When discussing Cotton vs. Polyester Fabrics for quilts and fabric art, I’ve had readers ask me, “Where do I find polyester fabric.  Most of the stores carry only cotton.”
My daughter verified that it has become more difficult to find fabric other than 100% cotton in many of the quilt fabric shops and even the general fabric stores.
Nancy asks:  I want to do quilts with a poly cotton blend of fabric, not 100 percent cotton.  Where do I buy it from online stores?  I live in London, Ontario Canada.
Sandra commented:  All the fabric stores carry mostly all cotton. If they do carry a …read more

Batik fabrics have particular appeal to quilters and fabric artists.  My daughter seeks them out in stores and even dyes some of her own.
These unique fabrics have been around for about 2000 years and generally are made in the Far East.  Indonesia is particularly noted for its hand dyed batiks, with each bolt of fabric slightly different from another.
Quilters and fabric artists who like to experiment with new styles and patterns are especially fond of batiks.  Many, like my daughter, enjoy creating their own.
Some more information on batiks:
Batik Fabrics for Your Quilts
Batik
All About Batik Fabric

QuiltingAndPatchwork.com
 Deborah Ng at The List Mavin, had a fun idea the other day, What’s in Our Purses?  She asked various bloggers to send her photos of what they carried in their purses.  Others left comments.
I began wondering…do quilters carry quilting supplies in their purses…or tote bags?
Since I carry a black leather fanny pack all the time…not stylish, but very useful since I do a lot of flying (not flapping wings, but on planes), I don’t have much space for quilting supplies.  It’s a waste of time to change everything over to a traditional purse between trips, and I can sling this …read more

My daughter Beth enjoys dyeing fabrics, along with painting them.  Recently she took over the kitchen and spread out her dyeing materials.

Actually these are some plastic bags of dyed fabrics that are drying.  For more dyeing details from Beth, visit Dyeing Day, at her Meandering Threads blog.
Here are some of the results of Beth’s dyeing activities.

Check out more photos of her colorful fabrics at Dyeing Results.
Additional Posts on Dyeing:
Dyeing Fabrics for Quiltmaking
Results of a Fabric Dyeing Venture
Painting & Dyeing Fabric for Quilting Projects
(Photos (c)2008 Beth A. Mastin)
(Article (c)2008 Mary Emma Allen)