I can barely sew on a button let alone hem a pair of pants.  So what makes me think I can organize a sewing room?  Organizing is about finding a solution to a problem.  Whether you like things in alphabetical order, light to dark or by category it is all a form of being organized.  The same will follow through for a sewing room.   I have seen several sewing machines covered with a pile of material, patterns, and clothes to be mended.  More times than not this is not how sewers like to work.  Most would rather work in a neat, organized sewing room where everything is in its place and you have room to work.

Looking at this from an organizing perspective rather than a sewer, my first question would be, would you look for your patterns alphabetically or by project?  If you use a lot of patterns, you will need a file box with file folders. If you choose to organize by project instead of alphabetically you will have to categorize your patterns.  For example: quilts, dresses, skirts, tops, dolls, pants, curtains and so on.  As you are categorizing your patterns or putting them in alphabetical order make sure they are patterns you intend to sew.  If you do not plan to use that pattern, try trading it with a friend or sell it on www.illooklocal.com or even eBay.

Material is another problem for most sewing rooms. You buy it because you love it, and then it sits. There are a couple of ways to organize material. One way is the filing box or cabinet by color or by fabric types.  For your odds and ends pieces I would keep them together by color then put them into large Ziploc bags.

Buttons, snaps, zippers and ribbons can usually be found in all the corners of a sewing room.  A couple of ideas for snaps and buttons would be tackle box containers, ice cube trays or little jars with lids.  I have seen one person use a tie rack from her husband to hang her ribbons and use safety bins to hang her zippers from another tie rack.  Sometimes using what you have makes the best organized storage unit and on top of that it will save you money!