I bought the reminent special at fabric.com and was very pleased with the fabric. It was about 7 1/2 yards for under 19.99 and it is a great way to build up my growing stash. I put the word out that I am a quilter and I love scraps. As I am a pilates instructor I have quite a few clients that sew or their mom's sew and have received about 150 lbs of fabric so far :) I am really excited as I plan to make charity quilts and only work part-time. I use Bonnie Hunter's (thanks Bonnie) scrap users system and everything is nice and organized. My daughter loves to thrift shop so I go with her and buy yardage for backings and only buy fabric on sale. When I bought my sewing machine and frame the lady was getting out of quilting and she gave me thread and many yards of fabric. There are many ways to be frugal, just get the word out and have fun! :)

My first quilts were and are still beautiful. I used what I had... cut up clothing, and the backing was from a nice quilted bedspread! I still have those quilts, they are still beautiful and in use! Use what you have if you can. I buy fabric from Walmart, Hobby Lobby, have almost quit buying from Joanns....Little girls used clothing is nice, most people donate those as the girls outgrow them.

Some thrift shops has good quailty fabric and especially if you like scrappy quilts

You will find as you continue your quilting journey, you'll soon learn what you do and don't like, and what you do and don't need. Certainly learning to quilt doesn't require $10 a yard fabric, but you might want to buy better fabric if you're making a wedding quilt for a gift. You'll also learn to spot good quality vs poor quality and price is NOT always the key. A clue, perhaps, but there are good quality fabrics that are less expensive and some expensive fabrics that aren't the best. Only by your experimentation with sewing, quilting and washing fabrics will you learn what YOU like. Have fun!

Mary Jo's Cloth Store in Gastonia, NC. The largest fabric store on the east coast. www.maryjos.com If you've never been there before prepare to be ovewhelmed by the massive number of choices. You need a couple hours just to look at all she has, take a break for lunch to let it sink in and then go back to make decisions. The place has thousands and thousands of bolts of every fabric you can possibly think of.

The first time I went there I overheard the cutting lady telling someone the following story. She had helped a woman the day before who had come from Italy. She was on vacation in Italy, lying on the beach talking to a local. When she learned the woman was from America she said "OH! Do you know Mary Jo's cloth store? I order from her all the time!" She explained many of the Italian design houses would mail order from Mary Jo's and her store was famous in Italy.

The woman had never heard of it before, but before she flew home to California, she changed her flight to include a 2 day stop in Charlotte, just to go to Mary Jo's.

In business 60 years, "Mary Jo’s Cloth Store" started in the back of her Daddy’s Barber Shop on her 19th birthday in Dallas, N.C. You've never seen a fabric store like Mary Jo's.

I just learned that my Grandmother ordered bundles of scraps left from the manufacture of clothing. This was long before computers, and she ordered from ads she saw in magazines. She made some beautiful quilts.

Buy what you like. Even if the LQS wants you to buy their fabric, sometimes it is a percentage of the overall amount that you have to buy. Such as, if you need 5 different fabrics, I have found that the LQS is happy that I bought 2 of them from them, and used my stash for the rest. LQS wants your business. There maybe a required fabric that has to do with the class, so they will expect you to buy it from them if you want the class. But anything else can be from you source. The LQS has learned that if you don't like what you are sewing on, you won't return. So, many times the fabric is suggestion, not requirement.

The best advice on here is to look at the fabric you are buying. Don't be distracted by the color and print. Look at the weave and the thickness, feel the texture and notice how it drapes. Is it slightly stretchy or is it stiff and rigid? Compare different bolts by different makers if possible. After awhile you will start to get a feel for what is good and what isn't. You can find good and bad fabrics anywhere. Even my Walmart has some really nice bolts, and some I wouldn't use for anything!

It's possible to get good fabric at Joann's but the price is about the same as at LQS. With rare exceptions, I buy only on line from sale fabric selections, so average about $5/yd. for excellent fabric. It's not the very latest designs and colorways, but I'm happy. e-Quilter & Hancock's are my usual haunts.

when you are ready for a road trip, Pacific Fabrics in Puyallup has some nice quilting flat folds at 5.99 or so a yard.