I'm a new quilter and one of the first things I learned is that a Fat Quarter doesn't go very far! Now when I see a fabric I like, I always buy at least a yard, and if I *really* like it, or it's on sale very cheap, or I have a specific project in mind that needs more than a yard, I buy two or three yards. I don't have a lot of money to spare, so though I'd dearly love to go on a stash-building frenzy, I simply can't afford to - so I trawl the remainder and discount racks of the fabric stores for my stash.
As a result, my stash is so small that I can remember what I have. If I ever have trouble remembering, I think what I will do is take a digital photo of the fabric and make myself a computer file with the photo and how much of the fabric I have, that way I'll be able to see at a glance what I have, all in one place on my computer (but I'm a bit of a computer geek, anyway).
I don't have a good storage solution (yet). I have a small plastic bin with my FQs and a large cardboard box with yardage and WIPs.
Cheers,
Jan