Careful. That STASH can quickly turn into a storage problem. First consider how much room you have for your stash. Also, remember you may want to trade fabric with other quilters. My stash started with other quilters giving me material they had never used but put into their stash!
How much money are you willing to spend on this. Remember you'll need that storage area or shelving.

Also, over time your preferences may change. What colors and textures/prints you like to work with now may not be what you want to use next year.

For me: now I only buy slightly more than I need for a project ... so I have enough in case I make an error. My stash is way too big as it is. I have enough for soooooo many charity quilts it isn't funny. Why charity quilts: because my stash has a lot I wouldn't want to use on the finer quilts as my taste had changed and my quilting has [hopefully] evolved to a higher level.

Literally, this is a personal choice. Good luck.
qfriend

I do this too!
If I do ever walk in with a project, I always round up to the nearest yard, and if I happen to REALLY like the fabric, I will buy up to three yards, lately, have started buying ten yards at a time ... and, may start buying bolts ... just to use up all my other stuff!
And, I always say the same thing: The leftover is seed for more fabric <g> .. same with extra blocks... when I find a project, I will rarely make exactly the number of blocks needed. I don't know "make 4" ... I understand twelve or twenty five or a hundred! so, there are always extra blocks ... seed for more quilts of some kind.
If I find a line that I like (as in there are many different textures) rather than calculate a quilt and have to stand there and figure something out, I will buy half a yard of each part of the line ... the jelly rolls are cool, but more expensive than just making your own ..

I buy online for sales that are 3 dollars a yd and buy 1 yd of all the ones I think I might use.
I stock up on fats that are on sale and buy at least 2 of each pattern.
Charms that are on sale under 5 dollars with at least 30 sqs. and buy 3 of them.
For backing the cheapest sale price for a good color for a backing and buy at least 4 yrds for lap size and more for larger.
I dont buy much except notions at Joanns but last week fats were on sale for 79 cents so bought alot of them.

I have learned if a fabric calls me it may not be there the next time I go shopping so if I can afford it I buy three yards or more. I have started buying solids and neutrals when they are on sale.

Hi,
I'm a bit obsessive, but if I REALLY like a fabric, I'll buy 2-6 yards of it. I used to only buy 1 yard pieces but I usually ended up disappointed :-(. But, I do have over 2,200 yards of fabric (probably more than 3,000). If you find great fat quarters that catch your eye - they're fine too - they could be an accent fabric on corners or something. So, the moral of my story is buy based on how much you like a fabric or if you think there is a possible purpose for it!

bob1414...that is a lot of fabric!

Wow, do you have a room just for fabric. That sounds like a dream come true for me.

"I have learned if a fabric calls me it may not be there the next time I go shopping so if I can afford it I buy three yards or more." Same here. I like having the choice of using it in a border or something. I only buy fat quarters if they are on a terrific sale, I only want a little of it cause it doesn't call my name (such as for a gift in colors other than I like, or if I like it and there is no yardage of it anywhere in the store. (then maybe I can use it to find more somewhere else)
I have never purchased a jelly roll, layer cake or charm squares for myself.

when i started quilting someone told me to always buy 1/2 to 1 yard extra of every fabric to 'build a stash', and here i am years later and many many quilts later with a HUGE STASH to prove it works.:mrgreen:
another friend told me always buy an extra fq sort of as a sample of the big piece. and yet another thinks if you love the fabric you should buy as much of it as you possibly can afford...and trust me, you will use it at some point...i dont' know about that one, i have fabrics that are quite old, and i still don't know what to do with them, but keep thinking some day the right project will come along...and i'll be ready.
really it depends on what kind of quilting you do, do you just quilt 1 project at a time, purchasing for that one then moving on? do you want your sewing room to look like a fabric shop? do you save scraps? do you use little pieces (fq's are enough) or do you do long row quilts?...it is all relative,
if you love it and think you will use it over and over buy lots, if you just want a little to remind you of each project get a fq. dont' worry as you make more quilts the stash will grow, all on it's own :D

Maybe looking thru quilt mags will give you some inspiration/ideas about your fabric choices that can be the start of your stash.

Or it can give you ideas of patterns/blocks that appeal to you to try and then you can pick the fabric that way.

To me, a stash is a stash, it's not defined by amount or size. The fun of it is exploring the shops and online if practical, looking at all the different choices and how it motivates your creative thinking. It's all a part of the quilting process.

Have fun shopping and feel free to share your choices by posting pics of your new treasures!