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As I'm working on my "scrappy geese" quilt, using the block patterns from the "Geese in the Forest" BOM and pondering over starting a scrap challenge, I'm wondering what qualifies as a scrap.
I have a lot of white "scraps", but many of them are rather large. When are they scraps and when are they not?
I need your help!
When is a scrap a scrap?
Monday, February 16, 2009
The definition of a scrap
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To me a scrap is anything less than a fat quarter.
ReplyDeletegreat question. i'm always pondering that myself. if i really like the scrap, i keep it in my stash, so that it doesn't get lost in the scrapbox. if it is smaller than 1/8th than it goes in my scraps. if i don't like it, it goes in my scraps even if it's larger than an 1/8th. generally. rules subject to change based on day and mood. : )
ReplyDeletelove those red geese!
My stash isn't nearly as big as everyone else's, so my definition is much different. I think if I've used it at least once in another project, it's eligible to be used in a "scrap" quilt.
ReplyDeleteI do like Yvette's definition though, I may put that into practice.
Anything less than a fat quarter is a scrap for me. ;o) ooxx`jod
ReplyDeleteOh see I'm always making "scrappy" quilts. I don't call them that, but they have small amounts lots of different fabrics in 'em. So to me, a scrap is SMALL. But you're right, solids are a different story. Then a scrap is bigger!
ReplyDeleteI save cutting scraps that are so tiny others would trash them. If it's larger than 5" square, I put it in a different spot. To me, a scrap is something leftover from it's intended project that can be used for anything else I dream up.
ReplyDeleteScraps are anything bigger than 1 inch square and smaller than 12 inch strip. If it is bigger than that it stays in the stash. Could be good for paper piecing, an improv piece, or an art project.
ReplyDeleteMost of my quilts would qualify as "scrap", like Alissa, because I can use a dozen or more fabrics in one quilt. An orange part of a block could take 10 different oranges.
I've been trying to figure this out too. I like the rule of "less than a fat quarter", but I probably need a different spot for these away from the tiny scraps I have. Currently I have most of my scraps in clear empty pretzel barrels. They're big AND I can see what's in there, works perfect!
ReplyDeleteThis almost seems like a philosophical question! For me, I mostly think of scraps as anything less than 1/8 yard. But I change my mind a lot. :P
ReplyDeleteYour scrappy geese are looking mighty fine. :)
I have been thinking about this too recently. A scrap to me is something that is too small to be used as a main fabric in a project. So I guess less than a fat quarter. My question is - when does a scrap become too small to be a scrap! At what point do you throw away those teeny tiny pieces.
ReplyDeleteI think less than a fat quarter is a good guage. I'm terrible. I save everything. You never know when you'll need a tiny square!
ReplyDeleteI agree with most of the others, anything less than a fat quarter can qualify as a scrap ("qualify?" sounds so serious!). And to answer Natasha, at the risk of sounding completely insane, you can use the teeny tiniest pieces as softie or pincushion stuffing! I know, I know, I'm certifiable!
ReplyDeleteMy definition of a scrap is a 2 inch strip or smaller. I store these in shoe boxes for all my little scrap projects.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a scrap can be anything you want it to be. It's your quilt - use whatever you want. Technically, isn't any fabric you bought without a project in mind scrap? Is scrap a size or an intention? I only buy FQ generally and will only buy yardage when it's cheap and with backings in mind. I like quilts with lots of different fabrics.
ReplyDeleteLove the flying geese BTW.
Yep everything is a scrap .... I only keep things that are 2inches and over. he he
ReplyDeleteTo me, a scrap is something you have a limited amount of left. It may be small, it may be "big", but you certainly don't have much of it to do anything significant with, without pairing it up with other orphans or scraps. I am not so sure that makes sense? Hmmmmm.....
ReplyDeleteWow Anina -- that's a great question. I'm definitely not from the anything less than a fat quarter is a scrap. It has to be pretty darn small to be a scrap for me -- maybe smaller than 4 x 4 or 6 x 6 for example??? Generally, if I can fold it, it goes into a fabric pile rather than a scrap bin (I know you can fold little scraps, but...)
ReplyDeleteHmmm... I'm stuck. Are we talking scrap as in what size makes a scrap or as in when to toss it, it's a scrap (heaven forbid...useless)? I'm not sure how to define a scrap because I keep pretty much every bit of fabric. I have separate storage for the various sizes of fabric - from yardages and fat quarters on down to strips and pieces (down to the 1" size). Scrap insanity, but they make the most interesting projects.
ReplyDeleteI really like Jackie's definition, and that's how I work too. Usually i buy for a specific project: If I've used up most of it, and don't have enough left over to make a "controlled" (ie non-scrap) quilt top without buying more fabric, I put it in the scrap pile. Because I dabble in lots of styles of fabrics and colors, left overs often won't "go" with what I've got left (don't have a huge stash), and I don't want to buy more fabric simply to use up what I've got so tey go into scrap piles. Having said that, I plan quilts/fabric purchases very carefully to avoid overabundance of scraps. And I do separate scraps between "large pieces" --bigger than 4-5" square say, and small scraps (strips, small pices). Small scraps go into a plastic shoe box. Larger scraps stay in a pile in a box to go together in scrap quilts.
ReplyDeleteI think of a scrap as being smaller but yet I have bigger scraps in my bin. I think it's because I don't like them that much and don't feel like folding them back up and putting them in my drawer!:) I love your work. I've heard about you from amandajean for a long time and now I found you because I finally started blogging. You are fun to follow!! Have a great day Heather
ReplyDeleteA scrap for me is a few things. First off if it can be folded, it goes with my regular fabric, so I have a bunch of 7” strips that I got free from a yard sale and those are folded with my regular fabrics. Most things smaller than that get cut up into 2” squares that get used as leaders and enders as I sew and plopped in a bucket to be used for something later. Anything that cannot be cut into 2” squares (Or anything that can be, but I am too lazy to cut that day) gets put in my scrap bucket. Which is literally a big metal Halloween bucket I got super cheap at an after Halloween sale. When that gets full, I start to work on a scrap quilt. BUT when I make a scrap quilt (pretty much the only kind of quilt I like making), I will supplement my small pieces with larger ones starting with my 7” strips and moving up from there. So making scrap quilts creates even more scraps for me!! So it’s a wonderfully beautiful scrappy circle!!
ReplyDeleteRachel
To me a scrap is anything that can't be folded up nicely and put on your stash shelf and can still see it. Anything smaller than a fat quarter I usually toss in my scrap bin.
ReplyDeletemy definition is alarmingly like sarah's. it depends on how much i like the fabric. :) i guess if you are setting out a scrap challenge, defining what a scrap is is a great idea.
ReplyDeleteTo me a scrap is a piece of fabric less than half a yard that is leftover from another project.
ReplyDeleteThat is such a hard question for us modern quilters. I don't have a hard time at all cutting a "scrap" off of a yard...
ReplyDeleteMy great-grandmother was a quilter & all of her quilts were made from the scraps that were left over after making clothes.
So i guess if you purchased fabrics for a quilt & made the quilt, then the leftovers would be scraps.
In my own life, I have several charm packs & have made my own charms - those definately qualify as scraps for me. :o)
What size scrap is too small to keep?
Late to the party, but thought I'd add my thoughts anyway - I always find that when I see "scrap" quilts on other peoples' blogs that my scraps would be far to small - they really are "scraps" - pieces as small as an inch by 1/2 inch and as large as oddly shaped 8 or 9" x 4" at its widest part would qualify as a "scrap" for me.
ReplyDeleteBut if it were an even 9 x 4" - to me, that's not a "scrap" - that's a viable piece of fabric! ;)
Anyway - I may not have said it before, but also wanted to add how much I enjoy your blog! :)
My own personal definition is once the fabric has been used for it's intended purpose everything left over is a scrap, no matter the size.
ReplyDeleteA weed is just a misplaced plant - so is a scrap. A piece of fabric with no home and no plan. It can be any size really just like flower... very, very small to coving a whole wall! I don't see anything wrong with them at all.
ReplyDelete(Thank you Dr. Seuss for taking over my brain this late at night) X^D
I'm not from the only FQ's bunch either. I can take almost half a FQ and still fold the other half and lay it right back into the pile! I often wondered how others got so many pieces from the scraps? Mine are strips, smaller than 4x4, and anything odd shaped but not over 10". I don't have tons of scrap as a result but I do keep them sorted for certain projects like the spider web string quilt, 1" sq's for mini CW quilts, one for a string applique quilt...stuff like that!
ReplyDeleteI love all of this! Scraps are anything you put in your scrap bin!
ReplyDeleteI am pretty frugal, so I save just about anything bigger than 1x1. In my eyes, my scraps are usually pieces less than about 6x6. Some are strips that are longer, but that's about my general rule. I keep them in gallon-size Ziploc bags by color, so they aren't usually big enough to fold.
ReplyDelete