Ok. So the sales rep came around, and showed me a delightful 36-piece collection of lovely prints that all mix and match and each one was more appealing than the next. And I couldn't choose from among them. They seemed to be best when together. You know, like a group of friends or a box of assorted chocolates.

So... rather than buy a bolt of just some of them and leave the others behind (sob) I decided to buy four boxes of FQs. Which ain't cheap, even at wholesale. Each box has 3 each of the 36 different prints.

And they're here. Now what do I do? I've spent four hours thinking (plus last night's dreaming) and still am undecided. (I'm sure there has to be somebody else out there who's as indecisive as me!)

Obviously I can sell 'em in a group, one FQ each of all 36. But that's expensive, and won't fit everyone's budget.

Or, I can break them into four groups, each with nine fabrics, so that makes a more approachable price tag. And I'm still confused. The colors, overall, include five groups: blue, green, pink, yellow, and neutrals. There are lights and mediums (no real darks). So... does this make sense, to do a group of lights, a group of pink & green, a group of blue & yellow, and then one of a little bit of everything? With no duplications from one group to the next.

Have any of you ever bought a BIG collection of FQs - major splurge? Or wished you had? Joy or regrets, either way?

I have bought a fat quarter set with 36 different fabrics. I really liked the fact that I could get the whole set. What did you get???

Yes I have. I haven't used them yet, but ideas are swimming in my head :-P :-P

Did you have a project in mind when you bought the set? Or was it just the appeal of the group, all together?

What I got was Nancy Halvorsen's new group, Garden Song. There's a panel (ordering that was a no-brainer) and then I bought a bolt of one fabric in the group ('cause you need a backing & border for the panel, right)? And then I "lost it" as far as making any more decisions, and got the FQ boxes.

Shoot. When you open the box, it looks great just by itself. I was struck by the thought that somebody at Benartex put into it, just deciding in what order to place the FQS in the box. They shaded, from dark to light in each colorway, blue -> green - neutral -> gold -> rose. Definitely eye-candy, to me anyways.

I would think it would be awesome to have a whole group, especially if they all coordinated....but yet, price is an issue.....what about some sort of buying plan??? You know, a person commits to buying them all over a period of time? This month they might get the neutrals for X amount, next month they get the blues for X amount....that way if the fabrics all coordinate someone could theoretically buy them all....

I've bought 18 x FQ in a set, in a colourway, for a particular quilt. I think 9 FQs is a quantity which can be used in one project. Personally I am always really tempted by packs with light, meds and dark of same colourway. But everyone's different and others prefer more of a mix!

I bought the fat quarter set because the colors were great. I didn't have a project in mind at the time but the set just so pretty I couldnt pass it up.

Nothing is more motivating to me then a big stack of fat quarters from one design line all bundled together. I bought a 99 fat quarter set and never regretted it. It was one of the best quilt purchases I made. Any quilter who has been to the bigger quilt shops or shows knows fat quarter bundles are not inexpensive but the value is unbeatable in what you are getting. One each of the whole design line. Bundling them in small groups and then have a discount for buying more than one group would be one option.

This is what the group looks like, so you can all see how hard it is to figure out how to split the groups up.

My first thought was to group them by color... but there really is not enough variation in light - dark to make it really "sing".

OMG - those are beautiful!!!!

I have bought both - fq bundles of a whole line and fq bundles of a color family in a line. I think you could try to sell them by both ways. It isn't like you don't have enough of them :) I am gonna have to look at these, not that I need any more panels or fabric :)

I'd LOVE to have some of most of these...and would probably be more tempted by colorway bundles. However, the pricing would be an issue for me...I don't pay premium prices for precuts...I'd purchase what I wanted for the best overall price. Hard to go wrong with Halvorsen! Bundles are great but not when they're priced above available yardage.

Meaning that as long as the price for FQ is the same as it would be for 2.25 yards of fabric, that the price is okay?

(For what it's worth... buying the pre-cut FQs from Benartex, when you figure out the per-yard price, they charge us 50 cents more per yard for the pre-cuts. I'm thinking that it would be about the same, figuring the labor costs, to pay someone to cut and *neatly* fold the FQs from running yardage.)

I can see why you have a dilemma--I just love that set! I would have had a hard time passing them up too. IMHO, they need to be sold all together as a set! Someone will buy them that way--you have to remember--you bought them as a set too...

I have to agree. Those are beautiful!!! I think they would sell better as a set.

Perfect fabrics for a child's sunbonned Sue or ???Sam quilts, hmmmmmmm, that leaves a lot left over!! Could do one in each colorway. Beautiful fabrics, good luck!!

This a beautiful collection and I would buy the whole thing if it came with a pattern. The colors blend together beautifully.

LOVE them! I don't usually buy bundles, as there are usually some I just don't care for. Not the case with this line, they are all lovely. Beautiful to do something springy with.

I bought a large bundle similar to this a couple years ago. I bought it without any pattern in mind and had no idea what to do with them. I finally pulled them out last year and made 2 quilts, one for my mother and one for my grandmother. It worked out perfect. I used the same pattern for each but one was a little larger than the other. Bundles this large are great for more than one project!

I like the idea of buying the whole set. Or even selling them in sets of 2 :D:D:D Those are beauties!!!

Yes, the price for the bundle and the price for an equal amount of yardage need to be the same for me. If there's a difference then I'll opt for half yard cuts of only the pieces that I am absolutely crazy over...assuming that yardage is available. There's just nothing about precut bundles that makes me want to pay more than full price for fabric.

If you have 3 complete sets of the fat quarters, you could try out one set as a complete bundle and split up the rest by colors. After whatever time you deem appropriate, the complete set could be split if it doesn't sell.

Oh, oh, oh, I want the whole set!!! These are my favorite colors. I would take a set of the FQ's in a flash. Are you going to be selling the????
Wendy

One of my first big purchases when I entered the world of quilting last year was a fat quarter bundle of Moda's "Nostalgia", all the fabrics. It's still sitting in a box. I'm scared to touch them. I don't want to ruin them. I just want to look at them....they're so pretty, all tied up in a bow...

I would set them out as individual, let the buyer decide. Just my $.02.

I generally always buy complete collections when I can. I'm a stasher and like having fabric on hand fotr whatever I might want to start in the middle of the night. Lots of times I'll see a quilt or project showcasing a group of fabrics and I'll have to have them. I may or may not ever make that specific project but just seeing the possibilities sticks with me.

So to answer your question...YES I frequently but BIG collections of FQs and I NEVER regret it...and it's always JOYful!

I bought a set, and had them for a long time, finally used them in my son's Christmas quilt. I don't think I would do it again.

Oh my gosh. That fabric is too hard to pass up. I'd buy the whole set too. I couldn't decide.

I would set them out as individual, let the buyer decide. Just my $.02.

Yes, I agree. Let them mix and match to get what they like together.

I'd have to go for the set. I've bought large groups of FQ's before and I did not regret it at all. So I paid a little more for it than if I bought it all separately....someone went to the time and trouble to mix and match all of them together, cut them and then *neatly* folded them. That shouldn't be free...

I say keep big bundles...from the responses on here..if you said you were doing that, you would probably already have them sold. They are really pretty!

Well... I had to buy four boxes full ('cause that was the minimum order)... and, well, that's like having too many puppies. I can keep a set for myself to play with but I will have to find homes for the others.

Okay, so maybe this is a silly question, but WHERE will you be selling these? I think I will have to have them!

Sheila

It's probably best to send me a PM...

Well, if the board is any indication, you will be able to sell them either as a set, or as individuals. I usually like sets, mainly because it takes the "work" out of trying to coordinate everything! I don't think you will go wrong with either decision.

Those fabrics are beautiful. I like most of Nancy Halvorson's fabrics.
I am not a purchaser of Fat quarters. Though, those may be tempting. I usually like to pick up at least 1/2 yards or 1-2 yard pieces.

If you sell them as a "whole" bundle, do you give any price discounts over the individual FQ prices?

My next question would be how much would a bundle like that cost? cause I'm thinking I would be really really tempted!

I so agree.
I would want them to coordinate.
I agree too, that they are scrumptious. No wonder you couldn't help yourself...um, hmmm, slap! no, Mousie, no looking online for these...down girl:lol:

We have bought one set that included 20 FQ, and it was bundled with a pattern - either Turning Twenty or Yellow Brick Road, I can't remember. It was great to have a big set of fabrics and a pattern that would make a bed-sized quilt. They said they would un-bundle the pattern if we did't need it, but we wanted the pattern, too.

One thing to remember is that you could bundle all 36 fabrics into 3 groups, and take them apart and sell them in smaller groups if they haven't sold after a reasonable time. 36 FQ will make a quilt large enough to cover a king size bed. I think it's nice to have all the coordination of colors and patterns done so I can just pick it up and start cutting.

Darren

I also would love to know what a full set like this would go for - and where do we find them!!!

Well, they just arrived this week... which would mean that stores all over the place should be receiving theirs, too, right about now. It's by Benartex, and Nancy Halvorsen is quite popular, so there's a good chance you could find these in any shop that usually carries Benartex. It's a nice group for spring, anyway.

Or PM me.

As to price... twice the wholesale cost would make the price $90 for the full bundle, and I've seen some websites selling it for that. But not every shop doubles their cost, so I'm sure you will be able to find it for less.

There are many quilt patterns where the blocks are all the same design but each block uses different colors. I have bought several packets with assorted fat quarters that are from the same line of fabric and made twin to double quilts and only had to buy fabric for the backing.

Many books are available with patterns for fat quarters if you are interested.

Also you can just make squares or strips and sew them together and have a really nice strippy/scrappy quilt.

I f you are going to break up the set, I would put different prints in each group, amy one fron all the colors. I try not to use 2 of the same print, even in different colors in the same quilt if I can help it., I'd tend to not use all the dots, or flowers or whatever. Although I have donea piece where they were all the same print. But that was a piece to just showcase a line.

I really like being able to purchase the entire set - they all match - go together - I don't have to worry about what to put with them. I try to buy entire collections and have purchased several very large ones and never regretted it. If you decide to sell by the whole set - I would definitely be interested.