Stash buying - method or madness?

[TheKid]

We have a shop hop coming up this week in the "Thumb" of Michigan.
I try to have a quilt in mind when we ladies go on this kind of a "HOP". This way, I look for these particular fabrics, and plan to get everything for that quilt during this time. It is also a memory that we have accomplishing these purchases at this time. Then, it is so much fun putting this quilt together, since we know we have it in mind. I like to buy what my heart and eyes see, but then the material sometimes sits on the fabric shelf for a long time.

[DarleneElaine]

I think you should always figure out what you need before starting your project. Pick from your stash and decide what you need. Then shop before you begin for what you need that is not in your stash. In this way you will not get hung up in the middle of your project with what is needed to complete the project.

[knitnoid]

I went on the Kansas City Shop Hop a couple of years ago w/o a plan. I think we hit the 12 stores in the hop, plus another 3 or 4 over the 3 days. At the first store a bright kids quilt caught my eye, and since I needed to make a pair of baby quilts for my niece's twins, I started to pick up one or two bright colored FQs as my 'souvenir' of the shops. It worked well.

The year before that I was collecting blue FQs. All along I've collected music themed fabric and now am collecting cat themed fabric. Typically in FQs as I like scrappy quilts.

I try not to buy yardage unless I have a specific quilt I'm working on, but I won't say it doesn't happen.

Then there's the budget. If I know I'm going to a big show w/lots of vendors, or on a shop hop, I make a list of what I'm looking for and decide how much I can spend. Most of the time, the budget is firm. There's $X and no more to spend on fabric, so that keeps me in line. My friends think I'm crazy, but it works for me.

[gardenquilter]

something else I do is when I am working on a project I take a swatch of each fabric and attack to a card or piece of paper that weay when I am out and about and I find a fabric that may look great or I am looking for fabric it is easy to match and I dont get home wtith the wrong swatch

[Oasis]

I try to buy/match 3 or 4 fabrics together when I buy since most quilts call for that amount of different fabrics. And then like CindyG, I bundle them with a ribbon until a pattern emerges that I think would be good, not to say that I wouldn't untie and use some if I think it would go with something I'm working on. I also buy FQ bundles for the same reason KHO does. There are colors that I wouldn't normaly buy but have been a life saver for that small accent color in some patterns.

After entering some of the swaps posted here, I am finding that I don't have the tone on tones and cream for backgrounds. I used a 40% off cupon and bought 4 yards of Kona cream when I did the autograph swap so now I have plenty. Need to look at more tone on tones and build up that supply.

I like the idea of putting little swatches on a card or paper and have it with me when I go shopping. I always get there and then wonder if it is the right shade to go with what I have. ;~)

This was a good discussion, thanks for posting it.

Linda/Oasis