Before working at the quilt shop, I didnt have an allowance or budget, just used a little common sense and didnt over spend (well maybe a little, several times, shhhhhh) ;) But now with all the fabric at my finger tips, I havent had time to do anything for myself it is all for the shop! Which is a good thing because I am spending almost nothing!! :D

Budget? I didn't know I was suppost to have one. Don't tell my DH. He has never said a thing about the money I spend. My theory is I purchase it now and when we retire I should have a nice stash.

That was my theory,too. Of course, I didn't realize then that there would be all these NEW prints that I would be wanting.

I used to buy lots of fat quarters or half yard pieces because I liked them. Then I found I had lots of bits and pieces that never really fit together when I went to do a particular quilt. I still buy fabric I like, but I try to buy all the coordinating fabrics, so I know that I will have what I need when I finally get around to doing it.

I do have my own mental budget. Comes from being the oldest of 11 children and hearing my parents always fighting about money.

Have to tell this story on my hubby. We were in a quilt shop not long ago and I was looking around and ooohhing and aahhing over some of the fabrics and when I left without buying anything he asked me why. I said I had enough to sew up and there would always be fabric. He said "I just spent $400 on my new motorcycle muffler", which I knew, "I think you can spend some on fabric"!!! I should have turned around than and marched back into the store! We kinda police each other but he has never said NO to me. 35 years and going!!

Happy Holidays.

I used to buy on sale whatever I liked, no budget. Late last year I ran out of room, I have fabric everywhere, a large stash, backings included, so I stopped buying for my stash. Early this year both my DH and myself were laid off so I have been using what I have. Sometimes it is not what I would combine if I could buy something else, but it all works out. I have a little room on the shelves now, will reorganise all the fabric in the new year. I bought batting Warm and Natural by the 40 yd bolt on sale or with a coupon at JoAnn's so I am all set with batting. If I need a border I will buy for that.

Think Budget?
Never!
Instead, think of clutter, dust, stacks of unused fabrics and it will incent you to use what you have.
Of course, one often needs small amounts of coordinating fabric for a project, when you shop, ENJOY the shopping process so there is no need to overbuy.

I am on a limited budget. Therefore I have made a committment to myself not to buy any new fabric until I have completed the projects I have started or have material for. Occasionally I will buy material if I know I need to make a baby quilt or if I am making tablerunners etc. I am sure I have let many a good material patterns go by. But you do what you have to do. I am sure we all can find some material in our stack that will continue to allow us to quilt.LOL Have a great time not matter how you budget your quilting. Love and Prayers

What's a budget? The next rehab place they open should be for quilters!

My husband and I work together on the household budget. (We are using Dave Ramsey's system of getting out of debt.)
We have determined a set amount for each of us to spend each month for things that we want that are outside of the budget (in other words we get an allowance). How we spend that allowance is our own decision. My husband is retired so we only get paid once a month. (Right now, we each get $100 a month.) I use my money for anything quilting related (or for personal birthday gifts or for going out for lunch with friends.) I want to say right here that my husband seems to be able to make his money go a lot further than I can make my money go. It must be because he doesn't quilt. ;-)
We can't dip into the household money if we waste our allowance so that makes us behave when it comes to how we spend our allowance.
So, I guess you can say that "yes" I am on a budget for my quilting addiction. When things come up that I want but will take up more money (like Dave McCallum's featherweight CD and book) I usually save for a couple of months before I buy it.

We have been married for 28 years. We use to fight over money but we don't now. Each of us get the same amount and each of us can spend it without explaining to the other one how it was spent. (We both trust each other that the money is not going to be used in the wrong way...like for drugs or for a gambling addiction.)

Last January, I said I WAS NOT going to buy a kit all year long. I have the rest to this month to fulfill that. And I have not bought a kit. I have enough kits for the next 5 years.

I do have a monthly budget. It's based on what my DH gets to spend that month. So, basically, what he gets, I get. So right now, my current play budget is around $100. but, that includes my lunch out with my quilting buddy. We make sure the bills are covered so that way, he doesn't get upset when I bring fabric home. In fact, he likes to see my latest buys.

I've never had a budget but I do try to be reasonable. Luckily, I'm not bad about buying fabric unless I have a project for it. Notions make me crazy, though. I see so many that I want. I am very involved in a church prayer quilt ministry with a very small budget. Amazing how crafty you can become when there is so little funding. We have made some absolutely gorgeous quilts by just pulling from the scraps in our stash. I think the financial problems many of us are having is the greatest lesson on how to get by with less. Also when I moved to a new house (downsized) recently, I was very aware of how much I had saved that I really didn't need. So in my home as in my quilting, I am really trying to get by with what I have (and I'm thankful for it) and use my brain to get the creative juices flowing.

I have been working mostly off of my stash all year!! So... that means I get to buy some new fabrics next year.

I really don't budget myself, but then I normally don't buy fabric 'just because', only when I need it for a project I'm working on now.

My husband and I are using the Dave Ramsey plan too!!! It is so freeing not to argue over money!!

Rose

I give kudos to all of you who can live on 100$ a month. I wish I could do that...I don't know how that is poissible? I mean a few lunches with friends and a couple of movies and that money is gone....I would have no hobbie money?? You really have to pick and choose every month which is important.....I need to find some dicsipline!

That's me, only it's car parts (not parts to keep cars running, but project car parts)

My mother who owned a drapery/upholstery shop had a bumper sticker that said it all. "Who ever dies with the most fabric wins." When she passed away my sister and I went into her "sewing nest" and decided she won. This Christmas will be 12 years since I inherited 1/2 her fabric and am finishing the last of her projects to give to her grandchildren as an heirloom. Only other quilters or sewers could appreciate this saying and the results I inherited. I say keep buying (within budget) and starting your projects. My Mothers fabric were a true treasure for me, my sister and all her grandchildren. :)

I live on a farm and do woodworking in the nice weather. When it turns cold, my need for a craft turns to quilting. I usually stock up once or twice a year and that lasts me. Joann's had a great internet free shipping deal over T'giving, so I stocked up on flannel ($1.99) and fleece ($2.49) which I use for backings. I went to WalMart in Oct. to stock up on cotton for the tops. I'm all set now and poor only for a short period!

"My husband and I are using the Dave Ramsey plan too!!! It is so freeing not to argue over money!!"

Rose

Yes it is!!! I wish I had used this system years ago. There is no resentment because one spent more money than the other one. There are no fights about how much was charged because we don't charge.

Because we have been diligent in paying off our bills, we could up our allowance but I would really like to get to the point that we are debt free.

I wish I had a quilting budget I could stick with. I go in spurts, I belong to BOM's and everytime I go to pick them up I go crazy. So many new things are in and I just have to have everything.. Since DD retired (it wasn't planned) there has been a drop in purchases, not all because of money,but, the fact that he is home alot,makes it harder to run to the shop.
I really have to start using my stash.

how do we meet Sharon B???? ;)

Having a man around full-time is a HUGE change.

I have no idea how I ever managed to cook, do laundry, and other household tasks without his "supervision" :?

My husband challenged me not to buy any new fabric after noticing how much I spent last year when we were doing taxes... I do have about 78 UFOs... well I am only dreaming about 11 of those, and 19 of them are already pieced and waiting for the machine quilter (me), then I have 18 in kits that haven't started yet, just assembled toigether with the pattern. So that leaves about 23-4 projects I have started that are not to a finishing point yet. I won't have an excuse to buy new fabric for years and years.... or do I???

My triplet daughters are TURNING TWENTY next month, and isn't there a quilt pattern called "Turning Twenty" that uses twenty fat quarters????? Hmmmm. What do you think?? Time to go shopping?!?

You could cut some of your yardage into fat quarters :roll: and use them.

I know, what a party pooping idea that is!

I don't really have a budget but about 4 or 5 years ago I went for 1-1/2 years without entering a fabric shop (too much temptation). During that time I was able to pay off everything I owed include the house (which granted is small). I'm retired so my money comes in on the first and I first pay any bills including the one credit card I use online. After they are all paid off I set aside what I think groceries, hair cut, cat hair cut, whatever I think I'm going to need for the month then anything left I can spend on fabric or quilting "stuff". It works for me. It was very hard not to go to the quilt store for a while but it was worth every minute of it. During that time I got reintroduced to my stash and used up quite a bit of it but there is way more to go.

I like to fish too so I can't use that one. I do handwork on the boat sometimes if its not too windy.

"Having a man around full-time is a HUGE change.

I have no idea how I ever managed to cook, do laundry, and other household tasks without his "supervision" :?"

:roll: laughing....
I have the same problem uh...I mean blessing.

I organise the budget in our household so I don't have a choice but to be good with the discretionary money. Having said that I have to give credit to my DH for being very supportive of my hobbies both in praise (he always tells me that he is proud of the things I make) and also in trusting that I will not go berserk buying and letting our bills go unpaid. Some months I buy lots and other months go by with no purchases.

I started out that way but now I've started buying ahead when I see material I really like but then when I want to make a quilt, so often it won't work so I buy more. I have to say STOP and only buy for my projects that are actually in the works and that works for a while. My problem is patterns, I see a quilt I love and get the pattern, so far I figure that I have to live be at least 100 to use them all.

Gosh, I'm glad to see I'm in good company. When DH was alive, I had more income. Now I'm on a fixed one. I have splurged from time to time but now have a good sized stash. All I need is more time. Has anyone talked to the man upstairs about 48 hour days?

I don't have a budget per se but do have to watch what I spend due to my unemployment and lack of storgae space. :cry: My problem is when I go to a shop out on a farm; her fabric is ONLY $5/yard so I tend to go overboard there unless I am very careful and/or have my daughters with me! I do try to make out of my stash but I don't always have the colors or right shade so have started only buying in 1/2 yards. So sad for me.

WE used the Dave Ramsey plan also,we payed off everything and we are debt free. It was tough, but it paid off, when we were forced into early retirement. you must have an emergancy fund!!

Thank you for the encouragement Donna. It is getting easier all of the time, especially as we get things paid off. I look forward to the day that we are debt free.
:thumbup:

Only if we can bring our stash, sewing machine, and all the tools necessary to make lots of quilts. :lol:

Us too, though we've bought the books. Hubby wants to do the class online and we're waiting until after the holidays to pay for it.

Anne, what a special treasure! Lucky grandkids!

Who datt?

I usually buy what I want within reason. But, I only pay cash, so I don't over do it, cuz, by golly, it is sew easy to do.

I have a monthly allowance for personal purchases which helps me to control my spending. When it's gone for the month, I have to wait until I get "paid" again next month.

Where quilting is concerned, however, if I have a specific quilt in mind when I make a purchase, I draw on our general funds. If I'm spending it just because I like it, then I spend my own money.

That, initially, was my intention also. Now that I've retired (12 years) I find that I have less and less time to devote to quiltiing. What a let-down.

Luckily I am now in the retirement years and no kiddies running around and needing any extra $$$$$ that might be available.....
so my spending on fabric and the quilting play toys have become an easier access

There are good things about these aging years....lolol

Dave Ramsey is a financial guy who has TV and radio shows. He helps people manage their money by stressing a budget and getting out of debt. I heard about him through my church, but he is not affliated with any religious group or denomination, nor are his shows religious. Its all about people and their money. For some reason his website (www.daveramsey.com) is not working right now for me (at work!) maybe it is the firewall. If you Google Dave Ramsey it will come up. I highly recommend his program!

Rose Hall