We do most of these ideas as we are new to retirement and the fixed income. (Very scary!)
For relatively cheap fabric for quilting - shop yard sales and Goodwill. Sometimes I find bags or boxes of fabric, but more often I find good clothes, mostly men's shirts that can be cut up and used in quilting projects. Prices at yard sales can be in a large range, but it is $4 for a men's shirt at Goodwill. BUT - after the items ar in the store for a few weeks, they get marked down to half price, then to $1 the following week. That is the only time I buy the clothes for quilting at Goodwill - when they are $1. You can get the equivalent of 1.5 to 2 yards of fabric from a large to XXL man's shirt. I am very fussy when choosing shirts from Goodwill - only 100% cotton, with no or very little wear to them and only in colors or a pattern I really love.