Just wondering, do you pick the fabric first or the pattern (if you are not just working from your own stash)? :D

I work best when I pick the pattern first and then the fabric. Otherwise I end up with a big stash of fabric and can't decide what to do with it. O wait...maybe that's not a problem after all. haha
Lois

I usually have apattern in mind, but not always, sometimes the fabric dictates the pattern.

That's how I am.

Varies, usually the fabric, then find a pattern to use it with. Sometimes I'll pick up a pattern and then see what in my stash works with it.

If I see fabric I love, I must have some. It does not matter to me, what I might use it for later on.

If I am looking through patterns and see one I want to try.......this is what gets me into trouble. I always seem to need more fabric to do the job.

Haha, same here. I've bought ridiculous fabrics with nothing in mind to do with it and it's still lying around.

Nearly always fabric first, in fact I just recently bought my first ever'paid for pattern' (a bargello) and pulled some from my stash but ordered the rest. :-D The exception is that I love making the One Block Wonder kaleidoscope quilts and those require a certain type and amount of fabric, so I guess you could say that there, the pattern dictates the fabric. :-D

I don't think a big stash is a big problem either - it'll all get used someday - so long as I live to be about 200! :mrgreen:

And as someone on here once said, 'she who dies with the most fabric, wins!' Right?! :lol:

Some might find this crazy. OK. Most will find this to be crazy. But I usually pick the pattern first, then buy the fabric to go with it. I don't keep a large stash on hand. I know, bite my tongue you Blasphemer. :oops:

Not crazy at all, very sensible in fact. I am just not organised enough for that. And I always see three times as much fabric I absolutely have to have for one project, so two thirds don't get used...

:shock: I'd HEARD that there were ppl out there who did this but didn't know we had one in our midst! :lol: Next you'll be telling me that you finish one project before starting another... :mrgreen:

When I see fabric I love or that's at a good price, I buy it. Sometimes there will be coordinating fabrics also. Then when I need a new project I go through my stash and choose from there. I might need to fill in a color or two but I kind of like putting it all together and figuring out the pattern.

:shock: oh please....say it isn't so :shock: :wink: :lol::lol::lol:

i usually pick my pattern first,then go from there

LOL you're both funny! I admit that I am a fabric addict and generally choose fabrics I just HAVE to have!

The most practical thing would probably be to pick the pattern first, then purchase enough fabric for that pattern. Of course, I usually buy the fabric first, then pick the pattern - which leads me on a wild goose chase to find enough more of the fabric to do it! :)

I fall in love with patterns and then go and see what's in my stash to make it work. Nada, zip zilch so I go shopping!

If I find fabric that I MUST buy I have a more difficult time deciding which pattern to use.

My sister doesn't have ANY stash at all!!! To be fair, she has a VERY small appartment and no where to go with it, so she only buys what she needs for a given project. And yes, she finishes one project at a time! As soon as she has enough scraps, she does something with them, too. She was born first so she got all of the organization genes! I have a stash, but I do finish one thing at a time.

I usually pick the pattern first. Then choose the fabrics to go with the pattern. (Before the pattern, I have the person I am making the quilt for in mind.)

Can go either way, it is like finding a great pair of shoes then putting together an outfit to go with them.

I guess I am crazy too! I don't have the room or the funds for a large stash. My whole stash fits in a large taupe colored plastic shopping sack. I pick the patterns first, haven't made one that wasn't free yet, then I buy just a little bit more than I need. That way, I have options for binding and when I mess up on my cutting, yes that's a when not an if, I don't have to freak out trying to find more. All my my tools, my machines, fabric, the whole lot fit in a coat closet that has to share the room with the coats. And I do finish one at a time too...but I found that I really like projects where there's one in each stage of quilting. I like to be piecing one and then have one on hand to quilt with at night....haven't made it that far yet, but I bet it would be fun to have more than one going at once.

I usually pick the pattern, but sometimes I have a fabric that just has to be made into something and then I search for a pattern, not always easy.

Since I am a one project at a time person on a limited income I chose the pattern first and then go after the fabric.

:oops: This is one of my great faults... I fall in love with a fabric and end up with a stash that cries for a pattern.

My passion is samplers so I buy fabric that I love and want to work with and decide what to do with it as I go while also working from fabrics in my stash. I do have a person in mind for the quilt so a bit of a theme - squares that represent things that are important to them as much as possible. When not, I'll find an interesting square and use it.

I come up with my design first too and then buy fabric for it. I also usually overbuy, so I end up with a bit more in my small stash. Besides the fabrics that are earmarked for a specific quilt, I don't really have enough of any one thing in my stash to make a quilt with.

However, I LOVE scrappy quilts, and my LQS has a huge bin of scraps that I go diving in every couple months. This way I get way cool fabrics for my scrappy quilts without paying for whole pieces of them. I would say i have a pretty unreasonable amount of scraps, especially considering most of them are not MY scraps!! LOL I NEVER turn down an offer for good cotton scraps!! I use everything that is one inch wide or bigger, and I have gotten some pretty awesome fabrics by collecting other people's scraps. If they had a store, that was like a candy store, where you could go in and fill a bag with scraps for a certain price, I would be in big time trouble ....

Cheers!
Rachel

I also pick the pattern first. I always see fabric that I would love to "just buy"...but I never know how much I should buy.

Usually the pattern first.

I pick the pattern first. Then I visualize what is going to be my important color in the quilt and find material to go with it. Sometimes I have everything I need in my stash. Sometimes I have to buy everything at the fabric shop.

I pick the pattern first - I do have scraps which I will be using - I tried to complete q

sorry, hit the enter key by mistake - I tried completing one project before going to the next, but nope... Now I have 1 in the quilting process, 1 ready to baste then quilt, 1 in the piecing process and 1 ready to cut fabric. Never thought I would do that, but I got into a piecing mood the last 1 1/2 months. But back to your question - pattern than fabric, but there were a few times saw some fabric that I just had to have.

I always pick fabric first, and let the fabric inspire me. But then again, I don't follow patterns..
I would assume the best thing to do would pick a pattern then get the fabric to use on it..but then again that doesn't leave you much of an excuse to buy fabric that you don't "need" yet lol :)

I like to have at least 2 quilts going in different stages but I try to always keep something ready to hand quilt to take with me but guess I'm going to end up with a gap again. I like to piece for a couple of hours, cut for an hour or so depending but my favorite is hand quilting. I try to rotate through the jobs so that I don't over do on anyone thing as too much of anything can cause some repetitive pain issues so I try to keep varying the muscle activity. 2 or 3 works in progress is not a bad thing as long as you are working on all of them I have 3 in progress but am finishing up one this week and will probably complete the other next week and will post photos when completed. The other is a mystery quilt top that I need to decide whether I want to add a scalloped border to it and if I do hopefully will have enough fabric to complete it as the Christmas fabric I bought was sold out a few weeks ago. Our chapter is planning more projects but the ones in the immediate future will have to be skipped by me because I'm also participating in a round robin and my goal is to have my mystery quilted before the round robin top gets back to me. Never bored. LOL

This is always my question??? If you do see fabric that you like and can't live without....How much do you buy?

The bolt??? :lol:

You are too funny!!! LOL

I decided I had to start quilting so I could get rid of some of the fabric I have stored already. I literally have a walk in closet full, plus shelves full and there are a couple of bins in storage. Well, it is not working out so well. I am a great planner, but not such a great finisher. I have accumulated more fabric and more plans to make quilts and other things. The stuff I had is no longer as pretty as it was before. I know, get rid of it, sell it, give it away. I try, I do, and I have. But it is slow going.

To be honest I have been very busy. I have made a lot of things for the new grand baby to come, and the grandsons that I already have. And my sisters. Even a little something for myself. My goal has been to complete something every day or two. I usually only do one thing at a time, unless I am making several of the same thing. And I have to clean up in between each project.

Oh, the original question. Both? I have a stockpile of patterns and a stockpile of fabric. I plan for them to come together somehow, but if they don't, oh well. I love having a room that is all mine to stash and sort and plan and dream.

It's probably 50/50. Sometimes I see a quilt pattern that I just love and then I proceed to choose the fabrics for it, but just as often, I have some fabulous fabric (irresistable in the store and a bargain to boot!) and need to find the perfect quilt pattern for it.

It depends! I am in the market for only quality fabric that's on sale. I don't have a huge stash, but I do have enough fabric to allow me to hold out until I find quality fabric at a price I'm willing to pay. (Half the fun for me is getting a bargain. If it's not good quality, it's not a bargain.) When I do buy, it's usually a minimum of 3 yards, depending primarily on these two things:
1. Whether it will make an excellent primary or key fabric in a quilt and be easy to find coordinating fabrics; OR
2. Whether it is a good generic color & print, as in neutrals/blacks/greys, etc., that can be used for a bazillion things (at least).

I avoid buying less than a yard and I only buy as little as 1 yard if I know exactly what I want to use it for and am sure that it is enough, even allowing for error.

Thank you for your advice. I will keep that in mind. :0)