swatching, storage

Now that my September Swatch Project has ended, the problem to solve is: how do I store them? It’s a problem I need to find an answer to. I’m not thrilled with my current solution for the Anzula swatches.

First some personal background and my swatch storage history. My academic background is in computer science as well as information and archive management. That means I love to find order in data and objects, even if I’m not the tidiest person in my daily life. I also need to keep in mind my feline overlords, both Shadow and Dot love yarn. That means swatches can’t stay out without becoming impromptu cat toys.

Historically I’ve stored swatches for specific projects in my notebooks, either the actual swatch or a photocopy. I have a storage box for the swatches, most with a label tied on.

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From the beginning, the Anzula swatches lived in their own storage box. They recently outgrew it and I gave them a second one. The boxes are stored next to my photography area (which is tucked into the boiler room). Ideal? No. Does it do the minimum? Yes.

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I’d like to make the swatches less… messy and chaotic. Being able to pull them out and reference them without undoing the entire box would make them more useful.

My Ideas for Swatch Storage

It’s crossed my mind to make a swatch sample book, stitching each one onto muslin, and turning it into a reference book.

A simpler option is to make icord loops and tie each bundle together with the yarn info and toss them all into a bigger box. Why not just use leftover yarn ends? I’d like to be intentional about the bundle and making a loop would provide that structure.

I’ve also thought about making a swatch blanket, like Kristin Nicholas did. Perhaps stitching fabric labels onto the reverse.

Your Ideas for swatch storage

Do one of these ideas strike you as a really good one? Do you have suggestions for how I could store these swatches? Please, let me know!

You can read all of my Meet the Yarn posts at anzula.com including my newest one about Katara, a lovely 3-ply DK weight Yak/Merino blend.