She had a "reputation" as an awesome quilter. So, obviously she used it. Who cares about if her family recouped the money she spent on it. I surely don't live now to leave my family a rich inheritance when I die. I plan on living large and enjoying myself while I'm on this planet. So, instead of spending all this money on fabric, she could have invested it in the stock market and lost $200,000 of her retirement $ when the market crashed....at least she had the fabric!