Recharge your creativity (and keep it greener) with a clutter busting craft supply destash and reorganisation. Reduce waste, save money, and have more creative fun. Whoot whoot! Here are tips to help sort your craft stash, pare it down, and keep it under control for the future.

Clean-Up and Craft Destash
It’s springtime here in New Zealand. Prime time for spring cleaning, including in the craft room. For our northern readers, early autumn is also a great time to refresh and reorganise after the chaos of summer and school break before the busy holidays ahead. But really, any time is a good time to get organised. Enough with the procrastination (yes, me too). Let’s do it.
Doing a Major Craft Supply Destash
Plan and Prepare for Sorting Supplies
Sort Through What You Have
Planning Future Creative Projects
Purging the Broken and Useless
Get Rid of the “Good Stuff” You’ll Probably Never Use
- Cashing In – If you have equipment that is in good condition, unopened supplies, or a large volume of quality materials, it may be worth your time and effort to sell them online or in a garage sale. You can use the spoils for upgrades or more (useful!) craft materials when next needed.
- Plan a Destash Swap – Have lots of leftover or part-used supplies that are too good for the bin, not suitable for sale, but you’re unlikely to use? Plan a destash swap with crafty friends. Trade your excess for useful supplies.
- Give it to a Friend – Can’t be bothered with a swap, but have something you think a friend might enjoy? Craft it forward. Offer it to them as a little random act of crafty kindness.
- Support Local Groups and Charities – Children’s groups, seniors’ activity groups, church or community centres, schools, charities, etc. are often interested in good tools and craft materials. Check and see if anyone in your area is collecting donations for use (or donations for fundraisers).
- Children’s Craft Day – Plan a craft day with your kids or a group of friends or family. Use up some of your stash creating fun crafts together.

Reorganising Your Destashed Craft Supplies
Reorganise Your Keeper Craft Supplies
Establish Scrap Ground Rules
Resist the Urge to Buy Buy Buy
Keeping the Clutter from Returning


Making Fabric Stash Busting Quick and Convenient
I often like to create on a whim, which is a great match for using on-hand supplies but stash busting fabric is annoyingly inconvenient unless the fabric is already prepped and ready for use. In an effort to make it more convenient to craft with stash fabric, I decided to sort, bulk prep, and adjust how store my fabrics so that I can just grab and go for quick crafting when the mood strikes.
This fits in perfectly with my efforts to use the supplies I already have (read more about sustainable home sewing and textile waste) unless I need something specific for a planned project. The tips below are so easy, but have totally changed the ease of crafting for me. Yay!
Confession: I have amassed an embarrassingly large stash of fabrics over the years. Some leftover from completed projects, some purchased (or salvaged) for intended projects not yet started, and others purchased without a specific plan. It’s so hard to resist a cute print or clearance bargain! Sigh…

Pre-Sorting Craft Stash Fabrics
Pre-Preparing Fabric for Future Sewing Projects
Washing and Drying

Ironing
Reorganising Prepared Fabric for Storage and Easy Use

Prepped, Sorted, Ready, and Waiting!
