The very first quilt book I bought was Carol Doak's "Your First Quilt Book" (or it should be) Her advice in there:
"If you like it, buy a yard
If you really like it, buy 2 yards
If you can't live without it, buy as much as your budget can afford"
I buy fat quarters, but mostly I buy a yard at a time. I can almost always put enough complimentaryfabric to gether for a baby blanket or some other quick project. However, most the quilts I make are baby or lap robe sizes, so this is working so far.