Foolish Frugality
09-09-2013, 06:21 AM
#12
Super Member
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Texas, USA
Posts: 5,896
Watch for sales! Check out the clearance bins and remnants. You can get some really great bargains on quality fabric, if you'll just keep your eyes open. When bargain shopping (without a particular quilt in mind), keep an eye out for blenders and neutrals. Never underestimate the "power" of a 1-yard cut, if it's a good bargain. 
09-09-2013, 06:50 AM
#17
Power Poster
Thread Starter
Join Date: May 2008
Location: MN
Posts: 24,441
An example of foolish frugality -
A neighbor lady was making a baby quilt. What she used for batting - against my advice - was a very old, very skewed, wonky, would not lay flat no how - blanket. Several years later, she did admit that using that blanket was a bad idea!
The really weird thing about her insisting on using that was that this person COULD afford to buy decent batting. She probably even had some around the house, because she did a lot of crafts.
There is nothing wrong with using recycled blankets, mattress pads, flannel sheets, etc. for the middle of a quilt.
But when the blanket was just plain out of whack - that was foolish because it was impossible to get the outer layers to lay flat.
A neighbor lady was making a baby quilt. What she used for batting - against my advice - was a very old, very skewed, wonky, would not lay flat no how - blanket. Several years later, she did admit that using that blanket was a bad idea!
The really weird thing about her insisting on using that was that this person COULD afford to buy decent batting. She probably even had some around the house, because she did a lot of crafts.
There is nothing wrong with using recycled blankets, mattress pads, flannel sheets, etc. for the middle of a quilt.
But when the blanket was just plain out of whack - that was foolish because it was impossible to get the outer layers to lay flat.
09-09-2013, 07:33 AM
#19
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Moved from Missouri to California June2013 have 1 son 2 daughters, all grown and 2 cats
Posts: 568
I am a fairly new quilter, I've only made 3. Some of these suggestions or tips I've never heard. Thank you for starting a thread with these tips! I'm printing them for my notebook I've started to remind me. Although I've read a lot and have learned much any help that is given is greatly appreciated! Again thank you!
09-09-2013, 08:28 AM
#20
Power Poster
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Front row
Posts: 14,646
Use poor quality products and make a poor quality quilt. Use poor quality tools and get frustrated. Quilting is not a cheap hobby unless you are making a quilt to stay warm out of whatever the way quilting began. Keep an open mind about new quilting techniques and tools. What I have seen from many poster here is the instant poohing of a new tool without ever having used it because they think it's unnecessary but mostly because they think it cost too much.
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