Sorting through Bins

Bins, bins, and bins.  Light bins and heavy bins.  Bins with tight-fitting lids and ones with broken lids.  Bins of all sizes and colors.  More bins than I ever thought I'd have . . . and those bins were all full!

Or at least they were.  

For several months I have been going through my collection of bins in which I have stored fabric.  There is absolutely no way I can use all the fabric I have purchased.  So why buy it?  Fabric makers keep creating more fabric with which to entice us (by "we "and "us", I mean quilters in general who are like me and are stash owners), and we are weak.  We fall in love with the colors , the patterns, and the hand (the feel) of the fabrics so - we buy.

We have the best of intentions.  Our plans (and dreams) consist of gorgeous quilts for our beds, the beds of our loved ones and our friends, or quilts to donate to worthy causes.  We plan smaller quilts with which to decorate our walls, tables, and other furniture.  The quilts we choose to make may be reproductions and look like something from decades ago, contemporary or modern quilts that are clearly channeling whatever is the current style, or they may "art quilts" that are meant simply to be beautiful, soothing, or provocative like any art.

So we plan and dream and buy . . . until the day we realize we have too darn much.  We may ignore it as I did for many months.  Then somewhere along the line I had to accept the truth, and I had to face the bins.

So far, I think I have winnowed maybe 25-33% of my stash.  I have been sewing my through some unfinished projects and new projects made only with fabrics in my stash.  I have tried with some success to limit my purchases of more fabric unless it is necessary to complete a project.

And the bins?  Well, now what will I do with all those bins?  Shouldn't they be filled?  Poor little empty bins . . .