twiglet wrote: Perhaps you had better have a rule 'I will only impulse buy fabric if it is a dark/very dark or light hue for the rest of the year', that should fix your variety of hues problem - if it is a problem

or music or animal or....................

I take fabrics from my 'collection' but I've never got all the fabrics I need. I think because I impulse buy I end up with midtone fabrics. It's good advice on this thread to consider the value of fabric when stash building.

Word or number type fabric makes good covers for iPod, IPad, tablets, Kobo etc. I've made on and it's so cute!

I just went and looked, estimated about 250 fat quarters? Plus the yardage of course which is much more.

However, to put this in perspective for myself: My friend went over to the home of a woman in our guild, who has a ROOM full of fabric. this is not her sewing room, this is where she puts her fabric. There was almost no room to walk in the room. So I feel better about my stash, that fills up one bookcase plus another smaller shelf unit.

I'm glad I have that stash, too! The borders and backing for my pineapple quilt came from stash, and also for another top I just finished. They were the perfect fabrics!

I am a bit overwhelmed by all my fabric, have vowed to work out of my stash unless I "need" something. Like a backing for a big quilt that I am finishing up now.

Kathy

Margo wrote:
I'm drowning in my palette! But what a way to go!!!

Debbie, Maybe we should learn from you. Sometimes too many choices support the tendency to procrastinate. Although I must admit, given the opportunity I do love having a bit of a stash to rely on to add some unexpected spark here and there. Like Margo said, it's my palette.

dfrank27 wrote:
I really do only have five fat quarters in my stash! At times I have had more but usually only buy fabric when I need it for a project--I am not sure why as I love fabric but my stash really is just leftover bits and pieces from completed projects. I really love word fabric so I have three pieces of that which I have bought with absolutely no purpose or project in mind! I am learning.

Margo wrote:

Yes, exactly! I agree wholeheartedly!
And that's my story & I'm sticking with it & if anybody has a problem with my palette, well...

Thanks, Margo! Good to "see" ya!

Our fabrics are our palette. A painter can get by with just a few tubes of paint, and mix the color she wants.
We can't do that, so we need to expand our palettes with an assortment of colors and values.

he he that's going on my signature

i went to a vacation few weeks ago, it was to the north netherlands, there is the biggest quilt shop in the netherlands. i didnt buy too much fabric lately, so i found my self that i bought 3- 4 meters/yards, of each background fabrics, then i bought 2 meters from each color that i like (not all the colors that i like...i couldnt efford it, didnt find my rich prince charming that will sponsor it yet), then bought few fat quarters - i call them inspirations patches (i like very much their colors combination, and use them as a guide for quilt colors).
it is a universe rule - you can never ever have too much fabric!

i look at it this way...
we need to invest our earnings for a rainy day - living in central switzerland i won't get very far investing in realestate where a 3 bedroom apartment will start at about $750'000 to purchase) - so i decided to invest in fabric - i might not be able to eat or live anywhere once i retire - but i'll be able to sew and have lots of yummy quilts to wrap myself in as i huddle under my favorite tree near the lakefront in zug

Oh Roseanne that is why we have fat quarters they are so collectable and you can buy a few at a time (many times over) without breaking the bank.

I have a confession, I've never bought yards of fabric for a quilt.

A couple of times, a couple of yards for the back but usually I piece the back from fabrics I'm not keen on or fabric I adore and can't bear to cut so can still see it whole. How contradictory is that