Friday, February 4, 2011

My Fabric Finds



Today I went fabric shopping with my neighbor to two quilt shops I'd never been to. They were located in Hagerstown, MD and just north of the state line into Pennsylvania off of Molly Pitcher Hwy. The first shop in PA was called Marianne's. It's a small quilt shop run by a Mennonite family with fabric packed into every corner. When I entered, the proprietor mentioned there was a bin filled with $2/yd fabrics by the window. I immediately immersed myself in the fabrics there and found 11 pieces I thought fit together in a pleasant color scheme. I bought 1/2 yard of each of the fabrics and spent a grand total of $11 plus tax. Such a deal.

Next we headed to Wilson's which is in northern Hagerstown. It was a fancy-schmancy quilt store with lots of beautiful quilts hanging from the walls. I was incredibly inspired. Of course they had bundles of fat quarters (20 for $69.99), but after spending $11 on my 1/2 yards I couldn't think of spending that much today. So my neighbor and I headed to the local JoAnn's for cheaper fabric.

At JoAnn's it took awhile to find the last 9 fabrics to round out my 20, but I finally came up with some good choices. I bought 1/2 yard of each of them for a total of $25.97 (more than twice what I spent on the first 11). I spent about $38 total for my twenty 1/2 yards which averages a mere $3.80/yard. Not a bad bite in my wallet. It's a great deal: better than $13.99/yard for the bundles at Wilson's. Not only that, but I also have an entirely different mix from anyone else. No cookie-cutter fabrics for me today.

While at Wilson's I was particularly inspired by a pattern they had hanging on their wall called "Turning Twenty...Again" and I think this fabric will be a perfect choice for this quilt inspiration.


Carolyn "Care Bear" King

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