Saturday, May 19, 2012

Quilting on a budget



I love this scene in Bridesmaids. (If you haven't seen this movie, ya should!) Whenever I click lustfully around the fabric shops online I hear myself saying "Help me, I'm poor!" LOL! I'm not really poor. But if I'm not careful, this quilting hobby can get to be very expensive!

Let's think about this for a second! (Ew math! Ahh..) A 60"x60" quilt might use..
  • 3 yards of fabric on the top @ $10.00/yard for designer beautiousness
  • batting @ ... maybe $10 bucks if you're like me and just use warm n white with a Jo-Ann's coupon
  • 3 yards of fabric on the back @ ??? Maybe you go cheaper on the back, let's just go with $5.00/ yard
  • 1/2 yard for the binding... I'll go with $5.00/yard again
  • thread...
That's $60. And yeah, this is just based on my experience and of course the numbers are different for every quilt. But it's pretty easy to spend big moolah on one single quilt. If you want to make a few quilts a month you are almost making a car payment. Okay I'll stop being annoying now. :)

This is what's been going through my mind when thinking about what my next quilt should be. I've recently bought some really pretty fabric that I can't decide what to do with. I can't cut into this stuff until I'm really, really sure I won't change my mind! But I'm still itching to quilt, and I don't have a huge fabric stash, so for now I've been working on cutting up the rest of the quilt top I showed you guys the other day that I bought for just a few dollars at an antique store. I bought it so long ago it's like quilting for free. :)

I've sorted the fabric into colors and found that there is a lot of red, and a lot of blue.

I really like the way the reds and blues look together, and since summer is quickly approaching my plan is to start a scrappy "picnic" quilt, you know, for BBQ's, naps, and of course, fourth of July fireworks! :) haha That sounds so nerdy.

Anyway, I think I'll cut each one into two rectangular pieces and chain them all together, then sew them into random rectangles sizes and then sew that up with some blocks of white. (Phew!) I really want to make it completely random and very modern. And cool.
I also ended up with a lot of browns. I'm going to save these colors and use them for inspiration in the fall.
This print made me think about a certain set of prints that I want, I really, really want...

Seriously, who doesn't already have flea market fancy or want it? Sigh... so pretty! I think the brown print above looks like it could be part of the fall bundle.


Some other prints I cut out of the the top...
And last but not least, the pile of rejects - yuck. Maybe I can use these somehow, but I'm really not sure. I'll save them just in case. :)

So anyhow, how do you guys afford the habit?

11 comments:

  1. Don't eat, turn the heat down, walk instead of drive . . . hahaha! It is an expensive hobby, but totally worth it. I think your find at the antique shop is a real score! I look in thrift shops too. But nothing beats walking into a high end quilt fabric store. Just buy what you absolutely love and you won't have buyers remorse!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for the comment - it's nice to have online quilting friend enablers ;) LOL
      It guess it could be worse - I'm lucky my passion is fabric and not restoring old cars or learning to fly a plane!

      Delete
  2. try ebay too. I have gotten some great buys there.

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  3. I hope my husband doesn't read this! Yes a bit of $$ being spent! I have built up a stash so it doesn't feel like it. You could go to a thrift store for some fun older sheets and give them a good wash at home. Then you have your "vintage" backing. I have several sheets ready to go for this.

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  4. I hear you on this! Quilting is probably the worst hobby I could have picked up as a grad student, because I really am poor!

    I keep costs down by not impulse buying fabric (usually...) I let things sit in my online shopping cart for a long time! I also think a long time about what quilt I want to make and prioritize them. I realize that at this point in my life, I can't do several quilts a month. Maybe someday! And like you, saving money on the backing and batting.

    Then, I rationalize it all by thinking about how expensive any hobby can be and being thankful that I'm not into photography and lusting after thousands of dollars worth of cameras or something. :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. I am new to quilting and 5 months ago had no stash. If I wanted to sew something I had to run to the store and buy it. Makes it difficult to make much. I have been lucky to win quite a few things on the blogs (and follow way more blogs then I dare admit in fact think I found your blog today) and lastly I have a good job and an understanding wife that still giggles at me each time I get done shopping and leave with more then $100 in fabric at a time. Hum I think I need to stop buying though or stop eating one or the 2.

    http://richardquilts.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  6. I've been quilting a year and I wish someone would have told me about etsy at the beginning! Remember if you buy from an out of state vendor, then you don't pay tax. That can add up. Also, etsy vendors are usually cheaper per yard (no brick and mortar payments for them) as your local quilt stores. The more blogs you follow, the more discounts you'll learn of for various online sites. I LOVE my local quilt store but let's face it, there's only so much cash and I want it to go a long way.

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  7. eBay is my greatest fabric supply...I spent $100AUD there yesterday working on my stash. I dont have any work for the rest of year so plan on doing lots of sewing - quilts, table runners, place mats, kids clothes so I am really trying to quilt on a budget!

    ReplyDelete
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