jcrow

I tend to buy fabric lines. Like fat quarter bundles and then some yardage of a couple of the fabrics I like the most, so I will have enough to make a whole quilt. I have lots of Kona Cotton Snow. Lots. And use lots of it. I have one drawer of fat quarters that are all dots. I have one that's all stars. I have stacks of reds and stacks of greens and lots of off whites. I have 5 yards of black. I have finally bought batiks. Yards of it. Taking a class this coming weekend and I'm making a quilt that requires batiks, so I'm taking all my batiks and then buying some to be able to make this quilt. I know I'll need something that pops. I have lots of layer cakes with yardage that matches. I buy yardage with even charm packs. I have lots of fat quarters. I have so much left overs from all my quilts, too. Plus I started buying 5 1-yard fabrics for the pattern "It Takes 5" meaning it takes 5 1-yard of each fabric to make this pattern and it's a book. In fact, I think there are two books now. I like that idea. So, when I'm at a fabric store and find a piece of fabric, instead of buying 5 yards of it, I find 4 to match it and I'm set. I don't usually just buy one piece of fabric because I always think I won't have anything to match it and I've been in that situation before. Couldn't find anything! So I have this beautiful piece of fabric and it doesn't match any white or off white or any color I can find. So, it'll go in a scrap quilt, which I hate to do because it's so pretty. That's why I buy fabric lines or have a pattern in mind. Even my reds I have...I couldn't find the right color red I needed for an applique. I had to go to the quilt store and the owner had the right color in her purse. So, I can't just buy different pieces of fabric. I'm not good with color, I guess is what I'm saying. I like quilt kits. It's all figured out for you. The owner of my LQS will make me up a quilt kit if I show her a pattern and tell her what I'm wanting to do with it. She never disappoints.

QM

Black is important to me for contrast, but not for everyone. When you buy, consider what you already have. What sorts of quilt do you especially like? I am not fond of 30's repro and the only pale colors I generally use are blue and green tonals. I make lots of quilts for kids in out of home placement, so I buy novelties and panels and things that go with them. I love strong batiks. After you figure out what sorts of things you like to make, stash building should be implied. Tonals in your favorite colors are always a good bet. Unless you have some idea of what you might want to do with it, "just because" is probably a poor choice. I had a lovely floral panel for 10 years before I figured it out. I go through a lot of moda muslin, as well. One thing to keep in mind is what size of quilt you are likely to make. If it is King sized, get 2-3 yard pieces. If it is table runners, 1/2- 3/4 yd is probably enough for anything you will want. Keep price in mind. Unless it is a major sale of really good stuff, cool it. While your tastes in colors may change somewhat over time, they probably won't change dramatically. I was a quilter for about 9 years before I bought all the fabrics for one quilt at one time. Unless you are buying a coordinating set, you probably won't find them together. Some people I know take tiny snips of all the stash fabrics with them when they shop.

lynnie

All that and anything i can gst my hands on

irishrose

I have Moda marble swirls in every color except black, which I hadn't seen until recently so now I will add it. When I get below 1/2 yard of any color, I buy more - well, maybe not the pale lilac. Pale blue isn't a favorite, either.

What do I buy I don't need right now - used to be florals, now it's batiks.

What do I not buy - muddy colors, civil war prints, blues if I can help it.

rush88888

i accumulate stash in three ways. the first is that i buy stuff i like. if i want to make something out of it later, i can usually find cooridinates. the second is that i buy enough stuff to make a quilt even though i don't exactly know what i will need of each color. i may not even have a pattern in mind, but i will have all of the fabric if i do find a pattern. the third is just that stash happens. these would be pieces left over from other projects.

i would say don't force what you choose as stash. start with the intention of making something using a pattern that you have. then, if you like something, pick it up. it all depends on how you decide to use it. this is the hardest part of building a stash since there is no pattern and nothing yet to go with it. don't force the process. you will fall into your own pattern of buying and using or buying and hoarding, just like the rest of us.

Knitette

The only advice I would give is to love the fabric you're buying, not just like it. This applies even when it's cheap, on sale or 'too good to miss'
If you love it when you buy it, chances are it won't end up in the bottom of the bin or in that scrappy quilt.
You'll know you love it when the shop owner starts giving you odd looks while you're standing petting it, or worse, talking to it - ask me how I know

sewbeadit

I wouldn't set out to buy a stash if I were just starting out. I would buy what I planned on making and then go from there. Through the years you have a stash. Can't imagine trying to buy up things you think you might need, and then not have any when you wanted it because you didn't think of that at the time. I had a lot of left over fabric stash from sewing and then my quilt stash grew from there. Now I buy what I want to when I see it, I rarely need anything as I have it now. I am older and it took me many years to get the stash I have.

Scraps

Oh my goodness!! I can't imagine how much more fabric I would have, if I intentionally bought stash!! I have so much stash just from buying for special projects. I would rather go shopping for new fabric for a new project. Stash gets old LOL I have started doing applique wall/door hangings and that will help use up odd pieces and eventually I will try a scrappie quilt. I have also made some cute tote/travel bags with leftovers from the special projects. Have fun which ever way you do it!!

nanna-up-north

I never thought of building a stash.... it just happened on its own. When I have fabric left over from a project (quilt or otherwise) it goes into my collection of fabrics (stash). At the beginning of my quilting (35-40 yrs ago), I looked at a beautiful antique quilt that had so many different fabrics and thought how expensive it would be to make that quilt. Add together the cost of 100's of fat quarters and the dollar value goes up. But now, I can make a quilt with 100's of different fabrics that I have pulled from my stash. And I didn't plan that stash.... it just took on a life of its own.

bearisgray

I started out to say that deliberately trying to build a stash is a good way to tie up money that might be more wisely spent (or invested/saved) elsewhere.

However, I've also noticed that sometimes a certain color is almost impossible to find at times. It seems that some years almost all the manufacturers have similar colors in their lines - and other years some colors seem to be unavailable.

Aqua being an example - I had shades of aqua from at least four lines - and they coordinated perfectly.

I've noticed that the "Christmas Reds and Greens" have changed over the years from Crayola Red and Green to a darker yellowed green and the reds also seem to have darkened.

So the colors that are popular and/or available do change over the years.