$3 for fat quarter ?
#131
Originally Posted by ptquilts
You are paying for all the heavy, intensive, labor and equipment involved in cutting one quarter yard of fabric.
See those ladies sprawled in chairs at the back of the shop, sweating, drinking Gatorade, and panting - they just cut a fat quarter for you.
See those ladies sprawled in chairs at the back of the shop, sweating, drinking Gatorade, and panting - they just cut a fat quarter for you.
:lol: :mrgreen: :lol:
#132
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2011
Location: League City, Texas
Posts: 504
Personally, I would rather buy a half yard than a fat quarter and one of the shops I go to encourages this. I don't know why I sometime buy them.
Actually, this isn't quite correct. Most greige goods are made in China, i.e. the base fabric is cleaned and woven there. Some is also made in Pakistan and India.
Most top-end printed fabric is printed and finished in Japan and So. Korea.
Some of the more mid-low end fabrics, like David Textiles, Springs Creative, lower-end Cranston, and most of the the stuff you buy in Wally World, are also printed and finished in China.
Connecting Threads has their fabric printed and finished in Mexico.
Batiks and hand-dyes are mostly dyed, stamped and finished in Indonesia and India.
There are many reasons fabric isn't made in the USA anymore. If fabric were in fact made in the USA today, with all the government regulations and union labor, fabric would probably cost about 25 dollars a yard, and you'd be talking about FQ's at 8 or 9 dollars each.
FQ's aren't scraps, or made from scraps in any shop I've ever been in. FQ's are made in most shops by cutting a half-yard off the bolt, then cutting the half-yard in half lengthwise. In more careful shops this often involves starting with an oversized half-yard cut which is then re-folded, trimmed and straightened before cutting, so that you get a true FQ that is straight to the pattern. There is a lot of time involved and some trimming loss to making a perfect FQ, thus the increased price. Labor might be free in some places, but it isn't in most shops. Personally, as a shop owner I'd just as soon not cut FQ's because there is waste involved, but you're almost forced to offer them because so many patterns are based on FQ's.
If you do find a FQ pattern you like, it probably is worth your time, and you may save some money, by seeing if you can easily adapt that pattern to long quarters. I'd be willing to bet that many FQ patterns can use long quarters, which typically cost less than fats.
Thank you for taking the time to explain all that to us, Don. As always, your comments on such things are based on first hand, real world experience and not emotion and I truly appreciate your efforts to educate all of us consumers. ;)
Originally Posted by ghostrider
Originally Posted by QKO
Originally Posted by QuilterChick
Fabric has gone up in price by at least $1.00 a yard; and the sad part is, all of it is made in China, even the "high end" brands. When I lived in NC, I used to buy at Mary Jo's all the time, and Mary Jo herself told me about the price increases. So when a shop owner buys a bolt, they have to reprice by the yard.
Fat quarters at $2.50 were too much to begin with imho; they are basically scraps and on many you have to cut off the selvage.
Remember when fabric was actually made in the USA?
Fat quarters at $2.50 were too much to begin with imho; they are basically scraps and on many you have to cut off the selvage.
Remember when fabric was actually made in the USA?
Most top-end printed fabric is printed and finished in Japan and So. Korea.
Some of the more mid-low end fabrics, like David Textiles, Springs Creative, lower-end Cranston, and most of the the stuff you buy in Wally World, are also printed and finished in China.
Connecting Threads has their fabric printed and finished in Mexico.
Batiks and hand-dyes are mostly dyed, stamped and finished in Indonesia and India.
There are many reasons fabric isn't made in the USA anymore. If fabric were in fact made in the USA today, with all the government regulations and union labor, fabric would probably cost about 25 dollars a yard, and you'd be talking about FQ's at 8 or 9 dollars each.
FQ's aren't scraps, or made from scraps in any shop I've ever been in. FQ's are made in most shops by cutting a half-yard off the bolt, then cutting the half-yard in half lengthwise. In more careful shops this often involves starting with an oversized half-yard cut which is then re-folded, trimmed and straightened before cutting, so that you get a true FQ that is straight to the pattern. There is a lot of time involved and some trimming loss to making a perfect FQ, thus the increased price. Labor might be free in some places, but it isn't in most shops. Personally, as a shop owner I'd just as soon not cut FQ's because there is waste involved, but you're almost forced to offer them because so many patterns are based on FQ's.
If you do find a FQ pattern you like, it probably is worth your time, and you may save some money, by seeing if you can easily adapt that pattern to long quarters. I'd be willing to bet that many FQ patterns can use long quarters, which typically cost less than fats.
#133
actually in the little shop that opened up around here some months ago sell their cotton at 20$ a meter......
Originally Posted by Ripped on Scotch
I hate to tell you but that is normal in Canada. if not a little on the low side. Cotton is about $15\meter.
#134
Banned
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Colorado
Posts: 3,536
Most of the time if I can find the fat quarter
that I like on a bolt I will buy at LEAST a 1/2
yard and cut my own fat quarter and get 2 instead
of just one.
That is how I have managed to get almost of the
stash of fat quarters that I already have.
But no way would I pay $3 for a single fq.
that I like on a bolt I will buy at LEAST a 1/2
yard and cut my own fat quarter and get 2 instead
of just one.
That is how I have managed to get almost of the
stash of fat quarters that I already have.
But no way would I pay $3 for a single fq.
#140
I just came home from the fabric store and they were selling their fat quarters for $1.79. Now I'm not sure how good a quality they are but.... I also saw that they were selling bundles of Hawaiian print fat quarters as well as Hawaiian print jelly rolls, too. It looks like they cut their own Hawaiian print types.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
craftybear
Links and Resources
8
08-25-2011 09:29 PM
craftybear
Links and Resources
1
08-12-2011 06:51 PM
craftybear
Links and Resources
10
05-31-2011 03:35 AM