Deal or No Deal

 I don't know about you, but lately when I go into a fabric store, I'm pretty taken aback by the prices. (Let's not even mention the grocery store prices!) Even the big box stores have had big price increases. I have a big stash of fabrics, so I mostly only buy when I need something specific, like Minecraft fabric or Lego fabric to make something for my grandkids. I did, however, already have planned to top up some basics that I'm running low on, and to do that on a budget, I turn to Marshall Dry Goods in Arkansas. 

I'm almost out of solid white, so when DD#2 asked me what I wanted for Mother's Day, I told her a gift card to Marshall Dry Goods. They were out of stock of solid white at the time, but when they got it back in, I made a big order. I ordered a 25 yd bolt of white @2.65 per yard, 2 15 yard bolts @ $5.50 per yard of 108" wide fabrics in colors I use a lot, and two 15 yard bolts of tonals, one in lime green, and one in navy. The tonals were on clearance for $2.15 per yard.  I had budgeted for this purchase, so even though it was expensive, I knew no local places could compete. One thing I love about Marshall Dry Goods is they will let you buy at wholesale prices if you are willing to buy bulk. 

I did add something I hadn't planned on buying to my order, but it was still in my budget. DH and I budgeted for several extras before he retires.  Marshall Dry Goods sometimes sells 30 lb cases of misc. cuts of fabrics. I bought one one other time, and at that time I got a box filled with solids. At the time I was a little disappointed, because I had also ordered a bunch of solids at the same time, so I was inundated with solids. I now have a theory about that, and I've used most of the fabric I got in that box so no worries. 

This time I got no solids, and I really liked what I got.

This was the assortment of fabric I got in my 30 pound box. I got 17 different fabrics, but multiple cuts of most of them. This photo was taken as I sorted the box, but since then I've measured and refolded all the fabrics. In case you are wondering if any of the fabrics were seconds, I checked over the fabrics closely, and made notes over any issues. 

Top Row-

Starting at the top left, I had three different WOW fabrics. WOW#1 came in three pieces for a total of 9.5 yards. There were dirt spots in a couple of places, like the fabric hit the dirty warehouse floor, and it looked like it would wash out no problem. It wasn't filthy, just and odd smudge here or there. The second WOW came in two pieces for a total of four yards. It had one spot on it, that might not come out. 

So that one dime sized spot in four yards. 

WOW#3 came in two pieces for a total of 3 yards, and I didn't find anything wrong on it at all. 

The next fabric in the first photo is a Cream on Cream. It came in two pieces for a total of 6+ yards. I'm using a plus when it's less than a half yard, but more than a couple inches. No imperfections at all.

Next is the black/white buffalo plaid. I had five pieces of it for a total of 7 yards. The I think the smallest piece I got in the whole lot was just under a yard, so know that none of these are 6" strips or somesuch. Again, no imperfections anywhere. 

The next fabric is a small scale blue gingham. I got two pieces for a total of 7 yards. I didn't find any issues with it. 

The black and white checkered fabric on the end came in 2 pieces for a total of 3.5 yards. No damage. 

Second Row-

I grouped the blenders together. The navy blender came in three pieces for a total of 4+ yards.

The lime green blender had this marker mark right by the selvedge. That few inches of marker was the only spot on the two pieces I got with a total of 5 yards.

The olive blender was perfect, in two pieces that totalled 6 yards.

The pink blender was also perfect, in two pieces that totalled 3.5 yards.

The light blue cracked ice tonal came in 4 pieces, and totalled 7 yards. The smallest piece had a small dirt spot on it, again, it looked like it hit the floor and would easily wash out. 

I only got 1 piece of the gray cracked ice tonal and it was 1 yard. No issues with it. 

The last fabric on the second row is the navy vine tonal. I got one piece of 2+ yards. No issues with it. 

Bottom Row-

It's hard to see, but the first fabric on the bottom row is a black tonal. It came in four pieces for a total of 10.5 yards.

There was a stray thread on top of the fabric during printing, so there is this 6" line that didn't print correctly. This is the only spot on the entire 10.5 yards. 

Next is the purple pindot.

One of the three pieces I got had this misprint along one side. It was only on this one piece, but did go the entire length of that, the other two pieces were fine. I got a total of 6.5 yards. 

The pink pindot is last, it came in 2 pieces with a total of 9 yards, no misprints of issues with any of it. 

So how much fabric did I get in total for the 30 pounds of fabric for $165? I got 95.5 yards, probably a bit more since I didn't count anything under 1/3 yard. That brings my average price per yard of this mystery box to $1.72 per yard. Was it a good deal? I think it was. A lot of my stash has either been given to me, or I bought it at thrift stores, or I dug through the clearance fabrics at a quilt shop. I've bought much more expensive fabrics that had things spilled on them, or had been stepped on, or even had holes in it. The misprint on the purple pindot? It's pretty straight down the whole thing, so I can get a nice strip between the selvedge and the misprint, cut the misprint off (or even throw it in the strings) and the remaining fabric is fine. For $1.72 a yard, I'm OK with having to deal with that. You know what I'm not OK with? Buying custom fabric from Spoonflower at over $20 per yard, and having a four inch wide white selvedge. At that price I want the whole width printed correctly. 

Now, are you ready for my theory? The only other time I ordered one of these 30 pound mystery boxes, I had also ordered a bunch of solids, and they sent me all solids in my mystery box. This time I had ordered a bunch of blenders, plus a bolt of white. The colors of the blenders I ordered were green, purple, navy, and lime. What did I get in my box? A bunch of WOW, and mostly the rest was blenders and tonals, and I happened to get green, purple, navy and lime. Maybe it was just coincidence, or maybe they try to send you things from the remnant bin they think you will like. I don't know the answer to that, and with DH retiring, I don't know that I'll order another mystery box, even though I was quite happy with this one.

Once he's retired, if I really want a mystery box, Marshall Dry Goods has a bundle of 100 fat quarters for $59...

DD#1 and family are looking at moving out of state, and I'll be very sad to see them go. They used to live in South Africa, but they are staying in the USA so I'm super happy about that. What area are they looking at, mainly at an area within a couple hours of Marshall Dry Goods! I have been to their store once before on a road trip, and if DD#1's family ends up there, I may get to go there again!