Sew Up Your Stash - 5 Strategies to Keep it Balanced

As Quilters, we all have the problem of the speed that we quilt and the speed that we purchase fabric. It's a lifelong problem keeping them in balance. Here are 5 strategies that will help you find a balance between the two.

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COMPLIMENTARY VIDEOS:
LET'S TALK ABOUT DESTASHING

7 WAYS TO USE UP YOUR CRUMBS

CAN I USE UP ALL MY SCRAPS? EPIC AFTERQUILT CHALLENGE

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The PreQuilt Challenge

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[jopayne]

I am enjoying your ideas so much. You are sensible, polite, and easy to understand. You don't talk down to us, and give us ideas to try now. I love that you are wanting us to use what we have. Too many are working for some company and keep wanting us to buy kits or expensive tools. I hope you keep making new videos, you are a refreshing change.

[melaniemcneil]

Thanks for the reminder that even very simple quilts are beautiful. Not every quilt needs to be complicated, and if the notion of complication is what stops me from using what I have, I need to shake it off.

[catherinestea]

2020 or "The Great Pause" as I call it gave me the uninterrupted time I needed to go through my stash, scraps, and notions. I make/donate small 36"square quilts to a local hospital for their NICU/PICU in memory of a family member. Last year I made 99 quilts, 50 small Christmas stockings, several taggies, and over a hundred masks "shopping" from my stash and minimal purchases. Your tips, tricks, and strategies were invaluable as we're your videos of encouragement and inspiration. It was an AHA moment when you said don't keep the fabrics you don't like anymore. It was like you waved a magic wand releasing the guilt because I hadn't used it yet. . However, the tip I struggle with the most is not over buying. The bargain hunter in me has a really tough time saying no to that end of bolt discount. . . hehehe!!! Like my projects, I'm a work in progress too!!! Thanks again Karen for your wisdom and generosity!!!

[lizryan]

I am 72 and love simple patterns. I started quilting 3 years ago. I'm a new subscriber and really love this advice.

[Noreenlee]

I met a woman on our neighborhood "Buy Nothing" group on FB. She makes purses for African girls to carry and conceal their tampons, etc.... She makes the purses, and a charity group fills them and mails them off. I was thrilled to have someone to help me destash fabrics I've acquired that no longer make my heart sing or ones that just don't work that well for quilts, but are perfect for purses.

[collady]

I learned to quilt from my grandmother 62 years ago. After inheriting my mother’s quilting fabric, I can probably quilt for another 62 years! For the past few years I have only purchased fabric when I didn’t have enough for the backing. I am making a good dent in my stash. I also let my quilt group shop my stash.

[scrapylady]

Thank You very much for your advice. I will share this video with my daughter my baby 38 years old. S he started quilting at 12. We passed a quilt store she saw a quilt in the window and said I want to do that. We went inside to get more info and signed her up. I took notes for her. I saw her do her first flying geese, then mama signed up and we both have been buying fabric ever since.😲😊 thanks again

[kschallert]

You calm me. I appreciate so much your common sense, non judgmental approach. Thanks for all your videos :-)

[pamelavalley]

I shopped only my stash for 3 or 4 years after watching a lady in her 80s with 2 teen grandchildren buy a whole table full of fabric. These kids spent 2 weeks organizing her fabrics for her the previous month so she could find things easily in her 2 fabric rooms. My husband took 2 years to notice I wasn't buying fabric. My friend opened a quilt shop so got back in. Life is complicated. Great video.

[lorrainecrance]

OMG I needed to hear you this morning, before I started ordering MORE beautiful fabrics just because I am on everyone's email! How do they find us? Started counting, just mentally, not even stepping into my sewing living room! Yes busted out of a sewing bedroom, now took over the never used living room! Clear boxes of all mentioned fabric sizes! In beautiful colors. If I sewed a quilt every week for the rest of my life, I would be the oldest living sewing woman alive in the world! And the rate I am going I won't even remember where my sewing room is very soon... Not funny just fact. Thank you for opening my eyes and closing my shopping. I am sure that my family thanks you too. Have a great day.

[Fge]

I was happy to learn that I do almost all of the things you suggest. I do buy a fabric on the fly once in a while but within my budget and with a purpose for it in mind. :) I inherited all my mother in-laws quilting supplies & equipment. I went to a junk store and bought a chest of drawers for the fabric. I have used all but just a few "projects" worth, having to buy very little. Most of what I make is for her great-grand children. She left me projects half done but taught me how to finish. She quilted up to one month before she left us... In her late 80's! I feel so close to her when I sew and my grand children love knowing that they have a part of her in what I make. What a gift she has left us!

[hazeldw]

My grandmother would ditto your advice on fabric budgeting and buying just the right amount. She actually very rarely bought as much as the pattern called for. When we went shopping for patterns and fabric together we would take a few extra minutes to sit at the table in the fabric store while she analyzed the pattern cutting layout to see what she could move to have less waste. She almost always bought a little less and always had enough. She also always bought good fabric. It's easier to afford nice things if you only buy as much as you need.

[sarahteal]

I have been putting off watching this video. First off, thank you for no judgement. Secondly, I LOVE knowing how many fat quarter's or how many cakes make a simple quilt. The idea of knowing how much fabric I have has always scared me. But, now I can view that information as how many quilts I will have. I feel so much such more productive with that information. This feels liberating from a hoarder to a producer.

[davidanthony]

In addition to the abundance of fabric, I have enough yarn to last a couple lifetimes. This is a great video with some good guidance that can be applied across different craft stashes.

[debraholster]

I just redesigned my sewing room and had to handle all my fabric. You are right about the need to know what you have. When I saw all the beautiful precuts I own, I have no desire to shop for more.

[motherhenn]

My mom died last year. She was an avid quilter and sewer for over 60 years. I inherited the contents of her sewing room. (Yeah, new expensive sewing machines and equipment). But I also got her whole stash and UFOs. I found a girl's sewing club who gladly took a lot of the stash and excess equipment. But I still have a few years of quilts to make.

[laurahenneberry]

Hahaha, love it Karen, "Know your limit and quilt within it!"

[dulcilass]

I started my first quilt in high school, and that's the time I started collecting fabric. Well, I'm in my 70's now and have enough yardage that I started selling fat quarters at a music festival I go to yearly and donating quilts for their raffle. This leaves me with enough yardage that I have closets full of my favorite colors and plastic bins full, and shoe boxes full, and plastic drawers full. Well, you get the idea. I've started working on my Mt. Scrapmore by cutting fabric down to usable sizes. For me that's 3" squares, 2" wide strips, 2" squares. These seem to be the sizes I use most often. I've got 3 quilts in the works that use those sizes and 1 quilt that is being made from the strings that are left over from all the cutting. And from all the cutting I've been doing recently, I have one small trash can of pieces to toss. I'm fortunate in having a very large room dedicated to my sewing. I've learned through the years what types of patterns I like to use and about how much fabric I'll need to make them. When I go fabric shopping now, I know to buy only 1/8th of a yard. 4.5 inches of fabric cut from each of 8 colors makes several of my favorite blocks. Therefore I only get a yard of fabric total.

[hisservant]

I recently moved to Hawaii to babysit for my one and only grand! Moving to Hawaii made me donate 90 percent of the fabric I purchased. I 've been quilting for almost 2 years now, and I had accumulated a significant stash! I mailed all my precuts because they were the most expensive to purchase, and would take up less space in my 405 sqft. apartment!! At the end of the day, I'm too tired to quilt now!! When I adjust to new busy day, I 'll come back strong. Love "Just Get it Done Quilts". Thank you for all your quilt block ideas. I'm anxious to get back to it.

[sarahkinsey]

COVID-19 is a great stash buster for the fabrics you don't like/don't know what to do with! So far I've made 23 masks with the random pieces I have from other projects, and with the left overs I plan on making bias tape ties for them!