I'm a Fabricoholic

Sometimes, when walking through the store, rubbing fabrics between my fingers, I feel the need to confess my addiction of fabrics to a room full of strangers with the same disease who simply won't judge me for it. When I see commercials for the TV show "Hoarders", I'm often reminded of my 'stash'. Although my collection is only one or two storage tubs, and nowhere near as bad as the people on that show, I feel guilty all the same.

I just can't help myself sometimes, you see. Some fabrics are just too beautiful, too luxurious, to allow to sit unpurchased on the racks. Yes, I may not have a project in mind for this particular piece, but on the day I do I can't guarantee that it will still be there, so I most certainly should buy it now.

Coupons are a dangerous thing in my hands. It gives me an excuse to buy one of my coveted prints or soft velvets at a discount so I don't feel so guilty about adding it to the stash. It just makes sense to me that I'll save money in the long run by buying it now, for a discount, than in the future when I really need it and will be forced to buy it at full price. After all, coupons expire. You have to use them while they're good or it's like throwing money away. Right?

And then I remember that night - that late night - I was working on a project that needed a little something extra; a velvet sash to tie around the waist. There were no stores open, but I did have my stash...

The creative muse had seized me, and there was no going to bed unless I wanted to lay there wide awake while the specter of that dress danced before my eyes, taunting me in its half-finished form. Creative projects are like brain viruses that you can only expel when you complete it, otherwise it will gnaw at your consciousness until you do.

So I dug into the stash, and sure enough, there was the perfect piece of velvet that I had purchased years ago that absolutely finished the dress. I was not only able to go to sleep peacefully, but I knew my random purchases of beautiful fabrics were completely justified in that moment.

Yes, I may be a fabricoholic, but that's not a bad thing. In fact, I consider it to be one of my more attractive qualities. And on nights when I need to dive into a storage tub or two for that beautiful piece I bought previously, it's actually a life saver.

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Quality Fabrics: Good Cottons

It may come as a surprise to some of you (but not all) that there are different quality fabrics. Not just that silk is obviously finer than cotton, but even within the realm of cottons all fabrics are not created equal. One distinguishing factor is the thread count.

Thread count is the number of fibers both horizontally and vertically in a square inch of the fabric. Obviously, the higher the count the stronger the fabric. But what does that mean to a quilter?

Primarily, it means your quilt will stand a better chance of withstanding time. Lower thread count fabrics will fray easier and stitches will lose their integrity rather quickly. Imagine spending all that time on a quilt, hoping to turn it into an heirloom for your new baby granddaughter, and it pulls apart before she's out of diapers. But that's only if the thread count is horrifically low.

Higher thread count cottons are just softer. And when you imagine that newborn skin, don't you want the softest materials rubbing up against it? That's why it's important to ensure higher quality cottons go into your quilt.

Another element to your cottons you want to look for is that the pattern is woven into the fabric and not simply stamped on in ink. If it's just a pattern stamped in ink, it runs the risk of smearing or washing away too easily.

There are many fine cottons that are imported, and are always an excellent place to start, especially for an heirloom quilt.

When quilting, it's important to take the time to choose quality fabrics lest you want all of your hard work and creativity lost before it really has the chance to be appreciated.

Lovely New Free Spirit Sateen and Canvas Cottons in the Quilting Room

Look what showed up in the quilting room today! The reason we do what we do and the reason we love our jobs is we get to see all of the new fabrics when they are unloaded from the truck and before they move to the floor. We don't know about you, but these fabrics inspire us to sit down at our machine and let the needle fly!

This week we got some gorgeous home fashion fabrics from Free Spirit. These 100% cotton modern print canvasses and sateens come from the newly released Garden District Collection by Heather Bailey. These are part of her debut collection of home decor fabrics, and we're very excited to showcase them in our store!

These stunning fabrics in lucious colors are rich in texture and are sure to inspire you to create artful designs for your home, memorable fashion accessories such as purses or totes, or even stylish accents for your modern nursery.

Check back and we'll pass along some enticing projects we know will be perfect for this collection.