penski

i thought i had to much fabric till one day i promised myself i would not start on another quilt till i straightened it all up !! it took me a little over 2 weeks but i rewashed and ironed all my fabric and wrapped it on the comic book boards and it is all organized in color !! also i have room for more fabric now !!!

twinkie

I used to buy fabric all the time and now it is overwhelming. I don't buy fabric anymore unless it is something I need to complete a project. I used to have a close friend who was a compelsive fabric shopper. I know since we are no longer as close as we once were I have more self control. I am really not trying to blame anyone else but myself. I can relate to how you feel.

annesthreads

When I first started to quilt about 10 years ago, I started building a stash because that seemed to be the thing to do. Then after a few years I became very conscious of the amount of money tied up in all this fabric that wasn't being used and decided to stop buying without a definite project in mind. I was encouraged in this decision when someone I knew who liked dressmaking died of cancer in her early 60s and the friends clearing her house found lots of beautiful dress and suiting fabrics that had never been used - how sad that she never got to enjoy garments made from them.
I've not completely stopped "stashing" - if I find a truly unmissable bargain I might succumb, usually for potential backing fabrics, as the backing can add so much to the cost of a quilt - but on the whole I buy when there's a need - and that is such fun, because it's a treat that doesn't happen very often.
My decision was also driven by financial constraints - I just can't afford to buy fabric or anything else if it's just going to sit around. If I had more spare money, maybe I'd indulge in fabric buying more often - but I don't think so. As I get older I increasingly find that I only want to have what I need - too many possessions are a burden.
I know that this is very much a minority view among quilters, and I'm sure I'd be GREEN if I saw some of the stashes described here!
On the other hand, the issue of UFOs, projects that never get finished, is another matter entirely, and that's where my weakness lies!

Sarah in Brooklyn

This thread has been very inspiring for me. I just consolidated some bins and moved them to make more room on the fabric shelf - not more more fabric, but for sorting and organizing it better. I have a baby quilt project coming up that I'll need to buy some sashing for, but all the charm squares I'm going to use or cut from my stash! Thanks for the push, ladies.

MOLLYDOOKER2

My 2nd bedroom is my stash room. It is getting out of control and I have put a moratorium on visiting my local quilt shop for a while. I have been trying to organize by color in the highboy and triple dresser I have for fabrics , but I have now outgrown them as well and the piles are getting higher along with all my knitting yarn and my apparel fabrics for sewing for my grandkids. I try to work at organizing 27 things a day using the flylady.com( or it might be flylady.net) method. If you are overwhelmed I would suggest a look at her website fo some inspiration and thoughts on getting through your stash space. Good Luck with your stash and post a pic when u have it under control and u love the space again!!!! I plan on posting one when I get my room done!!! Thanks to everyone else for their thoughts and solutions !!!!

meanmom

I too have decided that my stash is getting too big. I have mine organized by what I call my ugly fabric which is in the closet. My FQ are separated by color, although I paper piece a lot and none of them are still whole. Then my pretty fabric is stored under my cutting table. It is full. I am trying to use up my stash. I have been pretty good so far this year. The International Quilt show is here in April. That will probably be a problem. I have made several scrappy quilts lately out of my ugly fabric. I am donating them. They are nice looking quilts just not my style. My friend loves my ugly fabric and she just longarmed a quilt for me and refused to accept any money. I cut her 40 FQ of my ugly fabric. SHe is thrilled with it. She just started a quilt with it.
Good luck organizing it. Mine is somewhat orgainzed. Just start working thru it slowly.

Judie

Lao Tzu said "Only those who know enough is enough, can ever have enough." Well, I'm at enough. I have not bought any frabric for some time and have no intention of ever buying any again. I seem never to be able to sew, though I thought I'd be able to sew more rather than less, oh foolish me.. why would I think I'd get to do what I thought?? So I'm out of the buying fabric market.

lynn_z

Whoever dies with the most fabric wins!

Painiacs

Yep, im getting there, going to try to use what ihave!!!

Pepita

I think Alex Anderson was asked how much fabric she bought at a time, and she said unless you are going to use the fabric for backing, or settings, she buys fat quarters! That allows so many different fabrics. Finances have cause me to cut back drastically. But I've found a new quilting love,--needle turn applique. I really don't need great quantities of fabric, just some beautiful batiks, etc. I still have a room full of fabric, but will use it. For me, I have the Olfa drawers, and have put different colors in each basket. Each basket is packed tight. Which is a very good indication that I need to use what I have before I try to fill it again!