Michelle, ma belle... tres bien ensemble
  • Home
  • Knitting Patterns
  • Contact Me
  • About Me
  • Project Archive
Michelle ma belle, sont des mots qui vont très bien ensemble,

Tres bien ensemble

Organization Pt. 2: Sewing Patterns

3/14/2013

8 Comments

 
Picture
It's no secret that I have a major-league addiction to sewing patterns, primarily vintage sewing patterns. Last month, I set-up a Pinterest account and started boards to keep track of my personal collection. While my initial momentum on the process has somewhat fizzled (on the list of things to finish) it has already proven to be a really great resource. It's incredibly convenient to have an online database to reference during the planning phases of a project;  I can very easily cruise my boards to choose a pattern. Also, when I come across a MUST HAVE pattern, I can quickly cross-reference with Pinterest to make sure I don't have the same or a similar pattern at home. It's a marvelous organizational tool. 
Picture
Then there's the matter of the actual patterns. Because a lot of the patterns I have are vintage, preservation is important to me. My patterns span from the early 1930's to present date. Many have lead rough lives. Envelop wear is among the most common condition issues I have encountered.  It's paper- It tears. It creases. It cracks. It crumbles. It's pretty fragile; increasingly so with age. To minimize the amount of handling and additional wear to my pattern envelops, I took a page from the book of my comic collecting friends and started storing them in protective sleeves.  
Picture
I began by dividing each pattern into two components: 1. The Envelope & 2. The Pattern Pieces/Instructions. The envelope gets placed into a vinyl sheet protector (use the code 5OFF to save $5) and the pattern pieces/instructions get placed into a 6x9 clasp envelope. Using a sharpie, I marked the upper right hand corner with the maker's name and pattern number. Then, I put the sheet protectors containing the envelopes into mini binders, and I put the envelopes containing the pieces and instructions into my Simplicity pattern cabinet in alphabetical/numerical order.  
Picture
I've linked to each of the places I purchased my materials above. The standard Avery sheet protectors sold at Staples and Office Max weren't wide enough to house many of the pattern envelops, especially McCall envelops. I won't discourage you if that's what you have available, but I've found the MyBindings  sheet protectors are considerably more substantial in weight and thickness, and the variety of sizes they offer is comprehensive. The pattern cabinet isn't as easy to point a person in the direction of. I've read that you can get them directly from stores that are relocating or going out of business; I got mine off Craigslist; I think a standard filing cabinet might work comparably. 
Picture
Admittedly, the cost associated with this method of organization can add-up pretty quickly (especially when I continue to buy more patterns...like this and this). I consider it a worthwhile expenditure. I think it's really amazing that some of these patterns have survived nearly a hundred years, lived through a World War, seen the first man on the moon, and traveled the expanse of the internet before landing in my hands. I want to see them last another 100+ years. 

Also, while I tend to spend toward the low end of the spectrum in terms of the market for vintage patterns, I've seen some of the patterns I have in my possession selling on Ebay, Etsy and other vintage pattern websites for MUCH more than I paid. Definitely a solid reason to keep them in good condition. 
Picture
I've chosen to put each envelope in its own sleeve, so I can see both sides without fiddling with it.  
As I write this, I'm not finished with this aspect of organization. I'm at a standstill for the time-being while I wait for more sheet protectors. Regardless, this element is going to be an ongoing process. Hopefully, once I get caught-up with myself, things will happen much more organically- at least, that's the plan.
Picture
I am struggling with one last facet of this organizational project. My Pinterest boards are categorized by manufacturer. My pattern pieces and instructions are, as mentioned, in alphabetical/numerical order. How should I go about ordering the pages in my binders? Some ideas I've tossed around are: Manufacturer, Garment Type and Decade. I'm not decided on any particular method yet and would love to hear you weigh-in. What works for you?
More Craft Room Organization:
Lace Trim Organization
8 Comments
PendleStitches link
3/14/2013 02:35:10 am

I am in love with this pattern storage solution....it's very elegant. I'd be interested to see how you manage magazine patterns and PDFs.
I've just started building a database in Evernote...which is super useful as you can set up tags and its then searchable.

Reply
Pumpkin link
3/14/2013 07:10:15 am

Oh I love this organization solution! Mostly I love the photo of the perfect little yellow envelopes lined up and organized, it makes me deeply happy to see. I'm also interested in hearing what you do with PDFs because I've been struggling with organizing them in a useful way. I cannot wait for your next installment!

Reply
Nat @ Made in Home link
3/14/2013 06:07:05 pm

I love how you used Pinterest! So clever. I am going through my boards and try to make sense of them, sop I can actually use Pinterest. Love how you keeps your vintage patterns. I have a few that I need to really look after!

Reply
BellaKarma link
3/14/2013 10:45:39 pm

Wow! Echoing what everyone else is saying: I absolutely love this way of organizing patterns! It may have even inspired me to start collecting them again!

Reply
Chris
3/15/2013 01:46:54 am

I am OCD about my knitting, but nothing to this magnitude. LOL! My pattern org is not very good. Just binders full of patterns separated by item, like sweaters, baby, shawls, etc. But within the binders nothing but chaos! I do have a spread sheet for the yarn stash, but no idea what patterns I have on hand. Must consider that aspect.

Reply
Draped in Cloudlets link
3/18/2013 07:27:48 am

This looks amazing, especially the drawer with the numbered envelopes!

Reply
dixie link
4/5/2013 01:59:30 pm

So organized! I use the same envelops for my home-printed patterns but I hadn't though about using them for vintage patterns. I like the binder idea. Maybe you could organize the binders by Manufacturer then number and keep an index sheet for reference based on garment type?

Reply
lsaspacey link
12/9/2015 08:26:00 pm

I set up my patterns in Flickr much like you did by company in Pinterest. When possible, I added the pattern description and date to the caption section. However, my PDF patterns are in a Pinterest grouping like yours.

I would suggest organizing somehow by item (skirt, pants, suits, etc.) because a lot of time I think, ooh I need a skirt and it would be easier than searching through ALL of my patterns (just over 100) and just searching the skirt patterns.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    “The
    follow us in feedly
    “Vintage

    Archives

    March 2017
    February 2017
    November 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Home
  • Knitting Patterns
  • Contact Me
  • About Me
  • Project Archive