Thread: How much fabric do you buy?

At age 69 I am a fairly new quilter and have been lurking on this board for a while. Thank all of you for your helpful hints, suggestions, and ideas that I have learned so far. I have been making Quilts for Kids, table runners, and that sort of thing and know how much fabric to buy when I have a pattern. My question when you see fabric that is "telling you to take it home" but you don't have any specific project in mind, how much do you buy? I would like to make some larger quilts for family members, but if I don't have a pattern I have no idea how much to purchase. Being on a limited income, I can't buy "just because" but would like to build up a stash for future projects. I think I caught the "quilting bug" from this board but hopefully it isn't the 24-hour variety and they aren't working on a cure for it.

Originally Posted by QuiltnNan

i buy 3 yards if it's calling my name.

I do too. I never buy less than a yard anymore, unless it is for a specific project. I have found if I have at least 3 I can use it for borders if I want. and not run out.

My go-to quilt when I need to make one in a hurry is "I Just Can't Cut It."
For a large twin it requires 4 1/2" yards - so if it's a fabric appropriate to the pattern (shows 12" squares) I buy 5 or 6 yards.

Otherwise, if nothing in mind I buy, I'm likely to buy 3 or 4 yards.
I almost never buy FQs

On-line, I very rarely buy fabric that's not on sale.
Check our http://www.hancocks-paducah.com always has fabric on sale starting at $3.98/yard.

[QUOTE=gollytwo;5310387]My go-to quilt when I need to make one in a hurry is "I Just Can't Cut It."
That pattern has now become a HUGE favorite of mine....it has another name in our family. It's called "the Gibbs Family Wedding Quilt" as that is the pattern we use to make all the niece/nephew's quilt for a wedding present. My sister in laws and I make the quilt using material from our stashes for the kids. It has become a BIG deal at the opening of wedding presents so that everyone can see what each other's looks like!!

Fabric that calls my name I also by 4 to 5 yards. This would be an ample amount for a bed size quilt, with enough to incorporate some in the border. For stash building, I rarely buy less than 2 yards. A blender or neutral that I know would go with lots of different things, 5 yards, more if it is a good sale.

How much I bought was largely dependent on how much it cost.

Three yards is sort of a 'minimum' if I'm thinking it would be a good border type fabric.

I usually buy no less than 3 yards when I find something is 'calling my name'.