Why Do Quilters Have so Much Fabric?

It’s a wise investment

Quilters have a lot of fabric. That is a natural consequence of the hobby, but why? There are many
cheeky comments online about “hoarding disorders”, but that is not the real reason. The real reasons
we have so much fabric are varied. Let’s consider a few:
• It was on sale – This rationale is the subject of many memes, but with good quality quilting
fabric costing upwards of $10-12 per yard, it is sufficient justification. Maybe you don’t need
that fabric today, but it will come in handy later so let’s take advantage of the cost savings now!
• It is for my 401F, “fabric retirement account” – Many quilters actively build their stashes while
they are gainfully employed knowing that in their retirement years, fabric is going to be even
more expensive than it is today. As long as you keep it out of the sunlight and away from
dampness, quilting fabric can never “go bad”, so stashing up now just makes good sense.
• Inspiration everywhere – I am sure I speak for many quilters out there not just myself when I
say, its hard to walk into a fabric store for a specific thing and not walk out with additional,
unplanned acquisitions. Seeing new colors and designs always sends my imagination spinning
with what I “could” make with those fabrics. I buy some, hoping I will be able to find time to
actually make that newly envisioned project… someday.
• It was just pretty – I have purchased fabric many times just because it was pretty, with little or
no idea about what it would be used for. For quilters, many times quilting is more akin to
collecting rather than sewing, and that is just as valid as any other “collecting” hobby. We take
the fabric out from time to time, we admire it, we think about what we might make with it.
Maybe we use it, maybe we put it back in the stash. Either way, it just makes us happy to own a
little bit of it.
• Stash-building – Folks who quilt a lot know what they are always in need of. For me, it is green. I
can’t get enough of it and I can never have too many shades of green. Having a variety of fabrics
on hand to choose from helps new quilting projects come to life without a mad dash to the
fabric store.
Whatever your reason, go buy some fabric today. I can guarantee you’ll be glad you did!

More Rules for Living with a Quilter

Simple Rules for Living with a Quilter

Last year around this time we brought you some very handy Rules for Living with a Quilter. Now it’s
about time for a refresher course. Let’s take a look at a few more ways to coexist with these creative
creatures:
1. Couch hazards – Always be careful where you sit.
2. Never sit in your Quilter’s spot – Your Quilter chose their spot because it has the best lighting in
the house, and you can just as easily watch Stargate from the dark side of the couch.
3. Competition for horizontal space – Do you like doing puzzles? Stamp collecting? Perhaps
building model ships? You are going to have to find some other place to do that because your
Quilter will use up all of the horizontal surfaces in the house.
4. No sit-down dinners – Get used to eating on the couch or while standing over the sink because
your Quilter needs the dining room table for layering together their latest quilt, and the kitchen
table probably has a sewing machine and a pile of fat quarters on it as well.
5. Never enough fabric – Your Quilter is just as surprised as you are that they didn’t have just the
right shade of green to finish that quilt. Put your coffee in a To-Go cup and have a little trip with
them to the fabric store!