Fabric moratorium - except....
 

Ok...i have been on a very strict fabric buying Moratorium. I have even been throwing away my JoAnn's mailers when they come!!
Then....i was in Walmart the other day - and walked past the fabric section. They had a table out front with fabrics bolts - $3 per yard. So...had to stop and look...LOOKING is not banned. Found a bolt of BATIK....it was nothing fancy fancy - but very pretty and very nice quality. Put it down and started to walk away.
Then i remembered my "impulse purchase rule". I have a strict personal rule against any impulse purchase UNLESS the item is $10 or less...just a thing with me (and a source of amusement to my friends) So...says the little gal in my head..."$3 per yard - i could get 3 yards and it would be allowed under the impulse rule"
....then the other gal up there says..."yeah,but no fabric, remember"
....then the first gal says "shut up - who asked you?"
So i bought the 3 yards.

Just wondering......What causes you to break your fabric buying moratorium rule???

A good price on fabric, just ask me, I received by Fed Ex yesterday 9 bolts of solid fabric, it was a good price.

For $3/yard - for a nice quality batik? I would have applied the impulse purchase rule more than once. You need to have another talk with those gals in your head.

Price and shipping cost. If my order comes to $30 and I can get free shipping at $50, it just makes sense to look at the clearance section too.

I really don't have any type of moratorium. I do try to BUY what ONLY I REALLY need and NOT because I want something. I saw the same bin in my Walmart but didn't see any batiks.

My so-called moratorium ended yesterday when I received an email from a quilt shop advertising 30% off all fabrics. I was out of the door like a shot!

What makes me break a fabric moratorium? Any extra money I might have, which is very rare. LOL!

My personal impulse rule is if the total can be paid off in full each month without a worry. DH feels paying a finance charge is giving money away and gets all really? really? to me if one is on a bill. Now I'm off to Walmart. LOL

It would almost be criminal to walk away from a good buy like that - it was meant to be.

Ditto with what Dunster said!

In my moratorium I can only buy things that begin with "B." Borders, binding backing or batting. If I saw a nice BATIK (it starts with "B") that was only $3 a yard I would have to allow it. I also ask myself, "Do you really need it?" Usually I can talk myself out of it.
The best way to give up fabric buying is to stay away from places that sell it!!!
Good luck with your quest!
Colleen

I refuse to make rules about buying fabric because when I see one I love I know I am going to buy it.

I'll break my moratorium if there is absolutely, positively nothing in my stash that works for a project in progress. That and if I'm ready for a back and don't want to make it with leftovers from the top; otherwise, I'm good to go. It's fun challenging yourself to see if you can make it all work with you already have.

Join us over here:

http://www.quiltingboard.com/quiltin...m-t238230.html

You'll be amazed at how many excuses, I mean reasons we have for falling off that wagon.

Fabric Moratorium????? What's that??????? ;o)

I have fallen off so many times , you would think I have bruises.... but only dents in the wallet.

I have been trying not to buy any fabric unless I absolutely have to have it to finish a quilt I am currently working on, but yesterday I was at a church rummage sale and they had a bunch of fabrics selling for $4.00 a bag. I came home with 14 yards of fabric plus some scraps for only $4.00. Had to buy it.

If you go back the next day, does the impulse rule get reset? :-)

True. Give those girls in your head a talk--telling them that common sense rules supreme.

I have a very very small stash since I have only been quilting for a short while. I try to buy as I go. But if I come across a fabric that I absolutely love love love, I will buy it. I don't even care whether it is on sale. But I have gone through entire shops without finding a single fabric I like that much.

The Row by Row Experience has me breaking the moratorium all over the eastern USA! :D The only "extra" fabric I bought was in VA. It was light blue background with little blueberries dancing around on it. Who could resist that? :D But I've stuck with buying just the kits in the other shops. (There have been 7 so far.) Oh, wrong. I did buy fabric and a lining to make a bag for my SIL who lives where we're staying. But that was from a quilt shop 2 blocks away. Does it count if you live within walking distance? :shock: (Whine, whine!) :sew: :D

I've been on a moratorium for two years now...I've done quite well, only bought a few jelly rolls and charm packs and a couple of yards of black and white fabrics needed to finish a quilt. Still have three cupboards and a shelf unit full of fabrics so I can shop at home most of the time.

I usually break my rule of no fabric buying when I'm making a quilt and the fabric I have on hand just won't do. Happened just this past Friday. Two weeks before I had stopped by a local fabric shop (15 miles into the next town) just to see what she had available. Found a nice blender collection called Shadow Play by Maywood Studios. As I'm always in the market for blender fabrics I kept it at the back of my mind for future reference. I didn't have the blender colors I needed so decided to check out her fabrics again. I emptied out 4 bolts and came home with 22 new blenders plus 4 fat quarters with veggie prints that I didn't have for this quilt I'm working on. All my fabrics are now folded onto comic book boards which I'm about out of again. I've folded over 1,000 boards so far but I can't believe I have that many fabrics. But now I'm really going to have to be careful for the rest of the year about buying fabrics as that killed the credit card dead, dead, dead.............:-)

All kinds of thing cause me to break my no fabric buying rule. The biggest thing that makes me break it is pretty fabric. I have been doing pretty well for 2 years but I still just can't resist sometimes. Also I can usually put a quilt together from my stash but i often need just one more to complete it. This usually means I will buy at least 2 fabrics. I am weak when it comes to resisting fabric and chocolate!

I agree with your DH. Also, space is an issue for me so haven't bought anything for ages. When I finish a WIP I'll be allowed a backing, which is likely to be a sheet.

I break the rule when I find a fabric on sale and it is just what I need for a project. I have been working hard at using up what I have if that counts for anything.

For sure a great sale price would break my rules - I just saw that Kaffe Fasset fabs were on sale at Canton Village Quilt works - I've been planning on starting my "Kaffe Collection" for a while... I knew I'd never find a better price and selection than what they were featuring today, sooooo lots of Kaffe is on the way to my house!!!!! :)

I was on a moratorium and doing quite well UNTIL....the quilt store I long arm for Pine Needles Sewing Center in Cedar Rapids, IA has me quilting on a 102x102 quilt they will be doing as a project this fall. If I can do it in a different color way or pick out my own fabric I WILL be breaking the moratorium. I love star blocks and they are all around the border the inner part is neat sampler blocks. Can't wait to get back from vacation and quilt it!

Those JoAnn's flyers and emails will get you every time!

Broke mine when BFF told me about Fairy Frost for $3.60 and $4.40 per yard. It starts at $25.00 per metre down here. We bought 28 yards between us and shared the postage. We are in Australia.
The exchange rate has kept me on the straight and narrow but so has realising just how much fabric I really do have. DH has always said I have enough to start my own Quilt Shop - I'm afraid he may be right.

I don't just buy fabric without a quilt in mind..... EXCEPT.... when there is a super sale and I can find fabrics that will go with lots of things. That's what happened to me a couple of weeks ago.... huge tent sale at the LQS with yard sale from the local guild just a few steps away. I didn't spend a fortune but I did find a few things that I'm loving right now. ... and the guilt is almost gone.

Learning a new techniques (actually several) this week on my new serger. We are making a childs dress, one will be for charity, the other one is for my 3yr old. Now while I have tons of fabric that I could use I found this pretty purple (her favorite color) and couldn't resist. So, grandkids and kids will always be on the top of my breaking my budget rules.

I like the gal that said "shut up, who asked you?" I have been on a fabric buying moratorium for the last two years, but when Craftsy recently had a 40% off sale on some new charm packs - well the rest is well know by all. Then Bunny Hill has a new line of fabric coming out called "Mistletoe Lane." It is going to be a hard time from here on, but may be I can get the gal to say "...go for it!"

I keep telling myself not to buy more fabric- then I see something that calls my name- oh well, there is always tomorrow to stop buying! I will say that I have a huge stash- almost embarrassing- almost!

Today is August 3, 2014. As of today I have not bought any fabric this year. I am going to keep my New Years resolution this year even if it kills me. I resolved not to buy any fabric this year at all. I have been given oodles (5 liquor store boxes full!) of wonderful LQS fabric by a friend, but have bought none so far...

I loved your post's section about the "gals", lol! A lovely batik for $3 a yard - no question, I would have bought it too! I usually will break my "fabric fast" if I see a beautiful fabric that is on sale at a super price and I know it will be just perfect for a project for which is on my bucket list. or it is a neutral that I could use in multiple ways.

What causes you to break your fabric buying moratorium rule???

Fabric at yard sales, estate sales, and auctions if it's reasonably priced. Also if it is something I know I can't live without, will never see again, is perfect for a certain quilt or project....and this is why I have more fabric than I will use in my lifetime. I have a walk-in attic which is just an enabler (so much storage space). I live in Lancaster County, PA where there is practically a fabric store or quilt shop on every corner and those stores are so hard for me to ignore.

I NEVER break a moratorium. Because I refuse to go on one!!

I will go on a fabric DIET, but not a moratorium. I refuse to punish myself that way, I've done nothing to deserve such a harsh restriction! :D