How do you organize...

[tinkerpuppet]

your yarns, patterns and hooks?

 

I don't have much yet, but hubby bought me a nice canvas magazine rack for Christmas, so I have all my skiens in there, along with a few patterns (freebies from the yarn store, print-offs, a couple books) that are just loose and all my hooks are in a great case that my mom bought me years ago (a full set). But I can see that as I get better at this, and more adventurous (especially in my yarns), I'm going to need a better way to organize things and maybe just use the rack as my wip area.

 

So where do you keep your yarn, patterns and hooks?

[Alosha]

In my search for feline safe (they can open the closet doors) yarn storage, I ended up with several of those plastic storage carts. One of them has a shallow drawer, where I keep my hook case & other accessories that I don't use on a regular basis. My loose patterns are slipped into page protectors then into binders that I (finally) have indexed & cross referenced.

My wips are in a large tote next to my work space & I made a little caddy to hold the my "everyday" hooks, sissors, yarn needles, etc. Hope some of this helps.

:)Alosha

[Hummywinger]

Great question ... I need some help with that also... way to many books and skeins of yarn here ... will be interesting to read how others organize theirs... I have most of my yarn in big plastic bins and some in heavy boxes... hardback crochet and craft books in a bookcase... but ohhh what to do to organize all those Annies Attic crochet magazines!!!

[funkyreporter]

Organize?? ORGANIZE?????? Nobody said I had to organize this stuff??? I thought I was supposed to keep it all piled around my crochet chair! (yes, there is a designated crochet chair that everyone in the house knows not to mess with for fear of bodily harm via a thread crochet hook) ...

 

Okay. The 'fancy yarns' are all separated in freezerbags so I know how much I have of a given color and they all share space in a wicker 'chest' (like a cedar chest type thing) near The Crochet Chair. The wooden hook sets (two of them) I made cloth cases for so they wouldn't get dented or nicked by the metal crochet hooks which are in one of those cute little boxes that seamstresses use to put their needles and such in which as a lift-out tray. In the tray I keep stitch markers, row counters, yarn needles and one of those plastic gauge measuring thingies.

 

In another wooden thing, sorta like a pencil holding cup, I keep the tunisian crochet hooks (longer) and some 'fancy' hooks (dodo's designs type stuff).

 

In a crate-type box I have the books and leaflets (it's a pretty box, open top). In there is a three-ring binder which holds the loose patterns in page protectors. In another magazine wrack thing are more loose patterns.

 

In pretty baskets are the Works In Progress...

 

**** at this point hubby has walked in and is just about rolling on the floor with laughter that I would be writing anything to do with organizing****

 

But I digress. You know those plastic zippered bags that quilts are sold in? Those are good for storing the 'base supply' of yarn - the pound-sized skeins and the 10 skeins of basic black... that sort of stuff. Those go under the bed, behind over-stuffed chairs, top of closets, and are sorted by color family (reds and burgandies in one, blues in another...)

 

My advice: Don't follow my advice. But thanks for asking!

[Alosha]

I have a crochet spot on the sectional sofa, with good lighting & my neuropathy pillow. All human guests know this is MY seat, however, the cats think otherwise I recently have gotten back into thread crochet & was trying to figure out a way to organize my thread. Well, have an unused wood wine storage piece that tall, narrow, & made of open slats. Balls of crochet thread slide in perfectly, there a space for a label, & I can see at a glance what's there. Let's see, 3 balls fit in each space, there are spaces for 44 bottles of wine, hmmm.....

Alosha

[Hummywinger]

lol Paulette

That must be a Calif thing I have my chair here also and it is surrounded with my WIPS lol...

[fairietat2]

I have built-in cupboards in my bedroom, and my yarn is in there as well as my thread, and books. I have a tendency to not put my yarn back where it belongs, so i have a big Rubbermaid box behind my recliner in the living room full of yarn, and more yarn and WIP's piled up on top of it. It drives my DH absolutely crazy! As for all my loose patterns there are organized in plastic sleeves in a 3-ring binder. I try to stay organized but I'm not very good at it.

[Startigerlily]

I just moved last year and things are still spread throughout the house...

 

My aluminum crochet hooks are kept in a zippered crocheted case I made from a pattern on the internet. I modified it so it would hold sizes B-K plus P hooks. I'm thinking of adding a pocket on the front to hold embroidery scissors and tape measure, etc. I also plan to make another of these cases to hold my steel crochet hooks.

 

Right now my yarn is kept in 4 huge plastic totes in the garage and also a few stray skeins in a box here and there in the guest room closet. I have a wrought iron 3-tier market basket for storing leftover balls of yarn...which doesn't haven't any balls of yarn in it yet.

 

Magazines are put in binders. Leaflets are in accordian type file folders. Booklets and the smaller magazines are in an accordian photo storage folder with handle. These are stacked on the floor of my so-called craft room. There's a box of crochet books and leaflets somewhere in the garage that hasn't been unpacked yet. Also in the garage is a brand new bookcase that's supposed to go in the craft room.

 

WIPS that I'm not working on right this minute are in a box in the living room. The completed afghan strips that I'm putting together are in plastic bags near the love seat in the family room. Oh, and the other afghan that needs 4 rounds of edging is on a table in my craft room.

 

I think I better head off to bed so I can start wrangling all my craft things together and get better organized!

[Luvmyrott'nboy]

Organize? Heck I organize and reorganize weekly!

 

I have all my acryclics and wool in one 20 gal. bin, my cottons and cotton blends in another. My bulkys and chenilles are in a big cardboard box and my fancy mettalics and fun furs in a stackable drawer thingy. Also in the drawer thingy are my extra hooks, knitting needles, notions, etc.

 

On my coffee table is a big basket with plastic baggies holding 2 sets of hooks, yarn needles, stitch markers and tape measure, plus whatever projects I am working on. A stack of crochet/knitting books sits next to the basket.

 

Patterns are filed in 4 ring binders separated by item(s).

 

And....all my beading/jewelry stuff are in plastic organizers which sit on top my dog, Cyrus's crate! Cyrus doesn't use the crate anymore, it is a HUGE crate and it is very handy for putting stuff on:)

[tinkerpuppet]

Wow, thanks for all the replies! That's a great idea to use a binder and page protector to put in loose patterns, I'm definatly going to try that

[insurechick]

All my books are in my bookshelf with my binder that has all my loose patterns catagorized. I also have an oversized magagine file that I have pattern booklets, crochet catalogs and crochet magazines in...it has dividers between each section.

 

My excess yarn in in every nook and cranny I can find in my too small house. It's in the trunk at the end of my bed, in the cabinet my TV sits on in my bedroom in my off-season closet, in a bin next to my chair in the living room, scraps are in one of those stackable plastic boxes. It's really ridiculous...I intend to buy some tall book cases to put into a office/crochet project room when we move into a bigger house...but until then the excess yarn is all over.

[Karen C.]

Well, I guess there's all sorts of advice on how to organize stash i.e. yarn, books, leaflets, etc. But coming from a seasoned stash builer, I know that the only way to manage this situation is to get rid of some through charity, sales, or using up some stash. However much room you may have, if you don't do this you will be consumed with trying to organize it and all you will do is move stuff around I'm going through this right now; I must get rid of some stuff in order to remain organized.

[synch]

Sterilite plastic bins are the best or storing anything. I have one designated just for all my crochet junk!

[shella85222]

I found one of the biggest plastic storage containers I could find. It is about the size of a bathtub. Maybe a little bigger. I buy the biggest storage zip lock bags I can find and separate my yarn and thread by color in them. I pack them all standing up so I can see what is in each of them. Then I also have another storage container that I store all my crochet pattern books and magazines in. And guess where all this is? Right by my side of my bed.; I have a big walk in closet but I like having it near me… lol crazy huh…

[Merlot]

I just did some re-organizing the other day. I have a canvas tote that sits on a shelf in my bedroom that has all my booklets, and all my loose patterns that I've printed off or picked up somewhere. Those are organized by type and in seperate folders - afghans, sweaters, scarves, etc. Another shelf has pretty little containers (little glass vases and a little silver container) holding my hooks - sort of looks like a pretty bouquet of hooks in different colors. My yarn is in a rubbermaid-type hamper in the corner of the room. The different types of yarn are sorted into bags. (Plus I have a bunch also in a box in my closet for a current project that wouldn't fit into the hamper.)

 

Edited to add these pictures I just took (clickable!)

[wyldflrs]

My crochet stuff is in a huge plastic tub under my sewing desk. I really should organize my craft room better

[annebear]

Funny you should ask that question because I have a wonderful "crochet happy" day.

 

When I started crocehting I literally carried around my projects in plastic Walmart bags and my hooks and stuff in little zip lock bags. I then graduated to a great black tote bag that my Mother in Law bought for me, a make-up bag sized small tote for scissors, pins, needles and odds and ends and a handmade crochet hook and knitting needle holder that rolls up and ties secure - Love it!

 

That tote bag and all its contents would stay by my bed as I worked on a project - and at first I really stayed with a "one project at a time" philosophy. BUT! That didnt last long at all

 

I then began the great sprawl which meant that I had 2 dresser drawers in one guest bedroom filled with yarn, the bed in the other guest bedroom covered in a bunch of yarn along with various WIPS plus patterns, books, grommets, leather cord, buttons, ribbon and all sorts of odds and ends.

 

This week I decided that since crochet has gotten its hooks into me so firmly I should designate a place in my home for the organization, study and worship of said craft. And so began my crochet/craft closet!

 

In our downstairs we have an extra closet that has two doors that fold open- its pretty roomy and deep for a closet and it is in a part of that house that is quiet and well let. So I went to Lowes to look for a desk and found what is supposed to be a Kitchen work bench but fits in the closet perfectly - It has shelves and drawers and a heavy-duty butcher block top - plus there is room to put a trash can on one side of the bench and a rubbermaid storage shelf on the other. Plus the closet already had a big shelf at the top that is perfect for clear storage tubs for my yarn. The last thing I want to do is find some decorative racks and a big corkboard for displaying patterns an photos. When it is all done I will have to post a picture.

 

Thanks for letting me share my craft closet - hope it gives you some good ideas too!

 

Anne

[Stacey]

I'm supposed to keep this stuff organized?

 

Yarn: in assorted plastic/rubbermaid type containers. Also in grocery sacks and crammed onto shelves and that sort of thing.

 

Thread: mostly in a wicker picnic basket but also suffering from Grocery Sack Overload there

 

Hooks: are actually organized. I have them in a plastic container with a pop-off lid. Everything fits in there expect my Q and S hooks.

 

Patterns: I'm trying to save things on the computer these days and burn a CD every once in a while for backup in case of computer problems. Otherwise, when I do print things out I sort them into a couple of binders by subject. I need more binders--I don't think I can cram one more sheet of paper in there...

 

Current projects: also mostly stored in grocery sacks. Classy, yes?

[Merlot]

Annebear - your new craft area sounds great! I love being able to get organized like that.

[diamond]

How do I keep my crochet supplies organized????

Way #1

Way #2

Way #3

 

This is the spare room in our home which we converted into a spare room/craft/computer room. All the furniture was purchased with storing yarn/patterns/supplies in mind. It's like my very own little store.

[jstwannacrochet]

I keep my yarn in rubbermaid totes in my kitchen, closer to get too. I keep my thread in totes also (have 2 of those filled with thread). I keep my scraps in a zippered bag, that bedspreads come in, also I have a bow container, that I put right next to my recliner that has my hooks in cases in the bow container, with scissors and needles. Keep my books and patterns in a filing cabinet, which is in my bedroom.

[viggie]

We are about to move, so storage is becoming more and more important. The new home-to-be is a bit smaller and the current home needs to look as open and uncluttered as possible for the upcoming sale. I've finally finished getting everything in tupperware and sorted by weight this weekend. I have all the natural fiber and novelty yarns in under the bed storage containers. All the acrylic yarn and some thread are in smaller bins stacked on the top shelf in my closet.

[Somethin'Shady]

Organized? What's organized?

 

I really have to work at that. Right now, everything is pretty much corralled and packed in bins, but when I start one thing, I usually have 2 or 3 other's already in the works and things start to migrate across the floor, into the back seat of my Jeep. I think that happens at night while I sleep.

 

But since I'm trying to be better, I have most of my booklets, patterns and such in 3 ring binders or in desk trays under my desk on the floor, books are lined up neatly and all my hooks, til I can get at the sewing machine to make a new hook keeper, are in one desk drawer - inside one of those plastic Huggie diaper wipe travel containers. Great idea if you are like me and find hooks in the sofa, on the floor or some other place they shouldn't be.

[KCaprioni]

I think the question is more like Do I organize and in response to that uhhhh I try and sometimes I achieve it but then I start working on a project and poof it magically becomes unorganized again.

[tracyleigh]

Organize? What's that????