If I see a fabric I really love but do not have a specific project in mind I will buy the bolt to make sure that I will have enough fabric to make whatever later down the road. As we all know, it's often not easy to find the same fabric again several months later if you should come up short or just flat screw up when cutting out your design. I can always use the left over fabric for pillow cases to match a quilt or swap it with a friend for another fabric. I know it's expensive and may seem wasteful to outher but to me it's sort of like insurance. And, it's not something I do on a regular basis.