Quilting Budget
01-07-2016, 11:42 AM
#42
Super Member
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Carroll, Iowa
Posts: 3,416
I try to limit myself to $500 but it never seems to work. Got myself over budgeted on my credit card so told myself I couldn't order anything else till I got it paid off again. Have enough projects lined up anyway but yes, I also have problems when I see a good sale on fabrics, batting, tools, etc and think to myself well the sale won't be there later so need to get it now.
I am retired and have a fairly decent pension with S.S. but need to remember to have some saved back for emergencies on the house. Its old and will be in need of repairs soon enough.
I am retired and have a fairly decent pension with S.S. but need to remember to have some saved back for emergencies on the house. Its old and will be in need of repairs soon enough.
01-07-2016, 12:04 PM
#44
Super Member
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Western New York
Posts: 5,834
I have more pre-cuts than I will ever use in a lifetime. I have to count them one of
these days and sell most of them. I don't know why I ever did this, since I usually
use yardage. Too much impulse buying and I MUST stop.
Thanks for bringing this to my attention, AGAIN, lol.
these days and sell most of them. I don't know why I ever did this, since I usually
use yardage. Too much impulse buying and I MUST stop.
Thanks for bringing this to my attention, AGAIN, lol.
01-07-2016, 12:15 PM
#45
Super Member
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Jozefow, Poland
Posts: 4,474
When I was married (16 years ago!) I had the ability to spend just about whatever I wished.
Then I owned a large quilt store in Dallas (Plano) Texas and was able to "buy" a yard of anything I liked that came in the door. I also rarely sewed during this time because running a store of this size was all-consuming, but that didn't eliminate my fondling/collecting habit, so the stash just grew and grew! (Less you think it was out of control, I swear I rarely bought then or before more than 1 yard at a time and contained it ALL in two cupboards in one room. Honest!)
Then I was divorced, closed the quilt store, moved away, and eventually began to live on slightly more than my small social security. I have all the fabric I will ever need even if I never buy or am given another inch. Yes, much of it is "older", but still works very beautifully in the kinds of quilts I tend to make. I have learned to want less, need less, feel more free and more happy than I've been in decades.
I'd say, buy your stash while you can, enjoy it now and later when you may only be able to buy less. Bright fresh patterns are only necessary to the designers and the manufacturers pocket books; they are not essential to making gorgeous, heart-fulfilling quilts. Being able to spend big on your quilting habit is neither here nor there in life overall. Don't let it become a worry, a challenge, or a status to your creative side, which probably is also giving and warm.
Jan in VA
Then I owned a large quilt store in Dallas (Plano) Texas and was able to "buy" a yard of anything I liked that came in the door. I also rarely sewed during this time because running a store of this size was all-consuming, but that didn't eliminate my fondling/collecting habit, so the stash just grew and grew! (Less you think it was out of control, I swear I rarely bought then or before more than 1 yard at a time and contained it ALL in two cupboards in one room. Honest!)
Then I was divorced, closed the quilt store, moved away, and eventually began to live on slightly more than my small social security. I have all the fabric I will ever need even if I never buy or am given another inch. Yes, much of it is "older", but still works very beautifully in the kinds of quilts I tend to make. I have learned to want less, need less, feel more free and more happy than I've been in decades.
I'd say, buy your stash while you can, enjoy it now and later when you may only be able to buy less. Bright fresh patterns are only necessary to the designers and the manufacturers pocket books; they are not essential to making gorgeous, heart-fulfilling quilts. Being able to spend big on your quilting habit is neither here nor there in life overall. Don't let it become a worry, a challenge, or a status to your creative side, which probably is also giving and warm.
Jan in VA
01-07-2016, 01:08 PM
#46
Power Poster
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Lowell, MA
Posts: 14,083
I don't have a budget, but 5 years ago we had to move from our 3 bedroom home where I had 2 sewing rooms, one i used in the summer, as it was in the basement and a lot cooler and where I had my old kitchen table, where i would sandwich my quilts because it was very wide and long. During the cold weather, to cut down on the expense of heating the sewing room, I used my daughter's old bedroom. It was probably a bad idea to have the two rooms, as I would forget what I had in one, or the other, so when we moved I had to purge half of the fabrics i had, but I will add that there was a big portion of fabric that I inherited when my sister passed away. What I didn't keep, I gave to my best friend who took some and gave some to a mutual friend who belonged to a quilting group that made quilts for children in area hospitals, so it all went to a good home. My friend was willing to return a large piece of fabric that I needed for a backing for the family reunion quilt I was making, it was just the right size, so she had kept it aside in case I needed it. Now that's a true friend. Now I generally only buy when there is a good sale at JoAnn's, I used to buy at the local Wal-Mart, but they stopped carrying fabric. When i receive money for a quilt I've made, I set it aside so I can use it to buy fabric, but I generally buy only what I need to finish my projects. I seldom buy kits or precuts.
01-07-2016, 01:18 PM
#47
Super Member
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Tavistock, Ontario, Canada
Posts: 1,059
I declare buying moratoriums on occasion to save up for later in the year. 2014 I saved to buy when I was in Edmonton with my DD when her second child arrived. Saving this year for Black Friday/cyber Monday sales online. Means I only buy if something is needed for a project. I have lots in my stash and 5 or 6 totes (large) of scraps collected from my quiliting group for scrappy quilts and projects. I'll keep busy!
01-07-2016, 01:23 PM
#48
Power Poster
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Mableton, GA
Posts: 11,228
I am the odd ball who doesn't have a big stash. I love remnants. And scrappy quilts. But would it make sense instead of stocking up on fabric that you might or might not like later to stock up on the $$ from the quilting budget? Then when you are retired you would have your cookie jar or some equivalent full of $$ and you can get what you want then?
01-07-2016, 03:28 PM
#49
Member
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: south central USA
Posts: 41
Living on a fixed income requires being frugal with my finances. I do not have a quilting budget. However, I save money monthly. I have learned there are better ways of purchasing fabric ... not new, but slightly used. Find yourself a good resale store that sells bed sheets and/or bed spreads. They also have clothing garments (dresses, robes, shirts, etc) that can be cut and used for quilting. When I go to the resale stores I have usually $20 cash in my pocket, maybe $30; sometimes less than $15. I've found many bargains for $5. I keep these sheets in a clear plastic tub in my sewing room with a variety of colors and designs on hand. I make a quilt using the fabric I have on hand. Slightly used fabric is much easier to work with since it has had several washings by precious owners. You can find cotton sheets, polyester and/or blends. Many of my backings are made from bed sheets. Save your money and buy resale. (P.S. Surely you can use that stash of money for something else. If tempted, renew your mind with God's Word and temptation will leave out of the window, following the flying geese heading south for the winter season.)
Last edited by the King's kid; 01-07-2016 at 03:32 PM.
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