On Thursday, I asked how you organize your quilting books…..
And, MAN….did you guys come through!!
Most said that they organized by category….. Scrap, Quilting, Art, Technique, etc.
One quilter said that she organizes them by the steps of quilting….. Piecing first, then quilting and finally embellishing!!
Anne suggested taking it one step further and organizing in alphabetical order WITHIN the categories.
Merryl noted that she is buying less books and is very selective as to what she buys. She said….”Most things are now on YouTube or online so I don’t need a book to learn a new technique”
……Yes Merryl…..I DO love a good YouTube Video!!
Many readers indicated that they had greatly reduced the number of books that they own.
Cindy said…. “I don’t keep any quilting books unless there is a pattern or two in there that I know I will use. Most of my patterns are stored digitally and take no space. I got rid of a lot of magazines by taking a picture of the one pattern I might want to make in the future and then donating it.”
In the past, I have torn patterns out of magazines and then scanned the removed pages, but that destroys the magazine….maybe a good photo is better!!
One reader suggested using a piece of brightly color cardboard to mark the space when I pull a book out.
I LIKE that idea!!
The bottom line here is that it is time for me to do some clearing out!!
I need to go through each book and decide if I REALLY want to keep it. At the same time, I want to concentrate on what categories I will use….I may even put notes on the shelves to indicate the category.
Of course, I will always keep the books that belonged to my Mom…..
…even if I NEVER make a quilt from them!!
BUT…..unfortunately this is a project for a future time.
Maybe this summer!!
So for now, my chicken friends will hold court over my books….
….and I will be happy with what I have!!!
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I’ve got Great American Quilts from 1990 and 1991! I was tickled to see some in your mom’s collection.
I actually have mine mostly alphabetized by title. I also have the skinny booklets shelved together, and the oversized ones too. When I go looking for a book, I either already know what the name of it is, or I’m in the mood to browse.
I so loved those books when I first started quilting. Every time we would go back to Texas, I grabbed them and started dreaming!! I am leaning toward alphabetized within the category!!
I agree with what Cindy is doing. I have torn out patterns I may use- discard balance of magazine and sometimes the balance of a book if not worth passing on.
I did that 3 years ago but it is time to do it again!! Bottom line….i need to spend some quality time with my library this summer!!
The library at guild is by category and abc. It worked great. I wish more people used it. But i dont because i have my own.
That is what I am leaning toward Jodie!!
I have a few of your mother’s books on my shelf as well. In fact, Jessie MacDonald, (“More Patchwork Quilts”) was my first quilting instructor back in 1980(?) in Haddonfield, NJ. She had a quilt shop in town. A sweet lady!