Sunday, November 20, 2016

Feeling a Bit Edgy


I've been saving selvages for a few years and I've never done anything with them because I wasn't sure exactly what I wanted to do with them. 

If I save things and never use them then I feel like a hoarder especially when the boxes all start piling up around me.  Two boxes of selvages fell over on me when I was hunting for something else in the sewing room so I figured it was time to empty the boxes. 

I also came across a little pile of some sewing themed fabrics - also never figured out what to do with them.     So I cut the sewing themed fabrics into 4.5 inch squares to use for the center of some selvage log cabins. 


Light and dark selvages.  It takes a lot to make a 12 inch block especially since I hardly left any fabric on most of the selvages when I cut them off.  I only made four to see if I liked them. I do. So I see a big selvage quilt in my future. 

Anything goes...civil war meets 30s meets novelties and florals. 
There's a certain satisfaction that comes with using every little bit, wasting nothing, and making something useful. 
Waste not, want not. 
The really little itty bits of fabric go into my mulch and/or compost piles. 

Linking to other scrappy places: 

14 comments:

LIttle Penguin Quilts said...

That looks like fun! I really admire how you use all those bits and pieces. Selvages are something I haven't started saving yet, although I love seeing what people do with them!

Cynthia Brunz Designs said...

I love it when fabric leaps off the shelf and says "Pick me!" That is usually how most of my projects get started. This one is going to be fun. Thanks for sharing with Oh Scrap!

gayle said...

Selvages are the only bits I actually throw away. (well, use for stuffing in things that can be lumpish, anyway. Or donate to the birds for nesting material) I only trim the very barest minimum off the edges of my fabric, so my selvages are literally too small to use...
So I'm going to be watching your selvage work with great curiosity, because it's so far out of my orbit! 8)

Quilting Babcia said...

Fun blocks. I've taken to using selvages to tie up our garden tomatoes. They're strong and work great for that purpose.

Vic in NH said...

Great idea! But those two boxes were out to get you, weren't they? Best not to ignore them, LOL! Log cabins are a marvelous way to use these!

Dasha said...

Those blocks look such fun! Very impressed with what you've done. I am always too mean to leave any fabric on the selvedge, so the time I tried using them, they were so thin the seams were about 1/8 - 1/4 inch apart. LOL. So I threw the towel in and gave up.

Ellen said...

I just love your creativity!!!

Quiltdivajulie said...

I used lots of selvages for a while - now they are used as ties for gift wrap, ties to bundle things, and ties for whatever else needs to be tied together. I started out trimming them very narrow but learned to leave 1/2" or so of fabric to make future stitching a tad easier. Like the way you are using your boxes of selvage strings!

Cathy said...

I love it that we'll both be doing selvage projects over the next year. I decided to start with my rainbow selvage project because I won't need long strips. And like you, I didn't always save much of the actual fabric with them. But live and learn! I love log cabins, so it will be particularly fun to watch your quilt develop!! xo

Ann said...

I like the log cabin design for selvedges. Mine was similar. But how do you feel about quilting on top of the threads already there? This is what has stumped me about finishing mine.
Anyway. It did use up the selvedges and I quit saving them... although, like you, I want to use every scrap.
Congratulations on a better outcome.

Janie said...

A little edgy indeed. Super idea, good for you!

Ann said...

I was hoping you'd add this top to our linkup, Cathy. Such a great way to use every smidge of fabric!

Kaja said...

I tend to just use the selvedges in my quilts as I go along, but this is so great I might start cutting them off and saving them.

Stephie said...

This is great Cathy! Really good fun. I'm like you, I can't stand having stuff hanging around for years, I'd rather move it on out and have space for something I'm actually going to use. Great idea for the compost - and a timely reminder for me. I have a very small garden and was wondering whether I'd accumulate enough stuff for a compost bin - I hadn't thought of fabric. That should fill it up pdq!!!