Musings on fabric

[mala_14]

I'm about to buy some more fabric, even though I have tons that I haven't used yet. Is it a problem? Well, here's what I think about it. It's good to have a stash if you're sewing. It's helpful because it means that you have the materials to make what you want to make when you want to make it. However, sometimes it gets out of control. If you don't sew very often and you're not making use of it, then maybe you're just hoarding. I've definitely hoarded fabric. I see something pretty and shiny in the fabric store and I want it and then it just sits around. Not good.

Now, though. I'm sewing much more regularly and it's nice to have a bunch of fabrics on hand. I know what I want to make with them too. And when CADD strikes, I don't go running off to the fabric store to buy more. (Well, most of the time. ;p) I'm also glad to find that my stashing habits are slowing down. I'm not compulsively storing fabric like a squirrel stores nuts before winter. I know what sort of fabrics I like, what sort of prices constitutes a really good deal, and what I'll actually make use of. I try not to buy things without a plan in mind and that I won't use in the next 2 years or so.

I also have a bunch of fabrics already. I have the fabrics that I want to make things out of in the near future. When I have the opportunity to buy, I'm starting to have trouble figuring out things I might want. I have almost all the fabrics for Costume College sewing. The only times that I really need to buy things is when I need fabric for lining or to go with things that I already have and whatever notions are needed. I feel like this means that I have a pretty good stash. There are just a couple things that are still on the to-buy list, but only a couple. Maybe I don't have a fabric buying problem anymore?

Comments

[starlightmasque.livejournal.com]

I'm always at odds with my stash. I cleared it out, now I miss it! I'M A HOARDER.

[mala-14.livejournal.com]

lol Build a new stash!!! (bad influence friend here ;p)

[nuranar.livejournal.com]

I keep intending to comment on this. :) It sounds like you've got a pretty good attitude about your stash now, and a lot of it has come with experience. Knowing what you are actually likely to use and what truly is a good deal, and having a time frame, are all really good disciplines. I don't think you have a problem at all!

Random thought, here: There's a cultural "minimalist" movement right now, and although I'm not really part of it, I think subconsciously I've felt guilty for the size of the stash I have. But you know what? A fabric stash isn't a weakness or a failing; it's a strength! It's really important for CADD, for quick projects, for the unforeseen, and even for inspiration. Maybe a better approach isn't focused on the size of the stash, but on how appropriate the contents are for the sewer's budget, plans, and inclinations. Yours fits that just perfectly, to me!

I'm not in quite the same boat with my own stash. Part of that might be my own experience, which *may* be wider than yours. I've got stashes for 1860s clothes, for 1940s clothes, for modern clothes, and for other costuming things. Plus the random stuff that just about any stash accumulates. My stash has been static in several areas for a while - really, all areas except the costuming one - because I'm not reenacting very much, and the Tyranny of the Urgent means I don't get to the modern stuff or 1940s stuff I really could use. That's really not a stash issue; it's tied to my over-commitment tendency and ambitious CoCo plans for the last two years.

But within that, the actual costuming stash is pretty healthy. At CoCo this year I didn't buy much fabric, either. Actually, all of it was bought specifically to beef up my costuming stash: bolt ends of silk (taffeta and faille) in basic but pretty colors. My 18th century and Regency costuming in particular uses a lot of silk, and there's a real need for both bits of color and for basics. I've also got a good amount of basics for linings and underthings. And I learned a lot time ago the foolishness of buying okay stuff just because it's a good deal. (I still have stuff from the summer I worked at Joann's in college!) So overall, I think I'm doing good, too. :)

[mala-14.livejournal.com]

Experience is definitely key. The minimalist mindset makes a lot of sense in terms of my concern for stash size. I totally feel that guilt! I don't want to be a hoarder! (Except that I sort of do...)

Silk stashing is something that I want to get into, if I can find well-priced stuff (which is almost impossible where I live). It's so important for costuming, particularly earlier stuff. It's interesting to think about how our economics have changed over time in terms of what sorts of fibres are expensive or affordable, like the widespread prominence of linen in the 18th century in the Western world and its current prices and availability. So different!