Jackie Hernandez
Crafters and quilters usually build up a fabric stash over many years of collecting. A fabric stash is usually filled with fabrics they couldn’t resist and knew someday they’d find the perfect project for. I think most crafters and quilters would be frightened to be stash-less. A fabric stash can serve as inspiration and always provides security knowing there is a project hiding in there somewhere.
Well, what to do if you have decided to craft green and have no stash? Start building one.
One of the fastest and most affordable ways to build a stash is by buying small cuts of fabrics you love. There are so many eco-friendly fabric sources that sell fabric mix packs and remnant bags perfect for starting a new stash. Here is a round-up of my favorite sources for eco-friendly fabric scraps and remnants.
- I drool over this MARAmiki Waste Not Remnant Stash (shown at top) full of hand-printed scraps material, including linen, cotton, and silk.
- Lotta Jansdotter has a couple linen remnant bags (shown above) with generously sized pieces featuring a variety of colors and prints.
- Pippijoe always has Fabric Mix Packs featuring 2-3 pieces of coordinating screenprinted hemp or linen blend fabrics.
- Green Depot has a section dedicated to sustainable and vintage scrap fabrics ranging from prints to solids.
- Cicada Studio always offers fabric samplers for each collection.
- Umbrella Prints offers a package of fabric trimmings from their collection.
- Of Paper and Thread sells 25 x 20 cm fabric scraps for only $3 a piece.
- Ink and Spindle always supports the craft community with fabric packs from all three designers, as well as craft kits.
Have fun building a greener fabric stash! If you want fabric yardage check out the Top 10 Modern, Eco-friendly, Printed Fabrics on Etsy.
[Image 1 courtesy of Mara Snipes of MARAmiki and Image 2 courtesy of Lotta Jansdotter]
THANK YOU! I have recently decided I want to start sewing/quilting and am at the very beginning stages and was wondering about “green” fabric. This is wonderfully helpful!
I loved this round-up of fabric remnants! I love all of the textile designers above… I also enjoy small green projects that take just a tiny bit of a special fabric. Thanks so much!
There’s nothing like buying fabric fresh off the bolt (she said, looking a bit guiltily at the ginormous stash), but for the very greenest option, I wait for the Goodwill $2 clothing sale and then find piles of clothes made from pretty fabrics which I then cut up and use to make things.
Thanks for including Maramiki! I love putting together each remnant stash, imagining what projects the prints and fabrics might inspire. And small pieces are so much less intimidating to work with. Thanks again!
Eee, i just discovered Alabama Chanin’s 100 percent organic cottons! Many colors, including some cotton patterns that are woven only of naturally colored cotton fiber (i.e. no dyes), 60″ wide, and only $15 per yard! Made all in the US, too. Such a deal. *drools*
Thrift stores are a great place to start when building a stash. They often have a fabric section with small remnants and big pieces, too. But you can also check out the linens, curtains, bedspreads, and clothes!