10 Creative Ways to Hide Your Fabric Stash

Its impossible for me to pass up a good buy at my drapery wholesalers, so yet another 56 yards of designer fabric has to be inventoried and stashed before Dear Husband gets home tonight.  I’m planning to  launch a full line of DIY designer pillows and throws kits very soon. But the problem is…  I’ve actually stockpiled enough fabric to slipcover the Vancouver International Airport.

My dear husband thinks I have an obsessive compulsive addiction to fabric and has threatened to call Dr. Phil or The Hoarders if I cart any more untagged material  through the front door (client fabrics are marked with a tag). Fine, fine fine.

So, when I back my truck  in the garage, closest to the back door of my upholstery workshop and off load (by hand, not with the cart) into the tool room, I am technically not in breach of the front-door-threshold rule. Right?

I recently did a floor space, density analysis in the house and discovered all kinds of untapped opportunities…. good for at least another 250-300 yards. Here’s my top 10…

1. Redecorate the couch with a long heavy fringe around the bottom… good for about 50 yards underneath it.
2. Remember those old Hawaiian shirts Dear Husband won’t wear but won’t get rid of either? Fold fabric over  the width of the hanger and button the shirt back on  over it.
3. Elevate the guestroom bed  another 10 inches with those plastic blocks under the legs. (Walmart – $9.95 for a set).
4. There’s at least 4 inches of dead airspace behind each row of books in the bookshelf. There’s room for about 40 pillow panels on each shelf.
5. Our 10 ft dining room table  gets used only twice a year so it can easily handle 10 layers of fabric under the linen tablecloth. Add a runner, centerpiece  and a few place settings.
6. Guest room ensuite bathtub. Pull the shower curtain closed all the way!
7. Use  vacuum seal space CUBE bags (Amazon or TV shopping channel). They store up to 4x more comforters, pillows and blankets. Sucking up all the winter bedding will give you a 75% increase of closet space for your vacuum packed fabric. Perfect!
8. Stashing stuff under the bed is too obvious but 50 or 60 yards is easily layered between the box spring and the mattress (and how many beds are in your house?) When DH wonders if the bed feels higher you say “of course dear, I turned the mattress end for end so it wears more evenly”.
9. Put spring loaded “self closing” hinges on your sewing room door so that it always stays shut!
10. Cut it up! Fabric that is cut into pillow or throw panels is much more difficult to identify as NEW and besides it takes a lot less space when you take it off the roll.

I’m so excited about some of the really fabulous fabric I have coming on line in my pillows and throws and the DIY Kits… a lot of it is from my favourite place, Maxwell Fabrics.  Make sure you sign up for my RSS feed so I can keep you posted when I start blasting  this fabric out … giveaways too!

Just in case I run out of room at my house for more fabric, I am really counting on you leaving some suggestions in the comments on where you stash yours!

PS …My next article will be about proper storage of your “legitimate” material.

PSS .. I’m the luckiest girl in the world… my Dear Husband is an incredible sweetheart.

Related posts:

1. 4 Ways to Embellish Pillows with Buttons
2. Girls Fun Novelty Pillow – Me and My Sisters

Tagged as: Custom Drapery, decorative pillow, Fabrics, Humor