I just went to a yard sale on Saturday. There were no prices marked so I chose a small pile (about 2" tall) of fabric. The husband charged me $2.00. I went back for more and the wife charged about $!.00 a yard. There are a lot of older baby boomers so longer able to sew or no longer with us and I think a lot more of them sewed because of the culture of their time. I would also agree with not trying to build a stash too quickly. I no longer shop at the fabric store and I have only been quilting for 2 years. There is so much lovely fabric easily available if you have a little patience. One group of ladies I quilt with used to give their scrap to one member but when she found I was willing to work with smaller pieces she gave me several bags full. I have also picked us several rulers at yard sales, tape measure, needles in original packages, etc, etc,...