bigbrownowl

I am always very envious of you in the States, with your very low prices. $5.44 = £3.41 at today's conversion rate. The cheapest plain block coloured cotton I can buy is £5.50 per mtr = $8.75. We regularly pay £8-£12 per mtr for cotton fabric ($12.73 - $19.00) in quilting shops. Even on my local market I am looking at about £5-6.50 per mtr.

The global price of unprocessed raw cotton reached an all time high in 2011 - $2.23 per pound. Although cotton prices have now started to drop (under a dollar a pound), manufacturers are still using cotton they purchased some time ago, and - in true entreprenurial style, and in response to market forces - are passing the cost onto us, the consumer. So much for the free market economy!

I am very careful what I purchase. I recover previously used material from clothing: any cotton fabric from shirts, dresses, etc. It is a bit time consuming, but in a funny kind of way, gives me a link with the past, when quilts were made using leftover fabric. My favourite quilt is one that I didn't make! It was made by my great grandmother, as a bedcover for my grandmother when she left home to get married. It used old dress fabrics and leftover pieces of material, because she didn't have the luxury of purchasing new fabric from her local quilting shop! All through my childhood I remember it being on my grandmothers bed. It is now on mine!

QuiltnNan

what a wonderful memory to snuggle under every night!

Arleners

I hear we must blame the cost increases on droughts in cotton producing countries.

dbright

Gas prices are up and so goes fabric!!

turner0106

I was really shocked the other week I went to pickup flannel for the backing of my quilt. I needed the off white. They had two bolts one was less than a yard, the other was new. However, the new one looked like second quality. Every 6-10 inches it had a color weaved into the fabric. Reds, black, and bright blue. Just one line. We went through the whole bolt and it was like this. I was willing to try it since it was the back of the fabric but she didn't want to discount it. I was disappointed I went with a muslin. Was disappointed but found one that was a thicker fabric. The first one was paper thin. I wont waste my time going back unless I'm desperate.

If they want to compete with the Fabric store maybe they should carry first quality fabric and not seconds, especially if they are going to charge the same prices. JMO.
Diane

Cherylsea

I am just glad that I don't own a quilt shop! If you go to the grocery store you will notice that the prices are going up, in some cases almost daily! People "have" to have food; there are alternatives to purchasing fabric. Everything else is going up so we have less disposable income to spend on our hobby. If you don't support your local shop; soon there will be no shops.

Jackie Spencer

I bought solid black ( Moda Bella Solids) on line today for 4.50 a yard. If you go to quiltshops.com and type in what your looking for, there are over 200 shops there. Every one of them that has it will pop up. You can price compare, you would'nt believe the price differences sometimes.

QUILTNMO

yes even wal mart has gone up /

momto5

Nor does mine....

Mazda

I know fabric is getting more expensive, but for me it is much cheaper than my last serious hobbit! I was into fusing glass for several years & that is one expensive hobby! BTW, does anybody was to buy one or two glass kilns! lol