citruscountyquilter

I think it makes a difference as to what type of quilter you are. If you like scrappy quilts then having a stash is essential for the variety. If you are more of a find a pattern and make it then a stash is not as important. The size of quilts also factors in. I'm more of a lap quilt type quilter so less of a fabric works for me. I don't ever expect to make a king size quilt so would never need that much fabric. I shop the sale room/shelves at quilt stores a lot and if I find a fabric that would make a good backing then I will get 3-4 yards of it. The same goes for small prints, tonals etc. Other fabric I usually get 1 yard or 1/2 yard. I find that I gravitate toward certain colors so getting something to match isn't usually a problem. A stash is not a requirement for being a good quilter.

Doggramma

I've have quite a few neutral fabrics, like creams and whites and tans. I also have a large variety of solid fabrics. Then, when I see some printed fabric that I love, I already have the neutrals or solids. When I see a printed fabric that I really love, I'll get at least 2 or 3 yards. I've found that getting only fat quarters doesn't usually work for me because I'm not really into scrappy quilts. The only fat quarters I do buy are fat quarter bundles that are coordinated, like they're part of the same line of fabric. Also, I don't make many bed size quilts. If you'll be making more bed size quilts, your stash needs would be different than mine.

Silver Needle

I recently had the opportunity to increase my stash at a quilt retreat. One of the members of my guild's mother was a quilter and she had passed away. Since she had a large stash of her own she brought the fabrics for us to buy at the retreat at rock bottom prices. It's the first time I've bought fabric just because I liked it instead of for a specific project. And I bought a LOT!!!

joe'smom

I think if you're starting out, building a stash is important. You don't yet know in what direction you'll be going with your quilting. A stash is inspiring, and having one on hand will allow you to develop your understanding of color. If you don't have lots of fabric to choose from, you can't experiment and learn. Once you have been quilting for awhile, and start to learn what sort of quilting you want to do, you can then modify your fabric buying to suit your preferences in quilting.

I would say, buy anything you like when stash building, rather than trying to pick fabrics that go well together. Once you've settled on a project, then you can shop for fabrics that work well together for that project. As to how much to buy -- well, how much money do you have? If your budget allows, I would suggest buying 1/2 yd or more of fabrics you like. If your budget is tighter, build your stash of fat quarters. If you love, love, love something, buy one to three yards. Happy hunting!

cathyvv

You are not alone when it comes to scrappies! Putting them together makes me crazy, but then again I have color issues. I neither universally like or dislike scrappies that other people make, though. It really does depend on the fabrics and colors used in the scrap quilt. Generally, the ones I like are the more controlled scrappies.

cathyvv

It really depends on what kind of quilter you are. Very project oriented, one at a time quilters may not have a huge stash; they might buy as they need for each project. If I really like a fabric I buy 2 or 2.5 yards, if see a fabric and my brain lights up with "that'll work perfect with fabrics a, b, c in my stash, I get 1 - 2 yards.

When you decide to build your stash, the first thing you MUST do is to decide how you will store/organize them.

Stash becomes overwhelming in a very short time! For each piece of fabric you purchase, I recommend that you measure, fold, mark the length and width on the fabric selvage, and then store it**. Since it's so early in your stash building career, you could, if you wanted to, keep a spreadsheet *of your fabrics for future reference.

*Note that I have not done that.
** I waited until I was 7 years in on building stash to organize. Started almost a year ago and am about 80% done now.

Only because i can afford to buy fabric (Thank you, God!), I have a fairly extensive stash. It's loosely divided into these categories:

1) Blenders - it's amazing how the blenders in my stash can make a quilt work. About 1/3 of my stash is blenders. I love that I don't always have to run out to get a blender when starting a quilt.

2) Christmas - almost always bought on sale. I've been collecting it for over 7 years and I am finally making a Christmas quilt for my grandson. I love Christmas fabrics, but the theme is limiting, so they aren't prolifically used. The more general Christmas fabrics are used in not-Christmas quilts, though, and often make a pretty backing.

3) Fabrics I love so I bought them. I hate to say it, but most of these are on an invisible "look but don't cut" list in my head. Lately I've used a few, but it's very hard to cut them. Generally, I use them in a big block quilt so I can still see lots of the fabric.

4) Extreme sale fabrics - I don't love this fabric, but it's 60 cents a yard so how can I pass it by? Some of these have managed to become 'best buys' because they were perfect for a child's quilt, made a great backing, or added a bit of whimsy, funk, etc. to a quilt. A few have actually 'made' the quilt! These fabrics are mostly good quality, just not stuff that I particularly like all by themselves.

5) All other fabrics - what can I say? I love fabric, to see it, touch it, fold it, create with it.

6) Precuts - I like them, have enough of them to last me awhile without being overwhelmed by them, and use them when the spirit moves me to. I don't buy too many of these. I do like the jelly rolls that are made up of solid colors like white, black, dark brown or red, because they make instant sashing.

7) Kits - I have about 6 undone kits. I've had most of them for at least 2 years and not touched one of them.

Good luck and happy hunting!

Jingle

I buy mostly 4-6 yard pieces. I now just buy rements and now making mostly scrappy quilts. I buy what I like and throw caution to the wind.

omaluvs2quilt

I WISH I had never bought fabrics I didn't have a project in mind for! I still get white on white when I see one I like, but other than that, I only buy for projects. I have way t0o much fabric that I will probably never use and no longer like

meganc731

THANK YOU everyone for all your opinions!!!! Super helpful! I think my intro to quilting has sort of scared me, I'm a huge Tula Pink fan and I saw some fabric that I just KNEW would be perfect for a wedding gift. By the time I was ready to buy the fabric a lot if it was already sold out. Luckily I have a small chain of fabric stores in my area and I was able to hit up 3 of the stores when they were having a labor day sale and I got everything I had planned on except for one of the prints. I figured I'd order the elusive print online and use it as my back, but once I started searching for it I could only find it on Etsy and it would have been about $25 a yard. I settled for a half yard and I'm planning to piece the back. Now when I see something at the store I keep thinking, if I don't buy that soon I'll miss out!! I think I'll plan on buying only prints I LOVE LOVE LOVE.

Is it a thing to collect fabric from certain designers? Like I said I love Tula Pink, her new line was just released. I don't know if I should get a jelly roll, fat quarter collection, or just buy a bit of each. I know I'll be disapointed if I don't have a little of everything, but with the different colorways there's a lot to choose from.

Thanks for the tips on organizing! For now I have a large room and and two large dressers for storage. I have it organized by color right now but I realized the other day that I should stand my fabrics on end so I can see them better when I open the drawer.

joe'smom

Ideally, you'd find a particular pattern to use with the fabrics before the fabric line sells out, and then you'll be able to buy specifically what you need. When I fall in love with a line and don't have a pattern in mind, I either buy a fat quarter bundle or choose an assortment I like from the various colorways and buy 1/2 yards or yards of those fabrics.