It's the latest word on an old theme, the price increases by the fabric manufacturers.

FYI: South Sea Imports has raised their prices another 15-20 cents per yard, and Fabri-Quilt is going up 15 cents / yard at the end of the month.

Fabri-Quilt further said that their sources (the mills, I presume) are raising their prices another 15% at year-end, so we can expect still more prices.

Ok. Anybody planning on making their next quilt out of their husband's/sons used boxers? :|

Time to stock up!

used boxers...nope but yes I HAVE been know to get new boxers and use them if I can find an awesome looking plaid.
I'm waiting on word from E.E. Schenck and Blank Quilting reps to call me back with their increases. Moda's increase isn't that bad but the rep said expect to see it go up again after the 1st of the year.

Ouch! :( Thank you though for the heads up :D:D:D

Last time I was in the LQS all the new stuff was over 10.00 a yard. I looked for the OLD stuff, lol!

I have been trying to get the best deals I can find on-line or in stores. I do check garage sales but no one ever has anything like that here. Heaven knows I have enough fabric but the thought of running out is scary :shock: Guess I need to look a little harder.

There are lots of good sales online now. If quality fabric is $3 - $4 a yard, buy it now in yards of colors that will blend with a little of the new stuff you will want to buy later.

Another reason to get out there and shop now before the price goes up!!!!!

I'm sorry but the thought of natural batik design just doesn't work well with me :) I might have to convice my favorite board memeber to start selling her stash again!!

Connecting Threads still has great prices. I hope the others don't go up too much. I still love the fabric store and LQS

Connecting threads has great prices, fabrics and they are 100% cotton and made in the U.S.A.
I really don't need anymore fabric.

Hello. I think there are quite a few still selling their stashes. I have to resist looking too. Quiltforme...soon..soon. LOL. Maybe they are telling us this so we will all go and stock up and bring the market back up(?). Who knows. It's like the priceof cigarettes and beer, it goes sky high and it is still sold. Fabric will go up and still be bought. Remember when it was 75 cents a yard etc. I do. Oh man. Long time ago. Let's hope the market changes before more price increases.

ACCCCK oh noo
I cant use mine as * **** ****** TMI

Regarding the question about boxers----someone on this board made a quilt out of boxers. Just type in "underwear quilt" under Search and you can find pictures from start to finish of a great looking quilt made from boxers!

Maybe you could use your shirts! When I was making flannel and blue jean quilts, I kept telling everyone to watch out, or there would be a square cut from the back of their shirts! You could find GREAT colors in shirts, not so much on the bolts!

As someone who deals with the clothing industry, the problem is the cost of raw cotton has taken a big jump this year. Between 15% - 25%. I am sure the factories will try and eat some themselves but with the costs of doing business, they can not absorb it all!

I hearya on the boxers. I'm not planning on buying any fabric at all for a very long time now.

Unless, of course,..... I might need that certain cyan or that certain brown or pink, ...............

Looked at some in town a few weeks ago, and it was $35 per metre!! needles to say, it stayed there.

I read in the newspaper yesterday that the cost of cotton (just the raw cotton) went up 86% over the last year. I'm still trying to find someone in the fabric industry who can tell me what percent of the price of finished fabric is just the raw materials cost. (Guess I haven't found the right person to ask yet!)

Anyway... I would think that even the lower-priced merchants like Connecting Threads are going to have to raise their prices too, eventually. The increases can't all be absorbed by the makers.

From what I've read, it's all driven by supply (cotton harvest was low) and demand (we all like cotton T-shirts and towels, along with our fabric).

For the curious reader, you may be interested in knowing that the wholesale cost of the new lines is $4.75 - $4.90 / yard now, and you have to add about 25 - 30 cents shipping charges on top of that, to get the price that it really costs when it comes through the door at your LQS. That's up from $4.00 - $4.40 a year or two ago. All the makers are watching each other closely, to see who raises their prices and how much.

Blank has gone up rather a lot, and Kaufman too, as they have raised prices across-the-board, both on old stock and new. Other makers such as Moda and South Sea Imports generally only raise the prices on new collections, though they are inching up the prices on their basic groups too.

I'd say... buy basics and blenders when they're on sale, and use the savings toward buying pieces of the newer "focus fabrics" that you've just GOT to have to make your special quilts.

Just a note about Connecting Threads fabrics - (they are great - I've used them) but they are NOT made in the US. They use "USA GROWN" cotton - but the fabrics are not manuf. here. Very few fabric makers are manuf. in the US, sadly :(

I am saving boxers for a quilt. I usually buy them and she doesn't care what she wears so I buy fabrics that I want later in scrappy quilts. She gets fun prints and I get reeally soft fabrics later for quilts...

gotta find a good thrift store with clothes that are for grabs, someone that has clothes not usable,

really disheartening th see these prices affecting everyone! and its not just us, the ones that creates the cloths and such!

I'd hate the thought of stopping quilting or sewing clothes and other stuff because I am not able to afford fabric.

but what did the ladies do in the depression? they found a way! wonder if we can get flour sacks?

I remember as a little girl, my grand ma made me a flour sack dress! and it had pretty little flowers on it! um, the depression was way before I came along, but still a lot of depression after ww2.

I have always used clothing for my quilts. As long as there are thrift stores & garage sales, I will be ok. Its a good thing I have been stock piling my fabric for many years, I wont pay more than $8 per yard for fabric, and if this means no more LQS, so be it!I guess I will see how creative I can get!

I think a boxer quilt would be fun to make.Problem is my hubby wears briefs.Now,he does have some shirts..Ummm

hehehehe, being I don't have a husband, I guess the thrift stores are the one, I do have a brother, nephew, 3 sons, brothers in-law, could go that route! hehehehe , um bubba want your boxers! heheheheheheeh, too funny!

I live in Australia and material here is around $22-$26 a metre!

Go to the thrift shop and get men's shirts in cotton... Larger shirts equals more fabric... cheap.....

Thanks for that Donna. At the moment I am addicted to buying fabric from the USA online as the Aussie dollar exchange is close to 1 on 1.

I wonder if all sewers just refused to buy fabric at these high prices, would the companies that make the fabric lower their fees abit? This is just getting ridiculous. I heard on the radio that cotton, corn & oil were all increasing. Hard to believe there could ever be a shortage.

I'm afraid that what would happen then is that it would be the quality, not the price, that goes down.

I have been looking for sales on basics and blenders. Seems I do a lot more shopping than quilting lately.

you're probably right. Tobad, huh?

Guess I'll resort to my stash more. If I cut the pieces small enough, maybe I won't notice how ugly the fabric was.

There is a site called 5bucks a yard and thousand bolts. their prices are reasonable.The thousand bolts site you can click on a color of the fabrics and it will bring up co-ordinating fabric to go with it if you click the little box beside the fabric you choose.And I think shipping is free over $30.00. Doesn't take me long to spend $30.00

HAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!
:mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

You bet, that's just the case. A lot of the fabric makers have been resorting to printing in China, using lower quality greige goods and finishing, etc, to keep prices down.

Some of the brands that formerly put out decent fabrics are now just crap because of this price pressure. I won't name names because it seems to offend some people on this forum, but I will say that if you're buying stuff from the cheap outlets, you're getting marginal goods, old goods, or in some cases, counterfeit goods. When the old stuff is gone, it'll be just marginal and counterfeit goods.

Predictions now are that prices will continue to increase. We've already been notified that the wholesale prices will probably increase another 40% in the next year. Each quarter brings new and higher fabric prices. Oh, and if that doesn't make you feel bad enough, consider the fact that shipping prices, both into your store and out to you (if you're shopping online) are increasing all the time too.

Shops are trying hard to give you the best deals they can on fabrics, to get your business. If you want to buy the top quality fabrics online or at your LQS, you'll be paying more.

You basically have a choice; accept lower quality, discontinued, or counterfeit goods at the chain stores and closeout online shops, or pay more for quality goods. Either way, you're going to be paying more, because even the crap stuff is going up in price.

But it's all relative. Our neighbors in Europe and Australia have been paying double and more what we here pay for fabrics for a long time. Most of them look at the USA quilter and wonder what they're complaining about.

And I thought it was expensive here in Canada, depending where you live, I am in the prairies, where the LQS charge $17 to $ 20 a meter. You quilters in the US a meter is approx. 39" long.

quilt shop here says to expect fabric prices up by as much as a dollar a yard by years end. she also said because of the flooding in pakistan the wide backing will be higher and in short supply (pakistan is where most of it is made)

Quilt in a Day has a great $4.00/yd sale going on now.

Don't know how anyone (not just fabric manufacturers) can justify price increases when the economy is still in the tank. I'm finding the "sales" are on everything that has already been hiked up so the "sale" price is the old regular price. This way when (if) things return to normal that will be at higher prices all around.

Time to hit the thrift shops and start a new-deja vu-retro-brother-can-you-spare-a-dime chic trend. I predict plaid shirts will be in short supply...:)