Need selvages

It all started when a customer asked me if I wanted her bag of cut off selvages to use in my string quilts.  I should have said no because I have a ton of stuff already.  But, of course, I said yes because I can’t resist something that’s going to be thrown away.  I love finding uses for throw away items.  Especially fabric stuff.  I also have a love of making string quilts.

 

Many people would see just a bunch of scrap ready for the trash can.  I see quilts and pillows and curtains and lots of other things in this bag.  There might even be a rug or two in there.  Oh my!  A scrap crafter’s heaven.

Now I’m hooked more than ever.  I want more selvages. (as if I need more stuff to tempt me)  In my eyes these scraps are much more interesting than full bolts of fabrics.  Umm…. it’s so hard to describe but I’ll try.  Every piece in that bag was originally part of a bolt.  It’s like having one piece from  hundreds of bolts of fabric.  Almost as if I had gone into a store to request a small strip from *all* their  fabrics because I couldn’t decide on just one or two fabrics by the yard.  I hope that’s understandable.   Can you tell I’m excited by this person’s scraps?  I’ve had to keep them out of my sight to keep me from being tempted to play.  Every time I happen to see the selvages I want to sit and start putting them together in interesting ways.  Yes, I have started putting a bunch if them together already.  Then I realize I have quilts to finish and no time for playing so I keep them hidden from myself as much as possible.  Out of sight helps me resist the urge to play when I know there is work to do.

So this brings me to my request.  What do you do with the fabric selvages when you cut them off?  Save them for string quilts?  Throw them away?  If you have any selvage scrap and don’t plan to use them, may I please have them?  I have visions of getting selvages from all over the country but that’s not likely to happen.

As you can see in the photo, I can use any length, any width.  With writing and without.  Every piece will eventually be sewn into something.  If you have any you’d be willing to send me, please email me at estesanita at bellsouth dot net.

 

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