Daily Archives: August 17, 2022

The most obvious way to save money at the quilt shop may to be to simply not go there when it’s open, but how much fun is that? Here are some more realistic ways you can save money at the quilt shop.

• Make a List … and stick to it. If you are shopping from a list, you can avoid impulse buys such as all those “just so pretty I had to have it” fabrics.
• Just Hold It … for a little while. I read about his technique once in reference to shopping for clothing and to my surprise I have applied it to fabric with much success! The idea is that if you see something you really, really love, just pick it up and carry it around the store while you look at other things. Walk it around the store as long as you have to until the realization of “what am I really going to do with this?” takes hold. Eventually, you will realize it’s just a passing infatuation and you can set it back down where you found it. Sometimes, just “owning” it for a little while is all that you need.
• Cash Only – If you bring a finite amount of cash into the store and leave your credit cards behind, you will not be able to over-shop.
• Empty Pockets – Sometimes I just want to go to the quilt shop to look at new fabrics, with no real idea of any projects in mind. This is a very dangerous activity. I am usually just bored, wanting to get out of the house or discouraged with a current project. Before I know it, I’m walking out of the shop $100 lighter with a bunch of projects destined for the NESTY* pile. When you are suffering from this kind of quilting ennui, it’s best to head to the shop with no money at all. You can browse and touch all the pretty things with no danger to your wallet. If you see something you really love, and the idea sticks with you for more than a few days, then you can return some other day with cash to buy it, knowing that you have really considered the purchase and are not being impulsive.
• Reward Based Shopping – If you have amazing willpower and only allow yourself to go to the fabric shop after you have completed a project, you can avoid those fabric stacks getting too deep.

*NESTY – Not Even Started Yet

Quilting in the summer can be a challenge. The kids are off from school, there are vacations to contend with and pushing yards and yards of fabric through a sewing machine can be a sticky subject. I once created a greeting card about that very topic. When it’s too hot to sew, there are still other quilting-related things you can do, so put on your flip flops and give some of these a try!

• Clean Your Sewing Space – The summer quilting doldrums are the perfect time to clean up and organize your sewing space. Halloween costumes and holiday gifts are coming up fast around the corner. You will get more done on the fun stuff if you aren’t tripping over piles of fabric and sewing scraps.
• Dig Up Old UFOs – Remember all those “Handmade Holiday” gifts that you lamentably didn’t finish last year? Break them out and get ready to finish them up! Just imagine how productive everyone will think that you are THIS year.
• The Boring Stuff – The hemming, the mending, those ugly curtains you’ve been putting off… get all the boring “home maintenance” stuff done and out of the way. This way, as soon as fall hits you’ll be ready for pumpkins, and gnomes and snowmen… oh my!
• Fabric Shopping? I wasn’t going to say it, but you know you have been thinking it. Summer is a great time for fabric shopping because many quilt shops have Christmas in July sales on all those fun holiday prints you know you are going to want to have on hand, as well as clearance sales to make room for the new stuff. Not that you need any justifications for buying more fabric.

Have fun in the sun this summer and after the last hot dog is roasted, you’ll be able to hit the bobbin running with all of your quilting projects!