To the OP, I don't know your particular circumstances, but I'd like to say a few words for those of us who maintain large stashes without any regret, guilt, fear, or anxiety.

I live out in the woods on a dirt road in a very small town many miles from the nearest quilt shop. When I get the urge to create, I want immediate gratification. I pull from stash for just about everything I do, start to finish, and it all coordinates perfectly without a hitch. I can quilt anytime, day or night, hurricane or blizzard, on a moments notice without inconvenience.

Because I have always preferred solids, blenders, batiks, tone-on-tones, small monochromatic prints, and other similar types of fabric, nothing in my stash is out of date, out of style, stale, or no longer to my taste...and some of it is decades old. There is simply nothing there that I would not be happy to put into a quilt tomorrow. When I add new fabrics it is for stash 95% of the time, usually to replace or add to specific colors and values.

All I'm trying to say is that stash building habits and eventual size are very personal. You should follow your own path, based on your own needs and preferences. It may not be what works for other people, but if it's what works for you, that's all that counts. The dire warnings about accumulating a large stash are simply not applicable to every quilter in the universe. Not having a sizeable stash can actually be a detriment to some of us. :o

Ghostrider, I agree with you wholeheartedly. We live in a rural community and the nearest quilt shop is about 40 miles or so away. I have a sizable stash and I love it. I'm in love with scrappy quilts, so any outdated, whatwasIthinking fabric gets cut up for string quilts. I think that it's Bonnie Hunter that said, "If you have some ugly fabric, cut it up. If it's still ugly, you haven't cut it small enough!"

My dream stash storage is a large walk in closet that is surrounded by sturdy shelving 10" deep and adjustable for height. I would keep a good step up ladder available to reach high shelves and a rolling chair to sit on for low shelves and to contemplate my choices. My fabrics would all be ruler folded or on bolts and faced so I can see everything. There are no windows to this closet but good air circulation so nothing would become musty. I keep dreaming and I love seeing how wonderfully others have organized all that they have.

I play with mine too. I stroke it ,I touch it. I look at it. I do everything except get anything done with it. Oh well. maybe next year. Right now, I'm in the process of cutting a lot of it into 5" squares 2 1/2" strips and 1" strips. I ran across a book of nickel quilts at an estate sale. So I think I will attempt some of those.
For the 1" strips. I am paper piecing a pineapple quilt. That might take the rest of my life if I live long enough. It sure is time consuming. But it does look beautiful . I wanted a queen size but a lap size might be what I end up with.

I stored mine in plastic containers for years without any problems. Now I have them on wire shelving in two large closets.

I'm with you, imsewnso! Good advice from start to finish. Thanks for sharing :-)

I totally agree with Imsewnso. I too regret getting caught up in the fabric buying, stash building frenzy. It's ridiculous, in my opinion, to have all this fabric and let it sit in the closet. I don't sew as often as others, so for me, it's a lot of money sitting there doing nothing. For those who quilt on a regular basis, I guess it makes sense. Not for me however. But, to answer your query, I store my yardage on mini bolts, upright, on shelves in a closet with doors. Smaller pieces are in plastic tubs.

I've been storing fabric in open plastic containers in a guest room closet. But one long bin is stacked on top of another, which makes it impossible to see what I've got without moving everything. I've always hated the arrangement, and I've finally bought a tall Billy bookcase from IKEA with full length doors. The top of the doors are glass, which means I'll have to cover them with something to protect the fabric from the light, but that's doable. My son suggested the film used on car windows, which cuts ultraviolet light; I may look into that.

I've just put that bookcase together and now have to get it in place and get the fabric ruler folded and inside. But already I know it will not hold all I've got, which leads me to vote with others on not acquiring a huge stash. Mine is not even that big compared to some, but it's still more than I really have room for.....and doesn't even include the batting I've accumulated -- no idea where I'm putting that! I've stopped buying fabric until I get what I have sewn up. When fabric becomes a burden instead of a joy, it lessens the fun, I've discovered.

Good luck with whatever you decide! If you have a dedicated sewing room (I don't) you'll have many more options for storing all your quilting materials.

I have a healthy stash with some pieces dating back decades. I LOVE my stash - it gives me great joy. When I get persnickety, my DH sends me to my room to "pet my stash" because that always puts me in a good mood. All but the scraps are stored in cabinets. Living in the country and dealing with all the dust, I keep my fabric behind closed doors. Scraps are kept in plastic bins. The most important part is keeping fabric away from sunlight.

I store my half yard cuts and above on shelves in a large walk in closet I have in my sewing room. They are all ruler folded and stored by color. Novelty fabrics are stored on their own shelves...novelty includes holiday themed. Fat quarters, quarter yards an smaller are stored in shallow drawers in my desk and a lingerie dresser, by color and/or novelty.