We all have them.
Yes, you know you do.
Those projects that you have cut out and left sitting on the ironing board–those unfinished sewing projects–we like to think they will disappear if we just kick them under the bed, but they do not.
They stick around.
For years.
Until you face them…
Yep, even I have unfinished sewing projects. Would you like to know how I store them and get them done?
I actually keep my unfinished sewing projects in a shoebox:
And as you can see in the photo above, I keep them together with the original patterns. Sometimes I keep the name of the doll I was sewing for, with them, so I can remember who those projects were meant for.
But how do I tackle them?
One at a time, of course!
And I take the whole shoe box with me on camping trips and road trips. That way, if I’m bored while traveling or sitting around the campfire during a family trip, I can whip out my box of unfinished projects and make baby steps — sew a little bit here; sew a little bit there.
And if I really hate a project — like maybe the project got part-way finished but I just didn’t like the way it looked — I cut it into something different.
I alter it, to make it into something I’ll be happier with. Something fresh and new.
Once again, it’s time to mention my doll clothes pattern alteration class!
In my Creative Spark class, “How to Alter Doll Clothes Patterns,” you will learn how to make long sleeves shorter, how to make short sleeves longer, and how to lengthen and shorten pants patterns for your doll clothes.
Not only that, but I share my “magic resizing formula” with you.
It shows you how to take a skirt pattern that fits an 8″ doll like this one:
and make it fit a 10″ doll like this one:
And there’s no specific time limit to your courses. You can just take your time and learn at the pace that suits you.
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So cute! Every once in a while I get on a cutting kick, where I cut out lots of planned outfits at a time because I like picking the placement of the fabric and deciding which fabric for which pattern, but don’t necessary want to start sewing yet. So far my favorite way to store little doll outfit cutouts is between the pages of a heavy book. And if I’ve started them but not finished, they upgrade to get their own sandwich baggie in a makeup bag!
Oh that’s clever! The book will keep them pressed flat… Thanks for sharing this idea!
I like both ideas. I usually store unfinished projects in the gallon size freezer bags with the pattern or at least a copy of the pattern front. I have a question about finished product storage. I’m planning on selling dolls clothes on-line; what is the best way to store them and package them for mailing?
When I get ready to sell or send a set of doll clothes — let’s say I’m making a wardrobe to sell together, for example — I keep them together in the box I plan to mail them in. And I’ve found that in the United States, the $8 Priority Mail parcel box is about the right size for Barbie-sized dolls and smaller. But a shoebox works well for these dolls also.
You can ship them in a flat bubble parcel if it’s just one smallish item (say, a pencil skirt dress, for example), but this does leave the item sort of wrinkled upon arrival. That’s why I prefer a shoebox or flat box mailer for shipping and storing. People have complained, when I’ve sold doll clothes online though, that $8 is too much to pay for shipping and handling.
How about other people? Does anyone else have some advice on this?
Thanks for the comment, Carolyn. I may do a blog post on this, since it’s a great question!
Thank you, Chelly.! I’ve been doing some research on mailing box sizes (I also make Cloth Dolls), So more research I’ll be doing. Any other comments would be greatly appreciated.