Project Minima:

Friday, August 10, 2012

I Don't Donate and I Don't Thrift

~ painting by Alice Neel ~
...anymore.  Let me show you why.  I spent today cleaning up and sorting through my fabric stash, et. al.  It felt very virtuous.  So I took some pictures to remind myself it can be done or rather, that I can do it.  Wanna see?  I can get pretty obessive with my organizational skills...Okay, here they come after the break.














Here's all my fabric stash and any patterns I have:
    Life is so much easier being color coordinated!
  • The patterns are on the top in wooden clementine crates separated by style - i.e., outerwear, dresses, Asian-esque, tops, bottoms.
  • The next 3 rows of cubicles house projects I've started, but have not yet finished.
  • The following 2 rows are my fabrics rolled and stored by color.
  • And the last 2 rows are crates of small fabric scraps arranged by color.

even the trims like ribbon and lace are kept in color order

Next to my studio is the enclosed back porch with a glass door connecting them...
Here is where all my old clothes go to be reborn.
On these shelving units I have all the clothes I would have normally donated arranged according to fabric and then color.  It is my refashion heaven.  In so doing, I have stopped buying any apparel or fabric, either thrifted or new,  for the last year (going on two).  Between my fabric stash and the fabric and notions available from the clothes I already have, there's an endless supply of creative material to play with. 

Oh, and then there's this rolling rack I have out on the back porch too.  It's full of jackets and suits I just didn't want to roll up and stuff on shelves...
 structured items waiting to come back as something new

To see how many pieces I've refashioned so far, visit my About Project Minima page.  So tell me, how do you do it?


12 comments:

  1. Wow! I want to come over and pick up organizational tips from you!
    --Vivienne

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    1. Sure, any time Vivienne. I read you've been into some refashioning yourself lately - even if it means hand-sewing. It opens up a whole new world, I tell ya.

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  2. Your timing is impeccable!! I've been wandering around my sewing room, frustrated because I can't find anything. I appreciate these pictures so much because it gives me a glimpse at a methodology to harness the madness.

    I'm also trying to figure out how to re-configure a very small bedroom that functions (sort of) as my dressing room/guest bedroom. It has a very small closet and I need more hanging space. Of course, I want to spend as little as possible too, but still have it look nice! I'll get back to you on that.

    Have fun sewing. I'm about to jump in, too.

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    1. That's what happens to me too. My studio gets to such a state that it doesn't work for me any more. Then I finally stop everything and get down to organizing. It gets a little messier as time goes on, but it's a dream while it lasts.

      We made some hanging units out of wood to fit a small bedroom turned dressing room. Maybe I could take some pix...

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  3. You have far more refashioning projects going on than I do...and apparently more sewing skills, though I'll admit that I HAVE begun to dabble with this. ORGANIZATION has become a major problem.

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    1. Having a lot of projects going on is not necessarily a good thing... But it is nice to have a place to put them when you're not actually going to work on it any time soonish.

      Alright! You're dabbling with sewing. More power to ya, Terri. It seems to be catching on out there. Thrifted Shift said she's even considered getting a sewing machine!

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  4. You my dear are a woman after my own heart! I love organizing and can be what some call obsessive about it...but being able to see what i have and access it easily. brings me a joyful calm. Thanks for sharing yours!

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    1. Yes! I recall seeing your hardware "chest of drawers" that you used to sort your jewelry-making bits and bobs.

      I can procrastinate like the devil, but once I get down to it, I love organizing every little detail - especially by color! Cleaning, now that's a different story.

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  5. I am totally amazed. I am organizing myself, but you are truly the master. I wish that I loved it like you do; if I did, I would be much closer to my goals. You have discipline, with your systems, but also with 'project minima.'

    I attended an Alice Neel exhibit several years ago, so noticed the beautiful painting.

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    1. The painting is of Kate Millet, therefore the in-your-face intensity. How fortunate to have seen a whole exhibition of Neel's work. Her portrait's are phenomenal in their ability to ring true.

      If you love something, it's not discipline, you know. You can't help it.

      That said, it's only when I'm in it. It's the getting back that can be hard when I've slipped away.

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  6. This is great! I know it must be so much easier to get inspired when you're organized. I just have to keep going through my things every once in a while and purge, I call it "dumpin" to make some space and rethink things. I don't sew but if I did I'd definitely have to store things out in the open like you do. My mother-in-law had everything put away in drawers but I thought that was strange since you couldn't really even see anything.
    I'm looking forward to seeing more "re-worked" fashions of yours.

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    1. Yea, I do have to be able to see it, to use it. But if I don't keep things organized, the studio becomes one big ole mess of fabric and I can't find a thing, much less have space to work on.

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