I've never gone to a fabric store & purchased fabric for a quilt pattern totally. I have nearly 40 years accumulation of fabrics & scraps, though. I figure out what block or pattern I want for a purpose (I've made dozens and dozens of quilts from baby to king size, so lots of scraps), and use what I have from my stash, and occasionally will pick up a bit to supplement. Made a quilt for my boss that I found the PERFECT feature fabric for (mainly used in the border and a little in small bits in blocks), and a couple of fat quarters that I had to have for it, but 90% of what went into the quilt was my fabric. The cool thing was I used fabrics from the 50's and every decade to current in it. It was basically an "I Spy" for an adult. I always pick up fabric that catches my eye when I see it, and if its a "I've gotta HAVE this" reaction, then I get a few yards of it. I've found I'll never find it again if I don't. I love scrappies, so my method works for me. I've got 80's florals that I still use for backing quilts and cut into small pieces for the front. I also subscribe to the Bonnie Hunter ideas: 1) if you don't like the fabric or it seems 'ugly' to you, you haven't cut it small enough, and 2) you can always use the back side, too. I've done both as I don't like wasting fabric.