The Fabrics You Love

The theme for this year is working from your stash, and typically we tend to think of this as  working with scraps, odd remnants, and making pieces that are a” little too small” work in a project. But this month I wanted to tackle the flip side of this - the fabric we love and don’t want to “waste.” I think it is pretty common for every quilter to have a good chunk of fabric in their stash made up of prints that they absolutely love, that just make them happy to look at, and that they don't want to put into just any project. Of course over time those fabrics end up sitting and building up, as the “perfect project” never comes along. So how do we get past that mental block, how do we start using the fabric we love in our projects? There are several different answers to that question and we are going to talk about them next. Now not all of them will apply to you, but hopefully you will be able to pull out some different ideas and use some of your favorite fabrics in your next project. 

When you only have a very small piece of the fabric you love. 

This can happen a few different ways- sometimes you just get an eighth of a yard because you love the fabric but can’t justify getting more, sometimes you get it through a swap, other times it is a single piece from a collection of precuts. However you came by these small pieces, you need to remember two things: one, no matter how much you want them to, they are never going to get any bigger and two, you will be able to enjoy them a lot more if you can actually see them. I would recommend looking at patterns that can be used to showcase smaller pieces of fabric. My pattern Trellis would work if you replaced colors A-D with a mix of all your different favorite prints. Other examples include: Snapshot by Pen and Paper and the new Stamp Block Quilt by Alison Glass. 

When you only have a small amount of fabric or fat quarters,

This happens to me a lot when I absolutely fall in love with a print but I can’t think of anything to use it in. If it is a larger motif I will typically get ½ yard or a fat quarter while if it is a smaller motif I might just get a regular ¼ yard (or again a fat quarter if possible). For these I always want to try and find different patterns that can showcase a larger motif well and take advantage of those gorgeous prints. One way is to use them to make coordinating pillows, or sometimes as accents on different bags. I also try to keep a few different patterns on hand that work well to showcase fabrics, such as Suitcases by Slice of Pi. 

When you have precuts (layer cakes, jelly rolls). 

So you love a collection but you can’t justify getting lots of yardage (the budget looming it’s ugly head), so you get a layer cake or a jelly roll (when it’s made up of smaller motifs). I have done this but of course put them away again and not known what to do with them after I got them. One of the things I love to do with precuts to make sure that i use them is to create my own quilt kits. For these bundles I find the pattern I want to use (and there are so many options for precuts), and bundle together the precut, any additional fabric and the pattern if it is printed, or I clip a note on with the name of the pattern, where it is saved digitally and anything else I need to know. These ‘kits’ are great for when you need a quick project and pick me up because they are made up of fabric you love which gives you a great boost, precut patterns are typically easier to do (and have less cutting), and best of all you will have a completed project that you will love when you are done. 

When you have yardage…

Sometimes it works out that you end up with a lot of the fabric you love and this is when you can start to really have some fun. I know as a quilter initially you think I should use this fabric to make a quilt”  but this is a great chance to expand into other areas, like bag- making, garments and more. The one piece of advice I have is try anything new with other, less cherished fabric from your stash, not the fabric you love, because there is a learning curve and you don’t want to feel disappointed if your project isn’t perfect the first time. 

Now you have some great ideas on how you can use the fabric you love and that you already have in your stash, but how can you avoid building up such a large collection in the future? While I have a few suggestions for that too (and don’t worry it doesn’t involve not buying the fabric). The best thing you can do is buy for a project. So, for example, if you know a collection is coming out, you have fallen in love with it and know you need to get some of it, start looking at different patterns that you might like to use with the fabric. Remember you don’t need to limit yourself to quilts, maybe you need some new pillowcases and this fabric would be perfect, or perhaps a cover for your sewing machine? Then buy what you need based on the project you are making. Of course you are probably thinking, that’s great and everything but if I am preordering my fabric I’m not going to remember what I wanted to make with it when it actually comes in. You’re right. I’ve had this happen to me plenty of times which is why now when I preorder fabric I make a list of what I ordered, what project it goes with and anything else I might need to know and clip it in my calendar for the month the fabric is due to arrive. This way I have a reference point for when the fabric gets here (and a reminder that I already ordered it). You can also make up kits like I mentioned above so that you have everything altogether and ready to go when you need a new project. 

I hope this helps give you some great ideas on different ways you can use that fabric you love, and I would love to see some of the projects you make! You can always tag me on Instagram at @createdesignmake365 or send me an email at createdesignmake365@gmail.com 


Until next time, 

Siobhan