Pondering Precuts
Before long there were jelly rolls and turnovers and layer cakes and what-was-it-cinnamon buns? to tempt us. And we succumbed. For me, it was mostly because the products were so darned cute. I remember, though, buying that first jelly roll and wondering what the heck I was going to do with it.
Over time, as I've mentioned before, I have tired of the all-of-one-line look. I miss the fun of pulling bolts out and putting them together to see which I liked better with my feature fabric. And I've come to think of the all-of-one-line projects as lacking a certain spark, seasoning, zing, whatever.
I have two BOMs that have been in progress for a long time, and I've lost interest in them. I wonder how much of that loss of interest has to do with their being single line BOMs. Eventually I'll finish them.
I still have some charm packs, bought because of their downright cuteness and because they are a good solution to a need for a baby quilt in a bit of a hurry, and one layer cake that I was gifted. This week I started a baby quilt from a charm pack and chose a different line of fabric for the cornerstones and border and will use something I already have for the binding. I'm going to try not to buy any more precuts, and as I try to use up the ones I already have, adding at least one "outside" fabric will help, I think, to give the project a bit of a zing.
If I were more clever, I'd design a special button that would say something like "No More Precuts" or perhaps snappier phrasing for the same sentiment. Meanwhile, I've made up my mind to eschew those cute little charm packs, avoid those enticing jelly rolls and layer cakes and whatevers, and even try to by-pass FQ sets. Anyone else want to join me in taking this pledge?
Comments
Alas, I am on a year of NO fabric buying.... if one stays out of the stores it is a lot easier to just shop the "stash".
If someone comes up with a button, I will definitely add it to my blog.
I wish to be true to myself, not to the wiles of the marketing folks.
I have created my own charm squares from scraps and have been gifted a few packets of them over the years.
I have used a couple of layer cakes and have some sets of Tonga Batik coffee cakes (just a different name for a jelly roll). After I use the coffee cakes up, I won't buy them again, mostly because of the cost of them here in Canada. They are 50 dollars for a jelly roll and that is the equivalent of about 3 meters of fabric- which makes it pretty pricey. I still can find batiks in the clearance area of the LQS for between 7 and 10 dollars which is way better than the regular price of 19 dollars a meter( 3 inches more than a yard). Our dollar is pretty comparable so if I want to buy precuts, I really need to order them on line- even with shipping they are significantly less expensive from the on line stores. We won't go into the challenges of shipping to Canada, though because this will really turn into a rant. The long and the short of it, I tend to buy yardage rather than pre-cuts. The one exception is fat quarters which I do have quite a few of them...
The other challenge is that when I buy yardage I feel like I have more flexibility than precuts. I feel limited by the type of precut rather than it being a help. The batik coffee cakes are case in point. I liked the colors and thought that they would make a great quilt for my brother and his wife. I am still looking for the perfect pattern.... I may have finally found it but I have had the batiks for over a year. I know I have lots of other fabrics much older in my stash but usually I find a pattern and then pull fabrics to fit the design. This process of having the fabric and then trying to find the pattern seems backwards to me..
Hope all is well with you as your school year begins to wind down.
Warmest regards,
Anna
Since a lot of patterns use 2.5" strips, if I can avoid some cutting, I can save my aged hands. That's very helpful.
I expect I'll keep plodding along, using a charm pack here or there, using up the jelly rolls I have, mostly mixing and matching along the way, just like I've done in the past.
Aside to Mimi: I was trying to "shop the stash" too. Then I went to Paducah... Climbing back on the wagon now.
I agree that the matchy matchy of the whole line is one of the reasons I don't care for them. I want to make my own quilt with my own ideas.
Thanks for the chance to voice our opinions :)