I have to agree with everyone else. WOW!
What a selection of fabrics. I hope it was all sold.

My kind of lady!!!!!!!

I couldn't help but feel a tinge of sadness. It was almost like she was lonely and became not a collector but a 'hoarder'.

Oh My Goodness! I'm showing this to my DH! He says I have to use up at least 1/2 of what I have before I can buy more. I try to explain to him that I need pieces to fill in from time to time and he just doesn't understand. : (

I think probably many of us get like that. I have really de cluttered my house, I think I keep e bay going. my kids reckon not to stand still for too long or mum will photograph you and sell you on ebay.I reckon if you have to store anything in the attic , well you don't need it.

holy holy holy fabric. that is just nuts. I wish that I had enough money and space and time to warrent that much fabric. WOW is all that I can say. Wish that I had known and gone. would have been magical.

I have never seen anything like theis and I have been to a lot of estate auctions. I would have loved to have been to this one! I hope yo brought some home with you. Thanks for the pictures.

WOW.....wish I had been there to look and buy some.

So it's true , the one who dies with the most fabric wins.
I guess I will never be the winner.

Think about it - you go to the store to look around and spot something you like - and its on SALE - and you don't really have that color or design and. HEY" that would be good for a such and such design. so you get a little of it. Then another and another. Im sure its alot like being an alcoholic, or food aholic, and a FABRICAHOLIC. All good intentions of using it..."one of those days".. and then time runs out. - I am curious. I have been "investing" in die cuts, and Moda turnovers, jelly rolls, honey buns, and charm packs.......hey - they were on SALE - (MissouriQuiltCompany) and they were so cute. Have I opened ONE of them....... noooooooooooooo. Do YOU ever buy those cute packs and can't bring yourself to use them?? Am I alone here?? Don't you think that we all are addicted, one way or another just because we are quilters?

I sent this to my husband. In the subject line I put "I need more." Can't wait to hear his reply. LOL

Wow!
I wonder if she taught classes....it always makes me sad to think of all the information and history that is lost.
The quilts in the background look beautiful!

I have a quote in my studio.

"She who dies with the most fabric isn't sewing fast enough!!

My reaction is- wow, who FOLDED all that fabric and organized it for the sale? The lady who owned it may have had some organization in her home, but how did they move all that stuff and get it ready for the sale? (Just wondering if whoever did it would like to come stay at my house a couple of days!)

The auctioneers "team" and her 4 daughters organized and folded. They more or less grouped it by colors etc.

Wow I don't have anywhere near that amount in my stash. I guess it's off to the LQS!

Wish I could run across any sale, or store like that. Hope you brought alot ome.

Has anybody considered that she may not have purchased all this herself? She may have had a shop at some point or some of it may well have been gifts. In the bee I once belonged to we always gave fabric for gifts. It was not unusual to take home 10-15 yards for a birthday! Just a friendly thought. : )

Where in Mo. did she live?

She had a "reputation" as an awesome quilter. So, obviously she used it. Who cares about if her family recouped the money she spent on it. I surely don't live now to leave my family a rich inheritance when I die. I plan on living large and enjoying myself while I'm on this planet. So, instead of spending all this money on fabric, she could have invested it in the stock market and lost $200,000 of her retirement $ when the market crashed....at least she had the fabric!

I just think these are good pictures to keep for ammo- just when we all think we have a lot and the other half complains...whip out the pictures and show how much worse it could be!
I did but an entire sewing room last year from an estate sale-I get very sentimental about those things because I know how sewers love their treasures, and I carry on the appreciation for the stuff. A featherweight was even included! You can almost tell the womans personality by the things she had...no, I'm not a mush!

Puts me in mind of an auction I went to. 96 apple boxes of fabric. I ended up with 19 of those boxes. Receipts in the fabric showed dates from 1928-1954. The lady had worked at a 5&10 store that had fabric. When it went on sale she would buy what was left on the bolts. When she retired she was going to just sit and sew. She retired and shortly after passed away, her sister inherited and kept all the fabric until she passed. When I measured I had a bit over 2,000 yards. (I spent just under $200) My quilt friends and I had a ball dividing it all up. Have made many quilts using that fabric and so have my friends. I will have a huge stash leftover too, but its in my will that it gets boxed and taken to the quilt guilds I am in and to several places who do charity quilts. So even if I don't use it, it will go to good places. There are still about 100 yards of that fabric left in my stash. Humm think I will go pull some and make another throw this weekend. Oh yes, most was 36" wide.

I just remembered something, a friend had rain water get into her basement sewing area, they moved fabric etc out as fast as they could. Her husband was heard to remark, "My goodness woman you must have $200 of fabric down here". Ah yes, probably several thousands when you counted everything. But that's todays prices, a lot was gotten on sale or clearance, so sure she didn't have todays cost invested. Just so funny he didn't have a clue. Mine knows how much I spend on fabric etc as most of the time he is along. If we hit a good clearance sale, he will ask if I am sure I have gotten enough. Gotta love that man.

Would fabric from 1928 still be strong enough to use?

(I don't have anything nearly that old...)

Can you imagine the hours and hours it took for some people to get all that bundled and numbered for the auction? It looks like each bundle was wrapped with clear wrap. How many yards of that did they use. That is a lot of fabric.

Yes, if it wasn't left out in the elements to rot. I have some that's as good as new.

Did it sell by auction? That looked larger than our fabric store supply. I would have loved to have shopped there I have bought fabrics at yard sales by the box full and bag full usually in containers you can view colors etc and have loved the excitement of discovering the treasures there but nothing on this scale I agree she wins

Where in Mo. did she live?[/quote]

Ava

Me too. My little corner in the dining room/studio like a drop in the ocean compared to hers.

I think she won....really!

I'm wondering if they sold it all? And, if not, what happened to it?

Are you kidding? There were 2 ladies there that each probably spent well over $1000 each------it made the rest of us a little upset.

Oh my!!! I don't even know what to say.....what a lot of fabric...now I know I haven't got too much!!!

OK. My turn to say WOW!!!!

I love auctions, but
have never seen one like that.
J J

Kudos to the organizers of the sale. That's how I'd like my stash organized!

What an array ,must have lasted for hours & Hours. :D

You know, I think that is really sad. There is no way in the world anyone could use that much fabric. She was a definite hoarder, and just think of all the donations that could have been made to a quilters guild, or some other organization that would have made very good use of all that.
When is enough enough?

Wow is right! I've been avoiding buying "extra" material since I've just started quilting...and felt a "stash" might be unnecessary since I am trying to do one project at a time. (Ha!) I have never seen so much material in one place...possibly more than in a QS.

This post makes me so sad. Maybe we should call ourselves
"fabric collectors". Quiltmaking is just the enabler.
Remember Imelda Marcos? She "needed" all those shoes because she had to attend many public functions. Happy quiltmaking, I hope!