From Meg:

I think most quilters hate throwing out scraps, so we collect drawers full of them.  For me, those scraps include leftover quilt batting.  Since you need to leave a border in your quilt sandwich there are always lots of extra batting pieces left behind when you trim up the final quilt.  I can’t bear to throw them out and I tell myself I’ll make coasters.  Lots of coasters!  But I never do…

A while back, I took an hour to get those scraps organized and it’s made a big difference.  I sorted them roughly by size and then quickly measured them and labeled them.  I mean quickly, too.  I was only looking for an “at least” measurement – I didn’t stop to square them up or get precise.  I threw out any scraps that weren’t at least 4″ wide.

I folded each scrap into whatever way it would best fit into the plastic shoeboxes I already had and then pinned a sticky note with their size on.

I sorted them by width, so I’d be able to go back and grab just what I need for a small quilting project.  I’m happy to report that it was worth it!  I am using up those scraps on lots of small projects I was making anyway, like zippy bags and purse straps.  I love that I can open the batting cupboard without it all falling out on me, too!

Thanks, Meg! I think there will be some rag quilts and coasters in my future.  And if your batting pieces are large enough, check out Chef Jodi Nelson's tutorial on joining them together to use in a quilt.