Patchwork Times by Judy Laquidara logo

Saving For The Future

You can all laugh right along with me at my yarn purchases but I’ve justified this all in my head so you’re not going to bother me one bit!  🙂 If you haven’t noticed, I have an uncanny ability to figure out a reason for everything I do . . a reason that sounds very justifiable, and if I can’t find a good reason, I just blame Denise.  My life is so easy! 🙂

This is an old picture from the sewing room in Missouri.  This is two of the shelf units.  There were 4 shelving units of folded fabric and 1 with bolts.  A lot of this has been used and not much has been added but there are now 5 shelving units of folded fabric and 1 with bolts. Not sure how many years it’s going to take to make a dent in this fabric. I think that when we moved, more fabric was found that had never been unpacked in Missouri.

Fabric

In about 2003 – 2006, I was quilting for others . . almost non-stop and a whole lot of the income went to buy fabric.  I mostly only bought fabric on sale.  Back then, the best fabrics were about $6.00/yard if I’m remembering correctly.  It was really easy to find quality fabric on sale for $3.50 to $4.00 per yard. A quick search of some of my favorite online shops reveals that most shops have good fabric from $8.95 to $12/yard and most of the fabrics I would like that are on sale are in the $6/yard range.

A real economist, or my husband, would not agree with me but it’s like I have “free” fabric now.  I never have to consider the cost when making a new quilt. I don’t mind making quilts to give to friends or folks in need because they really cost me nothing to make.  I don’t mind sharing my stash with Nicole . . I hope that one day she will be happy to inherit everything I didn’t get around to using.

Quilters often laugh and say that instead of putting money in retirement accounts, we’re buying fabric and honestly, that might not be a bad idea.  I can’t imagine being retired, maybe bored, and not being able to do the things I love because of the cost.  I also can’t imagine that even now, when I want to make a quilt, I’d have to go to the quilt shop or order fabric and spend upwards of $100 or $150 to buy fabric for each quilt I make.  I think that might take the fun out of it for me.

It’s the same with yarn.  I went back to some of my old invoices. Here are some examples:

2008 – Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock – $21.00
2013 – Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock – $24.50

2008 – Dream in Color Smooshy – $21.00
2013 – Dream in Color Smooshy – $24.00

With knitting, it’s a bit harder working from the stash because each pattern requires different amounts of different yarns.  I do believe I could knit socks totally from the stash for the rest of my days and not run out of yarn.  Last night I checked my queue on Ravelry.  This is just a drop in the bucket for my yarn stash but each pattern in my queue is printed and bagged up with the yarn and stuck aside from the rest of the stash.

Here’s the first three things in my queue:

Queue

Queue

There could be a problem with #3 if that yarn never arrives.

And here are the last three items in my queue:

queue

Queue

There are 54 items in my queue and none of those are socks.  Just about everything in there will take at least a month, and other things get added.  Just last night I decided to make some knitted hats for cancer patients.

There’s at least 5 years worth of projects there and probably more than 10 years worth of sock yarn to be used.  Technically, I should never need to buy another skein of yarn and probably still won’t get it all knitted before my number is called.  In reality, Denise is probably going to make me buy more . . that’s just the way she is and I love her for that!  🙂

The cost of the things we love are probably only going to go up. I’m calling my investment in fabric and yarn a good idea!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. I’ve been saying for a long time that when I’m really old and poor I’ll be able to keep sewing from my stash. I may have to buy some batting or backing to finish a quilt, but the top can be from stash. I kind of feel the same way about the eBooks stashed on my computer for my reader…..should the library close and I can’t afford to buy books there will be plenty for me to read. There are enough stockpiled to last me the rest of my days.

  2. Judy, I’m with you on this, when I was working and I bought fabric, if somebody asked I told them I was buying fabric for when I retire because I wouldn’t be able to afford the nice fabric then. I have been retired for 8 years and I’m still buying fabric. And, I don’t have Denise to blame! 🙂

  4. Hi Judy, When you mentioned sewing when you retire, I had to laugh. 🙂 My hubby brought up my HUGE stash the other day, and I just told him that it was for when we retired, because I wouldn’t be able to afford any then…. Makes perfect sense to me! Have a wonderful Saturday! 🙂

  5. My three shelving units (similar to yours) are overflowing with folded fabric and other pieces are in plastic bins. I didn’t have space for another shelving unit! I love my stash! It represents over 25 years of collecting. I rarely buy fabric now because the price has gone sky-high, but sometimes fabric just comes to me unexpectedly. I feel so lucky when that happens!

  6. As I’ve seen my own stash grow over the last decade and a half, I’ve used the rationalization, that should I become penniless, I’ll still have my stash from which I can make my own clothes, pillowcases, create gifts, use as toweling, curtains or whatever. Yep, an investment!

  7. Judy, I wish dour insurance adjuster could read your words and realize just how valuable a stashids to a quilter and knitter. Like you, I accumulated a huge quantity of fabric and yarn before I retired, planning to use it in my golden years. Once we did retire, we moved town other state and in huge process of moving, all of our belongings, including my stash, was stolen when our moving company left the shipping container packed with our possessions in their unsecured parking lot and someone drove off with it. We are fortunate to have insurance which will cover some of our losses, but the company depreciates the value of the items we have. For fabric and yarn, they are only paying us 50% of the original cost of the items. Since fabric and yarn have increased in price, it is impossible to replace it at 50% of the original lesser price! Fabric and yarn are gold to quilters and knitters – non quilters and knitters just don to understand!! Now I have to think twice when I want to sew or knit; so much for happily spending my retirement creating.

  9. You’re right! I can see now all the money I’m saving thanks to all the money I spent. I feel better about my fabric/yarn stash.

  10. Hi Judy,
    You sure do make me smile! Maybe, you should bring knitting needles and yarn , as well as a sewing machine and fabric, to Nicole’s the next time you visit!

  11. Before I retired, I used to say it was my 401F, that when I was too old to drive myself to the store, and no one would come take me, I could just walk into my closet and shop there. I still believe that, even though a lot of my fabric is not with me now.

  12. I too think fabric is a investment, prices per yard just keep going up. I have a over flowing fabric closet. The problem is, fabric does not fit the thing I like to do today. Keep trying to use up in scrap quilts but I think fabric just keeps growing.

  13. Ummmm, I used to say I was buying for retirement. Then my DH died last year and I’ve just recently downsized to a smaller home and am currently in the process of MOVING all that frickin’ fabric!!!!! It is UNREAL how much I have and there is NO WAY in this lifetime I will ever use anywhere near what I’ve got. SO I will be donating a good chunk of it to my church quilt group. Several months ago I went thru a lot of it picking out stuff I knew I’d never use (the ‘why would I buy that’ stuff) and cut it up into pillowcase kits for the church group. Will probably do more of that and then just flat out give em a ton of the rest. Stupid, stupid, stupid me.

    • When I had to downsize and move I used fabric as cushioning in many of my packing boxes. It worked great and it was so much fun to unpack—a surprise in every box! Give it a try!

  14. So true that (1) you are a bargain shopper stashing now since prices are always on the rise and (2) that I will convince you to buy more! 🙂

  15. I LOVE your way of thinking!! One of the things at the top of my list for after we move and I get my sewing room all set up (I hoping it takes less than 2 years…..) is to learn to knit socks. We have tile everywhere and I’m sure in the winter I’m going to need lots of comfy soft warm socks. So I better get to buying yarn for all those to-do socks before the price of yarn goes up even more!

    Thank you so much for the warning and good advice!!! 🙂

  16. You go, girl! You are so correct. I bought lots of fabric before DH retired because I knew he would watch my purchases being home every day. This is so important, and purchase tone on tone like Judy! You can pick up prints later and you will have plenty of tone on tone to go with those prints. Build that stash while you can!

  17. I don’t know any type of savings account that would give you that kind of return on your investment, plus I figure that my fabric collection is now adding to the Rfactor in my walls. Great insulation!

  18. My sewing group makes REKs (Retirement Entertainment Kits), so we will all be well entertained in our poorer years.

    I recently donated 400 yards to St. Vinnie’s. I weighed and measured and will have a hefty tax credit on my taxes and I probably made someone else very happy–although not as happy as I am at having such a beautiful uncluttered sewing room. And, I know I still have enough fabric to last through about 80 years of retirement.

  19. Thank you for the stash photo! LOL! Now DH doesn’t think my stash is very big…. Phew! I look forward to seeing what you create in the future. And… cancer hats… You are SO kind and generous, always thinking of others. I’m just in awe… <3

    🙂

  20. I absolutely agree with everything you said! Between my fabric and yarn stashes, I would have enough to keep me busy until I’m probably 150 years old. It’s all paid for!

    I was in shock when I was looking at a quilt kit the other day and it was $300! Glad I stashed up when I did.

Discover more from Patchwork Times by Judy Laquidara

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading