Hope this helps.. good luck!

Liz

Alycia said...

Love your blocks - but I have no tips on organizing... just keep trying!