I think I have finally figured it out. I have been struggling with storage for my sewing patterns since I started sewing, but I think I have finally found a simple and effective solution that I will be able to keep up with in the future.
The gist of it is this:
- Only keep patterns that “spark joy.”
- Put each pattern into a 10 by 13 manilla envelope and label the outside with a photo.
- Store all the patterns together vertically in a single box.
Not too complicated, eh? Now before you yell at me because you think your collection is too large for this method to work allow me to explain my reasoning.
1. Only keep the patterns that “spark joy”.
Yes, I have drank the “KonMari” koolaid and read Marie Kondo’s “The Magical Art of Tidying Up.” It is a kooky little book which has some problematic areas for Christians, but over all her methods are sound, and yes, transformative too. At the root of her system, she has you pull together every item among a type (say “clothes” or “books” or in this case “sewing patterns”) and ask if that item “sparks joy”. Not “do I use it?” or “will I use it someday?” or “have I used it”? but “Does it spark joy?”
I am grateful for the patterns that I have been able to acquire. I have done some amazing projects with them, but sometimes the most delight a pattern has given me was the thrill of buying it and thinking “I could make this for myself”. And do you know what? That is okay. Those patterns, if they no longer give me joy to keep have already done their part in my sewing instruction and I can let them go. I don’t need to hang on to them as mementos of the past, I likely have the object itself to remind me of the project, and I don’t need to hold on to them for the future, because I could easily find another pattern to work with in the future.
Seriously, it is a transformative way of thinking, and once you go through and honestly access every one of your sewing patterns you will find yourself with a wonderful happy collection.
2. Put each pattern into a 10 by 13 manilla envelope and label the outside with a photo.
Once I had my collection narrowed down, I wanted to store it in a way that was simple and uniform. With the large variety of sizes that they come in, I was having trouble storing my patterns in their original envelopes. In the end, I found that a 10 by 13 inch manilla envelope can hold even a large pattern with standard printer paper instruction sheets easily.
Sewing is such a visual process and I wanted to honor that when labeling each envelope. So, I taped a photo of each pattern to the outside of the envelope instead of relying on my rather uninspiring chicken-scratch handwriting. For my commercial patterns, I cut apart the original pattern envelope to label it, and for my PDF patterns, I printed off the cover sheet.
3. Store all the patterns together vertically in a single box.
The trouble with this size of envelopes is that they are larger than standard filing boxes, but I did eventually track down several beautiful storage options at Target. Their “large milk crate” sized storage bins fit these envelopes perfectly.
Keeping all of the patterns together like this, without some complicated filing process, forces me to continually look through my entire collection when hunting for a particular resource. My collection is very concise now, and it isn’t burdensome to look through them all. In fact, every time I flip through these lovely patterns, they are are a source of inspiration. Just as importantly, because I will be continually reviewing my entire collection in this manner in the future, I will also automatically be re-accessing it, and that is truly “magical.”
This method isn’t complicated or particular clever, but I think it will work out well for me.
More resources for those that are curious about the KonMari method.
- The Magical Art of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo (This is an affiliate link. I may receive a kickback if you purchase something after clicking through this link.)
- Book Review (and method overview) at The Modern Mrs. Darcy
- “The KonMari Method: Why It’s Awesome and Why It Could Be Even Better” (A book review from a Catholic mom’s perspective)
- “How To Hack The KonMari Method With A Hosueful of Kids” at Mama Needs Coffee
- “Why I Got Rid of My Wardrobe” at Dallas Moms
Excellent! I have two boxes for patterns, one for “clothing” and one for “kids & non-clothing”. But they are both basically bursting since I have never yet purged a single pattern. Which never occured to me until this post. I love your solution… Thanks for sharing the genius 😉
‘ “KonMari” koolaid’ – that’s funny!!!
Thanks so much for posting this. I have my patterns in a box, but they are not organized. This seems like a great way to get them in order and purged.
Thank you for your post. It gave me the inspiration to finally go through 30 plus years of patterns 🙂
I have a filing cabinet full of cut out pdf patterns and piles and piles of kids patterns. Using a manilla envelope and putting a picture on the front is brilliant. Hopefully I will stop losing that one bitty interface piece I need lol.
I also have a huge filing cabinet in my sewing room, I want to get another one and alleviate the need for the other plastic storage dressers.
Because I’ve signed up for some capsule sewing projects, I’ve actually started to do the pattern-cleaning and organizing process myself. First, it’s crazy to realize how many patterns I actually own. But even crazier to see how many I probably won’t use again, unless for something special, therefore don’t need to keep it around in my stash.
Oh my goodness you all put me to shame, I have mine in a huge file cabinet, Three huge boxes, two plastic storage bins with two drawers each and two small boxes. They are mostly vintage, I love vintage patterns. Once I learned to sew I wanted all the patterns of the clothing I loved to wear but them I realized I had a sewing addiction ( after my husband pointed out to me ) hahhhahah. Each time I get rid of some I replace them with others its such a vicious cycle 🙂 Sewing is awesome and I only wish that I could have learned sooner, it would have saved me so much money. Thanks for the idea.
Hi Jodi
I appreciate this entry so much! I am (alarmingly quickly!) accumulating a nest of patterns and have just recently purchased 4 colourful boxes to store them in. I’ve labelled them “Indie” and the “Big 3”. What this did for me was show me just how many I have (and have not even made up yet so clearly I must slow down all this accumulation!) and what I was excited about making when I bought them in the first place. I imagine everyone will have a unique labelling system but it really does help. It has also given me an idea of just how many patterns I want to keep around and when those boxes are full that’s it because I only had room for 2 large and 2 smaller boxes!
Thank you for this!