How to Fold Large Pieces of Fabric!

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OnPoint's very first Ask Nancy. We forgot to post it when it was done. Nancy answers a viewer's question how to fold a really large piece of fabric to store in a stash. Hopefully for not too long. Nancy shows how to make manageable fabric bundles for storage.

[ChristineL]

So glad I found your video, super helpful. Thank you.

[djtblizzle]

I found your video years ago, and never had to do it. I just got some fabric given to me, and one of the pieces was like 12 yards, and folded all crazy! Lol! I went and looked, and lo and behold your video popped up first! Thank you so much!

[vbhowe]

Working toward becomming a newbie quilter at 63! I found this video extremely helpful, thank you so much.

[hollywaddell]

Thanks for this demo. I always like Q & A sessions so keep them coming. I am. Growing up as a garment seamstress, I am a pre-washer and to consider not washing goes across my grain (pardon the pun). Anyway, along with that, I'm a stickler for having the fabric grainlines straight and square or "true" (this coming from garment sewing as well). Most fabric gets warped as it is wound onto the bolts. This twists the grain out of true. So I do a "diagonal tug" process after washing and drying, with help from another person, to bring the grainlines back into alignment before folding and putting into storage. Now, most quilters will dismiss this as an OCD issue in my psyche. I am trying to loosen up a bit when it comes to cutting the pieces for patchwork because those elements are so small, being off-grain won't be noticeable once everything is pieced and smashed down with quilting. However, I will stick to my conviction that it DOES matter for the larger pieces of fabric used in borders and backings, especially if the quilting is being done on a DSM. I think the stretching and anchoring necessary to mount the quilt sandwich on a longarm frame may mitigate the warping on those larger pieces of fabric. Here's my bonus ... if I should decide to make a garment with any of my fabric stash I can pull it out of storage knowing that any shrinkage or bleeding dye has been taken care of in the washing and drying AND the grainline is straight and true so the garment will fit and drape properly.

[denisestone]

Love this method! Have been using this method from the first day I saw your video on folding fabric. It’s saved me many headaches. Thank you!

[belindasmith]

I used to but 12 yards at a time for costumes. I wish I hard seen your method sooner. But now I can reroll my stash. Great video.

[carlynholmes]

Your "little" tip is a "great" help. You have a great way of teaching. Thank you from an older new quilter. :-)

[elizabethmullhall]

Thank you so much, Nancy, for this video - really clear instructions: fold, roll, fold, roll, fold, roll, SWEEP, repeat fold and roll LOL 😂 Love your videos and sense of humour....

[alisoneyers]

Another excellent piece of information, thank you Nancy. Regards, Alison

[barbaralevel]

Thanks. I've always sewed clothes and no problem with this. You bought what you needed and cut. Learning to quilt and buying large quantities and trying to cut--pain. This helped a lot.

[anitra]

I use cardboard flaps cut from boxes as bolts. It helps to store my fabric on my shelves.

[rebeccaforbes]

If you are insecure about the "rolling" part, if you use a long, 24" ruler, you can roll around the ruler and all your fabric will be the same size. It stands/stacks really nicely, too.

[maggiemulchahey]

I watched your previous video on how to fold large pieces of fabric and it works and it has been so very useful when dealing with large cuts of background fabric or just large cuts for my stash. Thank you!!

[zonawilson]

Thank you! I've been trying to gain control of my stash, getting my fabric folded/rolled into uniform sizes, and thought I wasn't doing it correctly because there were places where I "swept it under the rug", and now I know that it's a thing! If it's okay for you, Nancy, it's okay for me. Great tutorial.

[terriflanigan]

I love this! Always learning something new and better from you! How do you fold and store your extra wide backing fabric? Thank you Nancy and your hardworking team!

[peggyflowers]

I do it that way, but I use a 10.5" quilting ruler, and slide out the ruler when the folding is finished. My fabric fits nicely in my ClosetMaid Cubeicals.

[jasonrenard]

Thanks for the great and clear tutorial with some helpful tips too! : D

[newbeequilter]

Thanks for that tip; yes, I've gotten the "bubble" before and thought I should start all over again - what a pain. So I'll remember your advice here the next time this happens.

[ez]

oh thank you! I tend to do.... 'start folding it nice whilst holding it up, panic because it's way too much fabric and proceed to just roll my hands over and over until a massive ball forms' this makes it tidy and gives the perfect cutting edge next time you want to use it. Thank you !!!!

[GiveNget]

<3 how many times have i re-rolled, to no avail; thank you Nancy!