I admit I neep help !
 

I have not bought any fabric for at least a year but am still struggling with the disease of wanting to accumulate more ! While searching ebay this am to see what lots of fabric were selling for so I could de-stash, I found myself wanting to bid ! I have so much now in my tiny home that I am overwhelmed and therefore do not get anything done . Whew, perhaps in posting give myself the strength to part with at least half of my stash !

I'm a member here, also. And I say to myself, I don't need anymore fabric. Which is really true. I'll never use up, what I have. I went to a fabric shop 2 weeks ago, and they was having 50% off plus 10% more if you buy what ever is left on the bolt. Anyhow, I came out of there $75.00 poorer, and $75.00 fabric richer. And a week ago, I bought 3 1/2 yrds more from a member in the sale/trade area of this group. Going to 2 quilt show's, this week end. I tell my wife to tell me NO MORE FABRIC. I'll try to let you know, what I do. Take care Don

In preparation for retirement I knew I would need something to keep me busy. It is common advice that your income will drop when you retire. So I decided to lay in a supply (stash) of fabric while I could still afford to buy it! Here I am retired for 7 1/2 years now and cannot reduce my stash. I set out on a quest and made over 40 charity blankets and numerous small projects. It didn't make a dent. Because I throw in the occasional fabric sale and projects for which 'I don't have what I need so I buy more', my stash continues to grow. I sought help from my peeps only to find out they had the same problem! There is no help for this kind of addiction!

So many of us have this addiction. I like to say it is cheaper than therapy.I am trying desperately to get mine ready for de-stashing. Every time I start looking at my stash I see some I forgot about and think "that would be great for . . . . Never ending.

Oh to have such a problem, if you need somewhere to send fabric just let me know LoL. Actually it's really a good problem to have, at least our addiction is something productive. I know lots of people are addicted to things that keep them trapped in bad behaviors and selfishness. At least we create things that give us pleasure and we can share them with others and give them pleasure also. I see it as a win win.

I have finally decided to try to give some of my purchases away. There are fabrics I thought I would use but now, nope. I think they will end up on the give away table at Guild. It always seems like when I start to make quilts, I need 1-3 new fabrics to coordinate. It's a losing battle to get rid of 2 yards having to buy 4.

Set yourself some personal guidelines and budgetary restriction. Maybe, I won't buy any more fabric until I complete a couple tops using my stash. Or, I'll buy only one new yard and see how I can combine it with my existing stash. Mostly, I just immediately delete the fabric websites from my computer. Don't even open them. Maybe you could trade some of your stash with another quilter of similar taste. It would be new fabric to both of you and no $$ changed hands. For me, finding fabric is kind of the thrill of the hunt. Once I buy it, pat it a couple of times and incorporate it into my stash, there it remains and I feel let down.

LOL not all of us have this problem. Ours is just the opposite, not having enuff in our stash. So the hunt is on still trying to remain within our budget, especially being retired and on much limited funds. We "quilting paupers" look forward to the freebies and give aways and sales here and elsewhere to help build our stash. However, buying fabrics is a quilters virus and is most definitely catching. One I will gladly except-still trying to stay within my budget. I have learned to have a special acct at my bank specifically for this purpose. Every month i deposit x amt of dollars in that acct ., just for this purpose. This way i wont hopefully go over board, even tho it hurts a bit to have to pass up some nice fabs posted on the board.

I have learned to like scrappy quilt more than I used to. I find I can use up misc. pieces and those piles get smaller! I am making quilts for homeless folks, women in a shelter, and kids "in the system". Doing pieced backs has helped as well. Small pieces are made into crumb blocks, rest into dog bed stuffing. Maybe I am making a dent_~~? And oh sew fun trying!!

Just this year I went through my stash and got rid of all scraps that I would never use and all fabrics that I have had for over two year with no project in mind for them. I gave them to a co-workers daughter that is learning to sew. So I only had enough fabric for ten quilt projects I think. Now I am back where I started...buying fabrics on sale. I do have plans and patterns for all of my fabric and am pretty good at getting the tops down. Sometimes I consider myself a topper instead of a quilter because I go through stages of not feeling like doing certain steps. For instance back in July I quilted 6 tops from my pile. This situation of mine has gotten me into a rut with 6 quilts that need binding. All they need is bound and I can do whatever with them, but noooo I am not interested in it at this time. I am the point when I need to re-evaluate my love of quilting and see things through or donate them to my guild. At least I know that they will get bond and given to a charity.

If your accumulation is interfering with your enjoyment , it truly is time to purge. Do a few PIF's on this board. Find a guild that does charity work and donate. Find a quilt buddy to assist in purging, making sure they have the resolve to support your final outcome objectives. And second stay off the internet more ... only allow your self a certain amount of time and stick to it. Third give yourself some sewing goals, and reward yourself with something other than buying fabric. And put a big sign up "more output, no more input".

Lori S, I like your suggestion..... 'stay off the internet more'.... you know there are devises to limit the kid's use of the internet. Maybe adults should use it on themselves.... haha.

I think we all have this addiction and we all tend to enable each other. If we REALLY wanted to stop buying fabric, we would.

I have not bought fabric since about a year ago except for one six yard piece I used for a backing on a UFO. So I can count that one done.

I promised myself that I would only work with fabric I have to make and finish The many tops I have started or planned.

After saying no a few times to myself, it did get easier. I have gone to quilt shows and come out only with a pattern or two and a LAM ruler and a square up ruler for HSTs.

I am proud of myself.

I am sorry not to be purchasing new material from LQS, but the way I see it, I bought so much over the last several years that I have done a good part to keep these stores in business. I just can't afford it any more and I am truley sorry for that.

I am now enjoying what good fortune I have with what I own now.
peace

I don't think anyone should fee guilty about your stash. Instead, I view my fabric as art and I am and art collector and have an art collection. I love looking at beautiful fabric as much as I love looking at paintings on a wall. Some people spend thousands on paintings and hang them on the wall and never look at them. Buying fabric is much cheaper. Sometimes, I even have a hard time cutting up a beautiful fabric to turn it into a quilt because the fabric is so beautiful itself. I look for quilt patterns that use large pieces of fabric to showcase the fabric. There is a trend now that I see in magazines where people stretch a piece of fabric over a cavas and hang it on the wall Sounds like a great idea to me!

GOT AN IDEA. For all those who have an abundance of quilt tops and need to be finished or scraps, or a larger stash adn want to reduce, maybe you gals can sew up soem warm blankets for the victims in colorado who and are affected by the floods. Since winter is just around the corner for them-they will be in dire need of some warmth. Is one way to reduce your stash. Dont have to fancy-just warm. Just thinking!

I've decided that I will make scrappy quilts from the fabric I have on hand but that it is going to be ok to buy fabric if I want to make a specific quilt and don't have the fabrics necessary for it. Right now I'm itching to make a bright chevron quilt and have been telling myself no but I think I'm going to go for it! I've made 4 quilts, a Professional Tote and two Classmate bags using my stash only. I think it's ok to buy some fabric now!

Thanks for the replies, I plan to reduce by at least half MAYBE MORE ! I have spent the past two days making up a few kits and the rest except my large scrap collection has got to go, I find that complicated patterns just irritate me and I enjoy scrappies, so except for the few kits I made up and my scraps it is all going . I am trying not to think of the money wasted UGH! I have not bought anything for at least a year but like I said there is too much in my tiny house and I have found myself not sewing for quite sometime because it is overwhelming to drag it out to get what I need , I also find that what I used to like is not what I like now LOL ! I have the PIF,several boxes now of older fabrics and hopefully sell at a very low price the newer fabrics :)

I tell myself the same thing and promise me I will not buy anymore fabric until I finish some of the projects I have in the works. But then something comes up like a baby shower or a friend wants to go to a shop and I simply can't resist. Last week when my sisters were here I think I bought something from every shop we visited and I bought a kit for a beautiful quilt that will go in my pile of to-dos. Oh well, I justify it as being useful stuff where others buy things they may never use, wear or will never be beneficial to others. Do I sound like I have myself talked into my fabric buying being justified?

I thought I had my buying fabric under control but last week when I cleaned my sewing room I discovered I was wrong. I am embarrassed at the amount of projects I have started to. Guess I have to get locked in my sewing room and get busy.
Wish I knew the answer to this.

I too must admit to too large a stash and have been on a fabric diet for over a year, however there are some sales that are just too good to pass up (I'm a work in progress).
When I feel the need to buy I'm trying to stick to blenders, I have far too many prints that dont go together at all. Not even in a scrappy sense.

LOL well my three granddaughters never give me enough time to really get a stash set up .. LOL they have too many projects that Grandma can make .. Oh Grandma did you see the new pattern picture I sent you ?? LOL Or let's go to Jo-Ann's and see what we can find Grandma .. LOL Do they have me around their little finger or what ?? LOL OH well its all good for sure !! LOL :-)

Or, perhaps if there was a way to quilt faster we could catch up with our stash expansion?

I agree. And as long as I have space to store my stash, I will continue to enjoy it.

If only I had room and organizational skills ! That is the problem, well after today I will be 9 flat rate boxes lighter from PIF ! I hope to sell at least that many more but they don't seem to be selling on ebay these days. It is hard giving it up but I know in the end I will have room to actually sew and not just collect. I have not bought more that a couple of patterns for at least a year ,and speaking of patterns , and special rulers , they are the next thing to go ! No more rulers for me , those demos at quilt shows used to suck me in , the last time I went and my friend would pause at the demo booth , I would say either I already have it or Don't let me buy it ! Anyone looking for a special ruler, a certain purse or quilt pattern ? I may have it for sale cheap ! LOL .

I did buy a lot of fabric at garage sales this summer but I am fortunate that I volunteer with two groups that get material donated and then I can sew quilt tops from their stash. Sometimes I sandwich and tie them too.

I also have about 6 tubs of material from my mother-in-law's stash and am working on reducing that with a niece.

Still too much fabric so I just need to take the time and do some projects and not replace from the volunteer group's stash until I have less piles!!!! :) One of the ladies in my church group gives me smaller pieces to use in scrappy quilts and I am waaaaaay behind in cutting and using them.

I still go into JoAnn's and buy things like rulers and thread. Soon Hobby Lobby is opening so that could be a problem. :)

Connie

My stash is not that large though I wish is was!!!!!

Golly Ladies and Men. Look at the furniture in our houses and stuff that we DON'T use! We, at least use our fabric. Don't be so hard on yourselves.

Cruising LQS, quilt shows, fairs, etc. is all part of the wonderful experience of quilting. You can't take away the shopping, feeling, buying, bargain-hunting part of the whole. So give yourself permission to do all those things, understanding that you are a grownup. You make your own decisions and you are not controlled by some "monster from the ID" (The Forbidden Planet...remember?). Get a grip. You can have it all; just not all at the same time. Enjoy your hobby. Please. It's such a fun way to spend time. No go out there and look around and, well, just don't buy what you don't need!

One of my favorite things to do is to re-organize my stash. Last time, I realized that I would never use any of the brown fabrics I had on hand and mentioned that in a posting here. A fellow board member contacted me and said she'd be happy to take the browns off my hands; she ended up with three fully-stuffed priority envelopes. So far this month I've spent close to $100 on fabrics for christmas projects because apparently my stash had none at all. Reorganized again this weekend to incorporate the new fabrics and again came across fabrics I know that I will never use. I sure would like to know why, because when I buy the fabrics I really really like them. Another thing I do is make a quilt from fabric that I really like and then feel compelled to replace that fabric with exactly the same yardage. I'm going to have to put a moratorium on all purchases because it's getting out of hand.

my downfall is the sale table. don't need any fabric at any price!! however, my mother was a sale shopper and i have inherited it. (somehow not really fair to blame my poor mom, is it. lol)

the other problem i have is that when i buy a yard or two of something i like it never seems to match anything i have. maybe i need to organize all of it. then when i need to match something i will actually be able to find it.

ah, me! i suspect if it wasn't fabric for quilting it would be something else. as i tell my kids, it keeps me out of the bars and casinos. ha ha

Raedar why don't you sell it here? This is the first place I look everyday to see if there is something I can't live without :O)

I don't have the addiction YET! Because I just started quilting...but I can sure see how easy it is to start buying fabric when you see something you like. Especially when the good stuff goes so fast. I do not let myself buy anything unless it is for a current project. it's hard!

Look but do NOT buy. Or better still do not look. Put ebay listing on the wish list and then check back to see if you still want it or what the price is. When I do this I either forget about it or find it no longer interests me when I go back to see it. You can always bid your max and then if you are out bid then you were not ment to have that item.

Well my friend, you are in good company. When we moved to an apt. from a 3-bedroom house, I gave away about half of my stash, although DH and DS wanted me to get rid of more, I drew the line in the sand. I've been mainly quilting from my stash, not buying a lot of new fabric, however, I must be a fabric magnet. While recovering from a spinal cord surgery, learning to walk again, I talked to people about my quilting and had DH bring in my quilt album. Well, one of the therapists there asked if I could use more fabric. LOL. She said a friend had given her a bunch of fabric that she would never use, so I took it off her hands - nearly 40 yds. of fabric. I was blown away. I've already used some of it making table runners, placemats, etc., but I swear the fabric multiplies while I sleep. Because we are on SS, money is tight, but I've been keeping my buying down (it's a lot easier when I couldn't drive). I've made lots of projects, baby quilts, regular quilts, a quilt for my DGD that was totally from my stash; etc., etc. but the piles don't seem to be dwindling. I have, however, been able to buy only what I need, such as background fabric or fabric to complete a quilt. It's not nearly as much fun though.

I consider it cheaper than therapy and let it go. I have bought minimal amounts of fabric in the last few years. I"m working more and don't have as much time to spend in the sewing room. But that doesn't mean I haven't bought things if I really love them. I've just changed my criteria. I don't buy fabrics I just like. I have to really love them.

I do by go-withs and blenders. I also buy special project fabrics when I don't have the right things in my stash. I just don't worry that much about it.

I agree we all need some kind of stash. I am a pretty new quilter and only due to being disabled now. I was a garment sewer but always said I would quilt when I retired. Of course I am totally addicted, but have limited resources. My little sewing group had a class for a leaf bowl yesterday- just bring a few 6" squares of green batiks. Well, what should have been a cheap class turned expensive since I didn't have any batik scraps at all. My advice...keep enough stash in case your life changes dramatically and you can "live" on what you already have. Everyone keeps saying, just pull from your stash, you don't have to buy anything! We aren't all there yet lol!!!
Oh, and yes, selling your overages on the site here would be fab!
sally

It's just the nature of the beast. "Quilter" I have a huge stash and still find I always need something else. If I don need it I can't resist the beauty of the fabric. I have just came to the conclusion, that we are a different breed, sigh!