FABRIC STASH SERIES PART 1 - DO YOU HAVE A FABRIC STASH? HOW DOES IT MAKE YOU FEEL?
My current fabric stash, sorted by fiber type and weight, in large plastic bins.
A while back, I asked a series of questions in a poll on my Instagram Stories:
Do you have a fabric stash?
How does your stash make you feel: Excited? Anxious? Guilty? Overwhelmed?
How much fabric is in there (I gave brackets)?
Do you plan to sew everything in your stash?
Are sewing and stash building different hobbies? (tbqh I hate this question.)
I asked these questions after a week of meditating on my relationship with my own fabric stash, and then found the hundreds of answers I received to be provocative, fascinating, and at times unexpected.
While the questions are about fabric, the answers delve much deeper, into rich and murky topics such as: self expression, hobbies, spare time, beauty, joy, collecting, imagining, relationships, sustainability, finances, and the limitations of physical space.
I’ll start by answering the questions I posed.
This photo was taken three or four years ago, I’ve used about half of these fabrics. The rest are still in my stash.
DO YOU HAVE A FABRIC STASH?
Yes, of course! Notably, the most popular posts on this blog are about fabric shopping. If there is one thing I cannot resist purchasing, it is fabric.
In 20018, I did a so called Ready-to-Wear Fast - I didn’t purchase any clothing for a year. None! This completely modified my shopping habits in all categories except buying fabric.
Since then, I purchase less stuff in general, and I think for a few days before completing a transaction. It had a positive affect on my life. But it’s impossible to say if I currently buy more or less fabric than I would have without completing that exercise.
Everything we owned, inside the storage unit. My fabric & patterns are all at the front on the right.
HOW DOES YOUR STASH MAKE YOU FEEL?
Simply put: Home is where the stash is.
Last Fall, we moved back to the States after two years of living Scotland. Because we didn't know where we would live next, or for how long, we plopped everything we owned in a storage unit until we could figure out housing. Our unit was 15 x 15 x 20 feet, and held all our possessions aside from some clothes and basic supplies.
Contents of the box that caused the meltdown. So happy we found it!
Moving is always stressful, and this was an extreme example. I had a toddler style meltdown when I couldn’t find a box of vintage patterns and assumed it was lost (it was mislabelled as bedding and shoved to the back of our storage unit). I managed to get one box of patterns and about half of my fabric to the front of the unit, where I visited them at least once a month.
Visiting my fabric was one of the most grounding practices available to me during a transient few years. Is that weird? Does it matter? The material comforted me: its familiarity, its potential.
One of my greatest sources of inspiration is looking at the fabric I already own, even if I have no plan to use it. I like to stare at it all stacked up, allowing my eyes to unfocus, and just absorb colors. I will unfurl yardage and drape it around myself like a toga for an afternoon. Or take every single cut off the shelf, rearranging the stacks - by color, maybe, or weight - and put them back. Without fail, this messy routine sets off my subconscious, and my creativity is sparked.
When visiting the storage unit, I’d paw through boxes until I happened upon something that caused me to gasp, or have a memory of what I was thinking of making when I bought it. Then I’d bring it back to our rented house, where I would not use it. I’d keep it stacked to the right of my desk, or you know, drape it over myself like a toga for the afternoon. I’ve learned that I need a certain amount of material in my presence to conjure new ideas.
Most of these have been used…..except that shimmering purple fabric, which has been in my stash for about ten years.
HOW MUCH FABRIC IS IN YOUR STASH?
Great question, but I don’t know the answer. 6 plastic bins. And then my various scrap boxes. Hmm then a few pieces I keep out in stacks. Things I don’t love, but need (muslin, interfacing) tucked into little nooks.
I have what some people consider to be an overwhelming amount, others would say it’s not much; for me it’s perfect. There must be hundreds of yards, because I usually purchase a 3 yard cut.
Meanwhile, I continue to buy fabric. The new purchases are often sewn up immediately, while the older stash fabrics work their magic of generating ideas. Why is this happening? What would happen to me if I didn’t have access to a stash? Could a fabric store fulfill this need? (I have tried and the answer, for me, is No.)
Bolts of tempting fabric in a shop in Midtown.
DO YOU STICK TO A BUDGET WHEN BUYING FABRIC:
In 2018, when I did that Ready-to-Wear Fast, I shifted my clothing shopping budget to my sewing budget. This made sense, because the previous year I had sewn a lot, and purchased very little clothing. Over the next few years, I continued to mostly sew my own clothes, but I do buy RTW on occasion.
Eventually, I stopped paying attention to what I was spending in either category. I am now back to a budget. I stay within it, but really, I’d like to cut it back, because I have already bought so much gorgeous fabric. I’d like to use it.
So my answer used to be No, I don’t stick to a budget; but now it is Yes. Only time will tell how it shakes out, but so far, it hasn’t been too painful.
Posing with my fabrics in our old loft near the Brooklyn Navy Yard.
CONCLUSION:
I wanted to share my answers to these questions before diving in and analyzing the answers I crowd sourced on Instagram. The answers cover the full spectrum of possibility and my goal is to approach them without judgment, while inspiring introspection around our own behaviors. We all have our reasons, and this is an emotional topic.
Home sewing is already a charged topic. It’s historically Women’s Work. Garment making has always been undervalued, and in the age of Fast Fashion, garments sell for prices that don’t even cover material costs, let alone the cost of labor to sew them. I worked as a textile designer for fashion companies for many years, so I’m well aware of how fabric is produced, and why it is over produced, which skews my point of view slightly.
I’m curious about how others feel about their stash - positive or negative. I’d love to hear your thoughts, let’s chat in the comments. XO, Martha