Caroline S

Most of my stash is prints also. The solid fabrics that I do have are 100% cotton thrift store sheets that I purchase for quilt backings.

charsuewilson

I don't have trouble buying solid colors I use routinely, nor mottled prints. I have trouble buying lighter colors to blend with the darker colors.

maminstl

When I see a good sale, I will stock up on solids and blenders. I figure that when I stumble over a print that I love, I will have plenty of things that go with it. So far, that is the case. I try to organize my fabric by color, so that I can see at a glance what I have a lot of, and what is lacking. I lean more toward contemporary quilts, so there is a method to my madness.

gale

I have mostly prints too. I've been trying to get a few solids so I have mostly brown, black, gray and white now. And a few colors.

patchy-at-best

I've never been a fan of solids AT ALL. I've seen many beautiful quilts ruined using solids instead of blenders. Next to a beautiful print solids look cheap and nasty. My opinion but that's my eye.
I've got a phenomenal stash and can't really justify buying more fabric, but I do. Just now I have such an awesum collection of prints I actually don't mind spending on blenders or tone on tones. I use so much of them across many quilts, so hunt them out at sales. I also do a lot of applique so I can use them for backgrounds and the applique pieces. For now just concentrate at finding good colours at sales and buy up. Most prints will be one quilt. Blenders will be in every quilt

patchy-at-best

And don't forget, solids aren't forgiving if your quilting isn't great...

Snooze2978

I had the same problem so started looking for solids or near solids. I found at Connecting Threads a collection called "Mirage". Its not really a solid as it reminds you of colored cement with 2 or more colors blended in. I've collected the entire series for my stash.

Also in their Neutral Love II they have what's called Faux Linen in 3 shades..browns and greys. Not solid but could pass for one enough. They also have something called "pebbles" which has some dots on it but it could work well enough. I guess you could pass these as tone on tone sort of.

Sewnoma

Alas, very true. I really like modern quilts with their big expanses of solid fabric to show off the quilting, but I am not anywhere near skilled enough to pull that off (yet). I like traditional quilts, too, but modern quilts pull my eye in all the time.

crafty pat

Yes, I have this problem also. I am always having to go buy solids or tone on tones to go with my prints for my quilts.

gale

That's why I use them in small amounts. Just a little bit for some relief from all the patterns. I really don't think they look "cheap and nasty" though.