hope someone hasn't already posted this link. I just found this while doing the fabshophop. Maybe it will answer some questions.

http://www.americanquiltretailer.com/cotton/

Very informative article. thanks for posting it!

Yes, very good article. Thanks!

Very interesting! Maybe we should all use our stashes and not buy much to drive the demand down and then the prices will come down! this may be true of buying new clothes also!

Quilting fabric is such a tiny portion of the market for goods made out of cotton that even if a lot of people quit buying it would not have the desired effect (driving down the price).

Though it might cause a lot of quilt shops to close, or even fabric manufacturers to go under.

And that is NOT what any of us want.

So ... just plan your purchases wisely, and draw from your stash when you can.

Remember: if prices go up 20%, that means that you can still afford 4 yards of fabric instead of the 5 that you would have been able to buy for the same amount of money before the price increases hit.

It's not the end of the world. But from what I hear from my sources in the fabric business, the prices are likely to keep going up for a while yet before things settle down.

Awesomeness. Thank you SO much for the link! It's nice to see frank talk about what's going on.

Interesting, We may have to do as earlier quilter did using clothing what ever we can find to make quilt. Many here find great finds in the Good Will, Yard sales. :? It is the signs of the time.

Finally, at the link, I see someone mention the value drop of the US dollar. Your dollar has lost ground against many other currencies. As an example, for the longest time, one US dollar was worth around $1.15-1.20 Canadian. For several days, a Canadian or Australian dollar has been worth $1.05 US dollars. That's almost a $0.40 drop for the US over the last few years. Your imports are going to cost you more, depending on which countries you're doing business with, and the strength of their currencies.

Thanks for this link. It's interesting to see that the info is pretty much the same. I have seen an article in the New York Times that indicated that it should get better, but not immediately, so there may be a bit of bright light at the end of the tunnel.

Triple post...arrrkkk