Dearth of interesting fabrics
 

I am so glad i got interested in quilting when I did. I have enough fabric (excluding existing started projects) for at least another ten to fifteen quilts. But I'll tell you, I go to the shows, I get ads from places like ChristaQuilts.com, and I am completely uninspired.

What has happened to Robert Kaufmann? He use to hire some of the most innovative designers like Sherill Kahn. Now, we get Starwars (how tired is that?) and a thousand theme designs all aimed at 6 year olds. Michael Miller? Him of Fairy Frost fame as well as many more lines... now, just nothing.

Here is the kicker... I am down to maybe $150 bucks in fabric purchases a year. usually only pieces I need to accent (or backs of) what I already have.

How do you get inspired with the selection of mostly retro and bland pattern fabric that most quilt shops and on line shops carry?

tim in san jose

Sorry, I don't seem to have this problem. I want to keep buying, buying, buying...:p

I rarely buy fabric without a quilt in mind, but when I do it is an outstanding timeless type of fabric, something that will look fresh even 20 years from now. Same is with fashion. I hate the clothes that was imposed to us in the last couple of years, but wearing classics will never go out of style. I guess I brought ideas from my 30 years of garment sewing into my quilting. I get inspiration from the world around me and that's when my hunt for fabrics begins. Good luck and happy quilting!

Not a problem for me :) -- I like both classic things and of-the-moment things. There is always far more that I want to buy than I can afford or find time to sew. I do sometimes have trouble finding bright, clear colors in fabrics other than children's designs, and at the moment I'm going mad trying to find good greens.

Oh, Wow, I wish I had your problem. Mine is the opposite. I try to keep it at about $50 a month, but don't always suceed.

I also do not have that problem, matter a fact, I could possibly have the opposite problem. Although I refrain from buying too much, I love so many of the new lines being released, can't make up my mind which ones I should buy for the next project.

I wonder if it has something to do with where we are at in our quilting journey. My friend who got me into quilting used to give me all her scraps (often not my taste, but still fun). She gave me less and less because she bought less, and she was never interested when I was given fabric from other sources. Me, I love fabric, especially when it's on sale!

But lately, I have felt less inclined to buy and more inclined to use what I have. I rarely see a must-have fabric. I see lots of collections that I pass right over. But maybe it's just me and that I'm satiated by my stash and I'm not as hungry for new fabric as I was in my early days. Or maybe it's just a phase – we'll see!

In some ways, I have had similar experiences as the original poster. I've been super excited to have the day off, have extra spending money, and make a long trek to a fabric store, only to hunt and hunt and hunt for something to buy. I chalked it up (mostly) to being in a quilting slump. But I am also a quilter that does not have young children in my immediate circle of family and friends and thus I pass by on all the kiddie stuff.

As for the inspiration part, I have found that if I flip through an older magazine, I can see a pattern that was done in calicoes that I know I can make look more timely by using my own stash. Scrappy quilts become more interesting to me.
Here is an example of something that motivated me. The pattern, called Pulsar, was published in a magazine 18 years ago. I used up a good amount of leftover scrap stash for it and then only had to hunt for the dark blue border fabric.

I personally think that there is a pretty good mix out there. I still see things I want, although since my stash is huge I don't buy unless I need it for a project or have a pattern that it would be perfect for. There are a lot more juvenile lines coming out but that is because we have a lot of younger quilters (moms) and a lot of us who have been quilting for years are becoming grandparents or great aunts/uncles. Also a lot of the newer retro and modern lines are aimed at the younger quilters (although I like a lot of them) and personally I am thankful - need to keep them interested. For those of us who are very traditional, Civil War lines and traditional/timeless fabrics (beautiflu florals and Jenny Beyer).

I love having so many choices in fabric! I feel lucky to love my stash AND have my pick of current fabric lines... my only problem is deciding what to make and being patient while I focus on finishing UFOs.

There are times I go into the fabric store and just don't see anything I like and then there are other times I think I'm trying to buy out the store. There's 3 LQS shops within a 20 mile radius (God bless them!) and each has a different specialty. Some days I'm into the more traditional, and some days I'm into more bright lines.

It may help if you try some different shops to see the different lines and examples of those lines. Many times I've thought why would anyone buy that fabric only to see it worked into a beautiful quilt. It took me seeing it used verses me thinking of a project to get the beauty of fabric.

That's a beautiful quilt, JennyPenny!

Your quilt is a perfect example of using older fabric! The pattern seems to glow which would be completely lost with the larger print modern fabric.:thumbup:

This is an interesting thread. Like several of you, I've bought lest and less fabric recently; had chalked it up to the fact that I have a great deal to choose from in my stash, and the fact that many of the prints that are very popular right now just don't appeal to me much. It may be, though, as one person suggested, that you just go through stages as a quilter and this is one of them. I doubt I've bought $150 worth of fabric in the past six months--and that mostly backing. The quilt JenniePennie posted is stunning, by the way.

LOL, I try to keep my purchases to $50.00 a VISIT! I wanted to work in the muted tones but didn't have any to use - I usually buy bright. I was lucky to find a whole line on sale - from 40% to 90% off. Bought 85 yards of fabric that day and have been working happily from that stash ever since. As I find other fabric that works with those tones I buy a yard or two so that part of my stash is happily evolving.

I would guess this just makes the point that when the fabrics are there and hit your creative fancy... buy lots.

tim in san jose

I adore fabric but now adays so expensive. Without the backing and batting. I have just priced how much it will cost to purchase fabric for the labrynth walk quilt. Here in UK £150 due to the prices goin up so much. What. Do I do dye my own?

My problem is that I love too many different types of fabric design. I wish I loved one like clear brights so I could develop a "style". Met one woman at a retreat like that. She scoured the stores for clear brights and made the most beautiful and original designs.

I have never found a quilt store with inventory I did not love. I often do not find much at Joanns because their colors are often muddled but there is usually something. Not that I buy it but these trips encourage my creativity. Even our "modern" shop makes me think about design in a different way.

I've been trying to use stash first and mostly succeeding. However as you all know there's always that one fabric you don't have or don't have enough of. . .
I'm discovering that the ones I'm drawn to are focus fabrics but the ones I always need more of are the blenders and ones that play the supporting roles.

A long time ago a friend told me to always get coordinating colors at the same time (or at least the same season) or you may not be able to find the right ones later as the color pallatte changes each season. ie. the lime green from last year will be more blue or more yellow next year and won't match. Of course it will resurface five, ten, twenty years from now as the "new" color of the season. Lol!

I solved that problem by making scrappy quilts with small pieces, so, as the old song says, "Anything Goes"!!

I will be shopping from my fabric stash in my attic for years to come. Over the years we were lucky enough to get a lot of unwanted scraps from 3 ladies, each of whom had a cottage industry making quilts. I guess to modern eyes the small prints look old fashioned, but I love them.

I just love it all. I consider my stash my palette and love to add to it. Would spend lots more if I could!! I love the old stuff and the new brights!! Color just makes me happy.

About the only thing that inspires me now is Civil War reproductions and some of yhr 30s repros.
Maybe that means I'm getting old!
Glad to see you're still with us Tim :)

Your quilt is stunning!!!!!

Oh My Gosh! I don't know where you are shopping, but I look at Moda fabrics and want them all. I think the choices now a days are beyond fantastic. I am not too crazy about the modern stuff and some of the colors that are current, but find that there is always something to chip away at my creative thoughts. The newer batiks are just phenomenal! I can't even imagine going into a store and not falling in love with at least a half dozen fabrics.

Have you tried "touring" Hancock's of Paducah's web sale fabrics? I find I am always amazed at the interesting combinations that get thrown up on the "by price" pages, because the fabrics aren't grouped in any particular way. Sometimes seeing a fabric orphaned from its original collection can spark an idea, or allow you to see the fabric differently. Plus, sale fabrics are affordable! I rarely get off those pages without making purchase...

Alison

If I am not sure I have enough for a project, I purchase more. If in doubt, buy it out.

I can always find fabric that I fall in love with, much too often!

I have the total opposite problem. I want too much fabric!

I've been disappointed in lots of the fabrics I've been seeing lately but I see a lot I like too. Guess I'm in the middle. I don't buy as much as I used to since the prices have started climbing and the store I liked best has stopped honoring coupons which hurts also. I'm lucky to have a fairly large stash to pull from. Lately, the quilting urge has been very low. I do hope I get out of my slump soon.

The pulsar quilt made from a mag pattern 18yrs ago looks so much like one I saw in a current mag....shows ya nothing new in this world...time to dig out those old mags again.....

I really like some of the new things but many lines don't inspire me, either. I think the designers are as varied as the quilters and their tastes just reflect that. Wonder if the younger quilters just starting have influenced so many of the novelty prints or modern designs? I never seem to be able to walk away without a purchase of something that's caught my heart though. :)

I never have trouble finding fabric I like. Much of it wants to go home with me but some just has to be disappointed as I put it back on the shelf and hope that the next person will be able to adopt it.

It's definitely my problem too!

I am trying to go without buying any fabric since my stash is huge. If I were to buy fabric it would probably be blenders because I have far to many focus fabrics. If your finding the new lines don't spark your creativity, start shopping garage sales. Bet you can find something you like and the prices are terrific.

I find that the really busy modern fabrics aren't for me. Give no place for my eyes to rest. That said I still find a lot of fabric to buy.

I agree with you. I lived through the 70's, I really don't want to go through it again. Peace signs fabric, lime green, orange. Just not my style.

I know when I see a fabric if I like it or not. If I really like it - I purchase it - and I will decide
what to do with it later. I bought some fabric that caught my eye - it matched perfectly when
I made my latest tote bag. I almost didn't buy enough fabric - had just a few inches left. That's
the downside to not knowing what you are going to make with it.
My pictures won't download.

Interesting thread!

First off JenniePennie your quilt is gorgeous!

I just took a modern quilt class: the Modern Mystery Quilt that was on the AQS site last fall. *LOL* When I read the description of the class my eyes jumped to the words "Mystery", "uses lots of Fat Quarters", and "I used Batiks" and totally missed the word "MODERN". :o I learned a lot including that "modern" isn't my thing even if it is made with batiks. No surprise there!

I don't care for the whole modern quilt thing: not the colours (lime green and orange = icky), not the fabric designs (boring or glaring), not the plain jane quilt patterns with giant rectangles and circles. I've let all my magazine subscriptions lapse except Quiltmaker and keep that one only because of Bonnie Hunter's column. I used to go in Borders and buy scads of quilt magazines every month. In the last six or so months I've looked through scores of magazines in grocery/big box stores and bought one or two or maybe three: and magazine publishers wonder why their sales are falling ..... Yes, it's wonderful we've attracted new quilters with their own thing but the industry needs to remember that "we" are the backbone and that if "we" don't spend our money, they will be in trouble.

Meanwhile I feel blessed we have three local quilt shops on our tiny island with lots of fabric choices in styles I love: BATIKS (my first love), Asian, and Hawai`ian (including "beachy" patterns).

I also buy online from Connecting Threads, Hancock's of Paducah, Crazyquiltgirl, Jinny Beyer, and a couple of others. I've collected multiple FQ packs of Civil War Reproduction fabrics and Wm Morris inspired fabrics.

If I love a fabric line I buy the FQ sample packs or if I REALLY LOVE a fabric I'll buy serious yardage. *LOL* It's a good thing I love Log Cabins and other scrappy quilt patterns (see Bonnie Hunter's site).

There's enough in my stash to (I hope) last until the "modern cycle" has run its course. :)

I don't really have that problem yet. I can always find tons of fabric that I love and I can immediately image the patterns and mixtures of fabrics I can add. I hope I never reach the point that I can't find fabric that sparks my interest and gets the juices flowing!