Scrap Happy February

Now that we have made it to February (phew!) and our New Year's Resolutions are either starting to become habit or have been long forgotten (ha!), I thought it would be fun to spend some time in February working on my scraps and share that process with all of you.

If you are like me, scraps seem to accumulate with alarming speed and the bins begin to overflow and become overwhelming. Last year, I spent some time organizing my scraps, cutting them down into uniform sizes, and putting them into storage so that they were easily accessible and usable. Of course, I made more than 50 quilts last year so you can imagine that I have a few more scraps and I need to go through this process again.

You are all welcome to join along - I'm calling it Scrap Happy February. This month I will be sharing my process, my thoughts, and my plans as we sort through our scraps and prepare to make some scrap quilts this year. My original plan was to have a very structured schedule, but then I realized that I wanted some freedom to just see where the process takes us. Here is a rough outline of what we will be discussing:

Week 1 - All About Scraps

What counts as a scrap? When do you put it in the scrap bin vs. returning it to your stash? How small is too small to save?

Week 2 - Pattern Ideas

We will discuss pattern ideas for squares, rectangles, strips, awkwardly shaped pieces and for adapting a non-scrappy pattern to be used with scraps. This will also include discussion about which sizes to cut your scraps so that you are prepared for future project.

Week 3 - Using Scraps

How do you successfully use scraps in a quilt and make it look awesome? We will talk about rainbow scrap quilts, value-based projects, solids, etc. 

Week 4 - Scrap Storage

Now that you have sorted your scraps, how do you store them? We will talk about sorting by color, shape, collection, designer, etc. as well as how to store them so that they stay organized and don't get all wrinkly.

What will all of this look like?

Each week there will be at least one blog post with information for that week. I will also be sharing information several times during the week in my Instagram stories as I work through my own scrap stash. These stories will be compiled and saved in my story highlights. Each week I will send out an email (probably toward the end of the week) with links to blog posts and a link to the story highlights with all of the information. 

Would you like to join us?

My goal is to spend at least 10 minutes per day working on my scraps - you are welcome to set your own goal. I will be cutting my scraps down into some uniform sizes, but you can approach your scrap storage and organization however you like. 

If you are joining in, make sure to use the #scraphappyfebruary hashtag in your Instagram posts so that we can all see how your progress is going.

At the end of the month, I will be starting a quiltalong for the Carly Quilt Pattern. This pattern is scrap friendly and is a fun one to work toward if you are joining in - that is one of the patterns that I will be cutting pieces for during the month.

My first All About Scraps blog post will be up in the next couple of days and I will be sharing in my stories this week. If there are any other topics that you would like to see covered, let me know!