Does fabric have a destiny?

I’ve finally finished two of the three pillows for my kitchen bench. The light blue pillow on the left typically goes on my couch, but it’s currently filling the empty space on the bench and will soon be replaced with another pillow made of the Alexander Henry “buffet” fabric (which I love!).

For those of you who are crafters and/or sewers, I must ask — why does it hurt to cut into fabric that you’ve been hanging onto for months or years, waiting for “just the right project” in which to use it?

When I buy fabric for a specific project, I have no problem slicing right into it. I guess it’s because in my mind, that tote bag, or quilt, or pillow, or whatever, was that fabric’s destiny.

It’s those yards of fabric that I’ve chosen “just because” — the ones that sit on my shelf for three years, that I’ve considered and then rejected for countless projects – that are the hardest to use. I want to use them, but often, I just can’t.

I think my biggest fear is that if I cut a small piece out of it, I’ll realize later that I could have used all two yards for a bigger, more “worthy” project, but I can’t now because I’ve already cut into the corner. And — worse — I’ll end up being disappointed with that first, smaller project’s results.

I purchased the black and cream toile from yesterday’s post almost two years ago. It’s lived on my fabric shelf in three apartments in two cities. And even though I’m now 100 percent sure that my decision to use it for my journal project was the right thing to do, it took me about 45 minutes to convince myself to use it. WHY???

Crafters, I would love to know your theory on this. Do you do the same thing?

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