Sunday, March 26, 2017

Confession: I am a Fabricaholic



 Left to right: Peacocks w/gold metallic, cotton;
 Insects, cotton; Leaves, drapery; Teal stripes, canvas.
Autumn Day, cotton; Orange Poppies, cotton; 
Poppy 2, cotton, Frida Panel, cotton

Did you ever have a hobby where you collected things? Do you still collect things now?

When I was in my teens and into my 20's, it was little model motorcycles. At 19, my first vehicle was a motorcycle. I rode for over 25 years, taking several cross country trips. I still have a matchstick type collection of over 30 different motorcycles, somewhere in storage.

Another item I still collect are small to medium sized wooden boxes, the more unusual the better. In my 30's it was vintage and reproduction tins. I only have a few of those left, mostly to store sewing notions. When I started to sew with cotton, that's when I became a true fabricaholic.

Years ago when I found a cotton fabric I liked, I would buy 6, 8 or even 10 yards of that print at a time. I have yards and yards of Asian, western, horse and fruit prints that no one is interested in anymore. I've learned. I rarely by that much of a cotton print now.

I know I couldn't tell you how many yards of fabric I have, but I have a guess as to how many linear feet of fabric bolts are upstairs and in my attic. The bolts standing on end, just like you would find in a fabric store, probably come close to 100 linear feet. Most of my fabric is on full bolts, stored in a large upstairs room and in the attic.

Over 10 linear feet of fabric is wrapped on these small cardboard's like in the photo at top. If I'm buying a fabric specifically for the Market Line Bags, I now buy only a yard or two, no more.

Here is a photo of the 3 foot-wide shelf where most of the small cardboard bolts are stored. The lower shelf has two rows of bolts on it. Every single one is a different fabric.

There are over 150 different fabrics on this shelf.

Printed fleece and flannel are a bit different, since I use them for baby blankets, throw blankets and the Pet Mat Beds. If it's a print that I think will be popular, I'll buy 4-5 yards. Below are some brand new fleece and flannel kitty prints that I'll probably start working with in late summer.

Fleece bolts at the top:
I love cat naps; Cats on blue; Cartoon cats in a row
Flannel on bottom, unbolted:
Cats on white; Cats on cream; Feathers all over

Where do I find my fabrics? I shop downtown Los Angeles in the garment district for all kinds of fabric. I browse online mostly for cotton, especially if I'm looking for new Christmas prints for the Ornament/Package Toppers. I shop at JoAnn Fabrics when they put fabrics, cutting tools or thread on sale.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Hi there, I am on a desperate search for a green flannel abc giraffe print. I found an older picture you posted and was wondering if you had any material left.

Sprocket said...

Missy Hopkins,
Please email me directly. Scroll down the blog on the right side and you will see my email address.