Gemm

Beautiful quilt and a great bleedin' save, WMUTeach! I have some colour-catchers but haven't tried to use them because I have a front-loader and I've been given the impression they are unlikely to work very well in my machine. I do have a couple of quilts that are too big for me to wash at home and I will take the colour-catchers to the laundromat with me, I think, as both quilts have some bright reds/blues/oranges in them...

petthefabric

I’ve acquired a reputation that I’m trying to change; “will take all donations” to “will pass it on.”

quiltsfor

I'm in the totally disagree with her logics, school. I don't say oh, new notions got to get some of them ( I don't have a stash of 10,000 pins) - I might buy a new ruler once in a while, restock on needles etc, but I'm not going to rush in and buy notions to 'fill' up my drawers or support a 'shop' , like I need 20 seam rippers because I used one last week etc, I do my own quilting on my own domestic machine, because I like the process of making my quilt from start to finish and don't want to pay an expensive fee to use her long arm or pay to take a 'class' to use it. I never take classes and never plan to for any reason - there is a cheaper way to learn and that is video on the internet and books, I don't socialize at quilt shops, sorry people, but I'm an intervert, etc. etc. A lot of us like being at home quilters. There is nothing wrong with those quilters who like to socialize and go to retreats etc, but I'm not one of them. Her 'shop' would go bust if I was one of her business plan customers.

As far as feeling like there needs to be only 3 to 4 fabric lines out new every year - does she expect everyone to like the color/designs of these lines - picture everyone making quilts with just these 'new' lines - our quilts would end up being like school uniforms, no personality, no nothing, just same, same, same color/design lines in every quilt no matter what the pattern. Honestly, the picture of the quilt with the woman in this blog story was not to my taste at all. I didn't like the choice of colors or fabric designs used. So, if that was the 3 to 4 fabric lines that were 'that year's choice' I guess I wouldn't be making any quilts that year.

Fabric stash is what you make of it. It's up the person who has it to decide what they want in their sewing room. Stash is stash, any kind of stash. I stash up on food staples, as well, so is she planning on saying you should feel shame because my pantry has more than one bottle of catsup, or that I shouldn't buy my regular 8 cases of cat food at a time, because of the savings I get when purchasing in bulk. Maybe I should just buy one can a day so I don't have 'stash' of it. But, I digress, I buy fabric because of a few things, I like the line/design, and I plan on using it. Do my choices every change, yes, and at times I donate fabric I no longer like for whatever the reason, I also pick up fabric others have donated to my local thrift store. Do I overbuy certain fabrics. Yes, I do, but I have had the (wouldn't call it heartbreak) but had the uncomfortable realization of finding out that I can no longer make this quilt I was planning because I ran out of a certain fabric and have to change what I was planning.

Someone I know, would buy yarn for a project, knit it up, and then get rid of the knitting needles and left over yarn every single time and then rebuy it all when she wanted to make another project. I actually felt bad for her, because at times, when money was low, she couldn't reach into her cupboard and pull out something to work on when she couldn't afford to buy at the time she wanted to work on something.

So...
I have stash because I want choices on days when I want to work on something
I have stash because I make plans for future projects
I have stash because I want enough fabric to do a project even if I decided to change up the pattern I want to make
I have stash because I know there are at times, lean times when I can't afford ot go out and buy
I have stash because I like a fabric or fabric line and I'm not ready to use it, but want it there for when I am.

Sure, you can overload of stash, and it can get out of hand. But, I think the line is having stash, no matter how much, to crossing the line to reaching the hoarding level. But, that isn't for you to decide for me. It is for me to decide. When my stash ever gets to be too much and - shames - me as she states, then it is time to re-evaluate and decide what I want to thin out. As long as my bills are paid, and I have food on my table, then what level I want my stash to be is my business!

tranum

I seldom find yardage at a thrift store but this week I bought a bundle of kid print (sealed up) for $4.00, and I’m thinking it’s small pieces. When I unsealed it, I was pleased to find 4 yards of “Cars”, 2 yards of Transformers and 3 yards of Minions So 45 cents per yard ! There will be a lot of kids charity quilts coming out of my sewing room ! Jackpot ! !

Gemm

Oh my word, Tranum - what a jackpot find indeed! And the fact that you already have ideas for it is just the most scrumptious icing on this cake! :-)

WMUTeach

July 2 and I have two finishes to show from the very last day of June. Both are isolette covers for the local hospital's NICU. Top and batting are from stash but I had to buy backing. They must have a black or very dark navy back so replicate the darkness a little one would experience in their mother's womb. Done and done.

The light quilt is Bunnies By the Bay fabric and just too cute for words. Mom and baby bunnies in the day and night with suns and moons. I never dreamed I would like gray for a baby but this one has captured me. This is the fourth quilt I have made with this fabric. (Black backing)

The second quilt is RWB scraps from multiple projects but all have stars. I wanted to try a disappearing four-patch. Learned that even if the eye reads a red on white and looks to have good contrast, it might not. Oh, well lesson learned. (Dark navy backing)

Gemm

Wow, WMU - you are just unstoppable! I love that grey fabric, too - it's so sweet!

MaryKa

Mine died before I was able to start it. Found a box that had been slipped under a side table and when I rearranged some furniture is when I found it. Opened it up and found about 200 yards of fabric. from quilt sizs to my dress sizes so I will be trying to decide what to do with these fabrics. IT'S July and I have not even completed one dolly outfit. I'm 6 months behind schedule. Normally I would have met my quota for the dollies but other things kept getting in the way so I have to play catch up.Starting tomorrow I will be doing my next project. Getting everything mailed out.

MaryKa

My fabric shopping days ended last year as I have been getting all the left over fabric from the quilt guild. But then God looks down and see I don't have the exact piece I needed for a particular project and I get the sort the fabric mood and open a box I had sorted thru maybe 3-months oe 3-years ago and the piece I needed is laying on the top afterr I dump out the entire box. I know what I put in the bax from the code I put on it and it did NOT have that piece of fabric. I just bow my head and thank My Lord for having my angel come to my fabric rescue this time. Again. Then I start cutting.

Yesterday I opened a different box that I had no idea of what was in it. I found 3 pieces of white fabric that looks to be lining for curtains. I'm going to have to tak a swatch to HL and see what they sell it for. Then it will get added to my code for the "new" box.

Just working busy as a Bumble.

WMUTeach

Not so much unstoppable as driven to keep emptying my bins of fabric in a purposeful way. I love to "start" interesting quilts but then fall out of drive to finish. Periodically, I will get super focused and finish, finish, finish, resulting in a flurry of new tops. I am just catching up with my starts and unfinished pieces. I still have UFO's that need my attention and have two large sampler quilts that are in progress as well as one graduation quilt that needs to be done by August 1. Time to press in and get going on that one.

BTW Bunnies By the Bay is available via Timeless Treasures and of course E-Bay.