Hope2quilt

I never find a thing! I can find yarn! Tubs and tubs of yarn!

debp33

I don't ever find much. I imagine if I went every day or two I'd increase my chances, though.

Fabric Galore

I don't look for fabric at my local thrift stores; I look at women's dresses that are made out of cotton. I bought a 2X muu-muu for $.75 that was just the color I needed for my sampler/log cabin quilt. It is on my bed now and I love the fabric. Full skirts also offer quite a bit of fabric and they sell for $.75 - $1.00 each and usually have 2 yds of fabric. I also use the buttons and zippers for sewing for my family. My local LQS is expensive on her fabric; they have close-outs and sometimes I find fabric for $4-$5 per yard. I do better buying new fabric on line.

kso

I also read the yard sale ads that appear once a week in my local paper to see what people are selling. I have found fabric that way.

Recently I found a local auctioneer's website and follow her auction listings. Last SAT she held a living estate auction and my friend and I hauled home a pick up load of fabric and notions from that auction.

Hen3rietta

I don't find decent fabric at my local thrifts either. If there is any, it's usually polyester blends. Fine for clothing but not IMHO for quilts. But needle arts are not a part of most people's lives where I live so I'm not surprised.

GrannieAnnie

Any pictures of your haul?

ohiobuckeye

A couple of weeks ago, after shopping at 3 LQS, I stopped at a thrift store just outside Holmes County, OH, where there is the largest Amish settlement in Ohio. I found a complete mystery quilt top cut out and partially sewn together. It came with the backing, pattern, and all neatly organized pieces. It was $15. I also found a fall panel for $0.25. I've never found fabric at goodwill and only once or twice at the local hospice shop. I'll have to add this thrift store to my travels. I wonder if it's because the amish live nearby and more folks quilt that I found it there? BTW, there were a few amish in the store shopping, too.

SherriB

I seldom find fabric at our Goodwills or Salvation Army. I think it is snatched up the minute it comes into the store. When Hancock Fabric's were closing their stores, I asked why we were lucky and got to keep ours. I was told our store and the one in Johnson City are some of the highest grossing stores for them. So I am assuming we have a huge amount of sewers/quilters who are always looking for fabric at the thrift stores also.

emmah

I'll bet a lot of bigger thrift shops just "rag" fabric pieces, that is , toss it in the bins where they put damaged clothes (then are sold to manufacturers or third world countries). I wonder if talking to the manager of your local shop about the desire for fabric scraps and asking them to set them aside for you to purchase would work. I think I will try that here. I have been amazed at what they toss and what they keep. I once saw the local shop filling a dump truck with items that had been left outside the shop when it was closed. Some of them had gotten wet..but they even tossed in plastic items and skiis!

PaperPrincess

Lots of Salvations Army stores in the Detroit area, but I've never seen any yardage or fabric at any of them. A couple of times I've seen a small amount of craft stuff, but very little.