I took some time to fold and reorganize all my fabric last night. It's not the first time I've done it, but after you dig through and pull stuff out and put stuff back, you'll need to do some re-organizing. It's always an eye-opener. It makes you see how much fabric you have (too much), and cringe at some of the ugly stuff (why why why did I buy that?), and it makes you ready to start new projects! I also saw some fabrics that brought back memories of when I bought it, quilts I'd already made using some of it, etc. and that was nice, too. I really don't spend a lot of money on fabric because I try to get them on sale or better yet clearance, but sometimes the lure of the sale has, I'll admit, bitten me in the butt. A few years ago, the Hancock Fabrics next door went out of business. I was excited about getting their usually pricey fabrics on sale. But they were very stingy in their marking-down process AND they required a 2-yd cut of the really cheap stuff. Boo! For someone who rarely makes large quilts that use more than 2 yards of fabric total, that isn't very useful. I waited them out until they were like $1.99-$2.99 a yard and then bought! I got some good ones to be sure, but I also got some that I'm not sure how I'll use them, if ever. I guess they are destined for backing!

I also don't usually buy, say, all the fabrics from one collection or design series, either. That leaves me hunting for things that will work together when I start a project (or sometimes in the middle of one!). I think it is good for me since it forces me to think through the colors/pattern/contrast issue on my own. It also, no doubt, has lead to buying more fabric. You know...I have this great print! But I need this solid, this stripe, etc. to go with it. So off to the store. But often enough I'll look through my stash and find just the right thing to go with, and it works, and it is great.

All this to say that although I have some guilt about how much fabric I have, sometimes it's worth it because you have exactly what you need without running out to Joann's. Of course, if I needed any sort of justification, I'd more readily point to other blogs and the pictures they have posted of all their sewing rooms. I have very little fabric in comparison. "Of course", (my husband would say) "what's important is what you will/can use before it goes out of style and you won't use it anymore." True. My grandmother had so much fabric after she passed away that was unusable or at least undesirable that we gave a lot to Goodwill. Polyester in a rainbow of colors, an entire bolt of sweater-knit, and fiber-fill for days. She also had 2 freezers of food and a wall of canned items but we won't get into THAT.

My point is? Well, I realize that I need to balance projects I can actually complete with the fabric I allow myself to buy/hold on to. What good are 18 new fabrics if I will only complete 1 project each month for the next year? My inflow has to at least match my outflow for now, I think. I plan on quilting for a long time, but you also have to be realistic about how much you'll be able to complete. Another thing to think about it SCRAPS. This is an area where I'm failing a little bit. I have made several projects using scraps, but they seem to multiply when I look away. I really appreciate any patterns or ideas that utilize scraps, but they seem to hardly make a dent! Oh well. I guess you have to see the big picture. And I can continue using scraps for years and years. I'm not usually a resolution type of person, but maybe I should challenge myself to make 2 scrap projects a year. That would at least keep them at bay. For awhile. :)
What about you? Do you have stash-guilt? Do you limit the new fabrics you buy? How do you use scraps?