CarrieAnne

I like scrappy quilts, so I go for half yards or even fat quarters.

fabric_fancy

my standard buy is 3 yards.

if the price is great or i really love it i buy 6 or more yards.

i just bought a couple of bolts the other day because the price was right and i know i'll use it all up.

Claddaughquilting

My motto:
If you like it, buy 1 yard
If you love it, buy 3 yards
If you can't live without it, buy 5 yards

but only if on sale!! I also buy the scrap packs at the LQS, and remnants from on-line fabric sites.

If I am close to finishing a bolt, I always take it all.

I have already identified the lucky recipient of my stash in my will....If I ever start to feel guilty about the quantity, I take the oldest (and not my favorites) and give it away to the guild to make charity quilts....eases my conscience...

Tinabodina

I started by getting fat quarter as gifts. Then as I was out i started buying more fabrics of what would go with those flat quarters. I alway by at least a yard and if I really like it 3 yards. If I see something on sale that I really like, I will buy the rest of the fabric on the bolt. That works great for backing.

winterpromise31

Wow! You guys are awesome. :D Thanks for all the responses. There are definitely a few things here to think about.

Since I'm still new, I don't really know which kind of quilts I prefer. I do know I want to try something more complex than 9-patch. I will have made four quilts as gifts before I make the first for me to keep, and I know that one will be a mystery/sampler quilt (I think queen sized). So I guess I'll keep buying fabric as needed for now unless I find an awesome sale on something I love! Maybe after a couple more quilts, I'll have a better idea of what I want to do in the future and will thus be able to buy fabric in advance.

Thanks again for all of your help!

A

Welcome to the fun board of 'quilt nuts!' You asked how much fabric to purchase? I would purchase no less than 3.5 yards for the background fabric (based on a double bed quilt) the if you have 4 fabrics total: 2 yds. of the next must used fabric; & 1.5 of each of the rest. Of course; you just gotta get some other fabrics too if you maybe 'need' them! I find that if you buy a little here, a little there, great way for building! You will find that you have some fabrics left over too after making a quilt! NEVER throw out any that is at least 1/8 yard.

BUY when there are good sales - build using COLOR! Colors you love & cannot do without. Always get minimum of 1 yd. You are so lucky to have a suportive husband!

littlehud

I buy fabric that calls to me. Usually three yards at a time. When I buy for a project I always add a yard to what the pattern calls for. I just spent a day sorting and organizing fabric and was shocked at how big my stash has become.

Dina

I am fairly new to quilting too, and I started off buying one yard. I learned fairly quickly that a yard is not enough for what I want to do. I usually want a border or binding made of one of the fabrics in my quilt top. One yard doesn't allow for that, or at least it doesn't for me. I now buy a yard and a half or two yards.

So far this has worked well for me.

My stash recently grew at a Hancock;s sale. The sale is still one, if you have one nearby. Most of what I bought was 40% off.

franie

Stash it! Prices going up up up!

Cornish Maid

I too am fairly new to quilting. My current stash fits into one teeny little bag! I tend to buy fat quarters because fabric in UK is so expensive. I don't want to lash out on something I may never get around to using. I usually wait till I have a project in mind before going fabric shopping. That said, I sometimes get a bit hysterical when I reach the quilting shop!