Someone's Scraps and Remnants

My friend has been cleaning out her mother's house and recently asked me about "some material scraps" that she'd found in the attic. What should she do with them? Would I have any use for them? After all, I am a quilter.

If you're a quilter, too, you prolly have a similar story to share. I said I would take the scraps off my friend's hands, and we agreed that she didn't need to know about anything I couldn't use.

We met for lunch and when I came home, my car trunk was full of boxes and bags; the scraps were sorted by color, each one in a different container.

So little of it is actually usable for a quilter. We are talking, here, fifty years' accumulation of dressmaking scraps. There is lots of polyester, some lace, some boucle, some pique, stretchy knit, heavy linen, heavy unknown, slithery rayons and jerseys, some very flimsy stuff I remember as "whipped cream," and not much cotton at all. I sorted out four piles -- the cotton that I might be able to use in my veterans' lap quilts; some small exotic pieces that my granddaughter might like to play with; the large purchased remnants, 1-5 yard pieces of chiffon, polyester, linen, unknown, that will go to the rummage sale in a few months; and everything else. There was one big piece that I believe will back lap quilt #3. Most of it went into the "rummage sale" and "everything else" piles. You don't need to know, either, about what happens to the "everything else."

My friend's mom was partial to blue and to green, preferred bright colors and textured fabric, and apparently never, not even once, got rid of any left-over fabric, however small. The photo above isn't any of what I've been dealing with this afternoon, but rather an internet image. But you get the idea.


Comments

Vicky said…
Keep an eye out for stuff that a quilter might use for a crazy quilt. I've seen bundles of those that had some pretty neat stuff in it.
Vicky said…
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oh yes happened to me as well...big box of fabric but none of it suitable for quilting, but got donated and no doubt somebody found it useful...was good fabric just not quilty
Quiltdivajulie said…
Has happened here, too ... Each time reinforces my determination to keep less and use what I have before shopping (works most of the time at least)
Linda said…
When my mom died, I was the one to go through the sewing room. She had piles and piles of fabric all bundled up in tight sausage roles. I unrolled a few that looked like there was substantial fabric in them. The outside piece was the only large piece--all the rest were itty bitty scraps that were left over. I hauled the bags around for a number of years as my last link to mom but eventually donated the scraps to a seniors' quilting group. Lurking Linda
Barbara Anne said…
I've been the donor and the recipient of such fabric stashes and loved being both parts of the process. You're so right - folks with different interests will love to use those fabrics you cannot use.

Your kind friend gave you first dibs tho and that's extra fun!! So glad there was a backing fabric among the other fabrics.

Hugs!
Susan said…
Makes me want to go clean out my scraps right now! My children certainly won 't do it!
Denise in PA said…
My hubby brought me home two big boxes of "someone's scraps and remnants" from his yard saleing the other week - he paid $5. It was a nice thought, but I basically had to throw all of it out (I don't have enough room for the good stuff!). Sometimes he does good, but this was not one of those times. (I did wait until he left before putting the boxes on the curb o:) )
LizA. said…
I'll bet some senior centers could probably use a bunch of that mystery stuff. My friend's group at her sr. center makes "critter beds" for the local animal shelters -- all with donated fabrics.