Today and tomorrow, Hancock's is having Vogue on sale for $3.99, Simplicity for $1.99, and McCalls for $0.99. There is a long list of patterns I want that, with the sale price, comes out to about $35.00. However, I live about 1hr, 15 min away from my Hancock's. I truly don't want to drive there tomorrow to get the patterns, and with no more time than I have to sew, I probably wouldn't end up being able to sew all of them by the year's end anyway. I am trying to figure out if it is worth driving to get them. Vogues and Simplicity are on sale on sewingpatterns.com, but they are twice the price I would pay for the Hancock sale. Also, I would have to pay shipping. Gas is not an issue here in the consideration--just the drive. This led me to wonder about some things:
1. Do you buy patterns without a time frame in mind to make them? That is, do you buy them if you just like them, knowing it may be a couple of years before you get to sew them?
2. Also, do you order your Big 4 patterns online, thus paying more, or do you only buy them on discount at Hancock's or Joann's?
I was just wondering...
17 comments:
How do I buy patterns? The answer: Like a maniac! All kidding aside, I am a pattern collector, but I buy 99 and a half percent of them on sale at Hancocks. Their pattern sales are terrific as you mentioned above. I collect so I don't ALWAYS buy with the intention of making the pattern anytime in the near future. But if I like it I buy it anticipating making it some time later. My problem is: I hate to see someone make up a pattern in blogland that I like, and then I find I don't have the pattern and it's now OOP. Of course that means I have far too many patterns!
I am not only a Fabricaholic but a Patternaholic also. I take advantage of the type of sales you posted about and I am a member of the Club BMV and take advantage of their sale offerings to members. However they are not as good a deal as Hancock's is having.
I end up not using some patterns for a year or more. After awhile I cull out patterns that I have never used.
As you know I don't buy patterns but when I did I bought a few from sewingpatterns.com. I didn't buy the paper ones, only those for download and print. It may be a lot of paper and ink (you can get ink refills at Walgreen's for 10.00)to some but I didn't want to wait and plus it costs more to buy the paper patterns. They advise you to use rubber cement to put the pages together for the full pattern pieces as it's easier to pull them apart and re-glue.
I drive 2 hours to the Hancock's I frequent but I also do other things while I'm in the city. So if it's worth it to you and you want to build or add to a collection, I think it would be a good idea to drive on over there, do lunch (or dinner), and make a day (or evening) out of it.
In Australia patterns are anywhere from $7 to $30 so I usually only get them when they are on sale (unless I need one there and then). There is a sale on today at bmv for members (buy one get two free) and I might order a few there, but I also buy from sewingpatterns.com when on sale. It takes a few weeks to get the patterns but it saves a lot of money!
I usually buy patterns only during the sales (being the frugal soul that I am), but I do allow myself to buy whatever appeals to me, even if I don't have immediate plans to sew it right away. Sometimes it takes awhile to find the perfect fabric (on sale, of course!) to make that garment.
The Big 4, I only buy at JoAnn's when they go on sale. I have a running list, and when the sale papers come, I write the sale dates on my calendar and make it a point to get there.
I always, always purchase patterns when they're on sale. When I will sew them is a non-issue with me, I am a confessed pattern-a-holic!!! I really loved a pattern sometime back and didn't purchase and recently had to shell out $27.00 to Vogue (sic), it is OOP!! When I see one now, I just purchase. Oh yeah, I also do in groups of 15-20. No shame here! LOL
Fortunately, I live 1.1 miles away from Hancock and the new Joann's that will be opening on 9/11. I always buy when they're on sale. If my store doesn't have them, it's chance that the other store which is about 13 miles away will. I bought my Vogues on Thursday. I was there bright and early waiting for the doors to open at 9:30. I maxed out my 10 limit on the Vogues, which was everything on my list. The only time I buy Big 4 patterns online is if it's an OOP pattern.
As an Aussie I get so riled at the price of patterns here. On average a Vogue is $15-25 and a Simplicity is $10-$20. I buy BWOF because at $15 an issue it is very economical. I also self-draft a lot. When I truly love a pattern by the big 4 I'll buy it, but only after exploring BWOF to ensure that I can't achieve the look with one of their designs.
My Joanns is a 20-minute drive away, and even that is too far for me to go for a pattern sale. I'm kind of a wimp about driving. I buy from clubBMV during their sales. I pay more per pattern, but I buy fewer patterns, so it's a wash. I only buy the ones that really interest me. As an added bonus, buying fewer patterns means there's less pattern clutter around my sewing room.
I too buy way to many patterns but since I created a database with all my patterns I'm buying less, I can just click and see what I have but I'll probably still go to the sale lol.
What are Big 4 patterns?
Hi, Rachel... Thanks for letting me know about the "Big 4"!!! BTW, I personally just buy patterns I like... I make things as the mood strikes me, and sometimes I never make the things I think I will (and they do haunt me a little, but I still do it!!) I just love getting excited about a new project... Good luck!! MB
Rachel, I almost always buy my patterns on sale at Hancock's or Joann's. But, I am fortunate in that I live in Dallas, TX and we have several of those stores in the area. I live within ten miles of both of those stores, so buying patterns becomes just part of my normal Saturday morning errand-running routine. I started sewing last year, and intentionally bought quite a few patterns in order to develop a nice library of patterns to choose from. This year I am not purchasing nearly as many patterns, because I feel like I have a very good representation of pattern styles. I do belong to "Club BMV" so I do occasionally take advantage of their on-line pattern sales. If I had to drive that far to buy patterns, I would probably buy most of them on-line but I would probably buy far fewer since shipping is a definite consideration.
I buy kids' patterns just because I like them. I try to buy sizes bigger than my oldest grand daughter and grand son wear so when they get to that size I'll be ready to sew for them. I'm guilty of having some duplicates however! I never buy patterns, fabric, etc.. on line.
I'm all over the place here too. I use BWOF, I buy on sale at Jo-Ann's, I belong to Club BMV and will bite when they have a deal, and I also buy online at eBay and Etsy. I rarely, if ever, pay full price for a pattern.
Like LindsayT I'm all over the place too. I subscribe to BWOF and always buy patterns on sale at Hancock's and JoAnn's. A few times I tried to buy patterns on eBay, but someone outbid me. I only pay full price for Hot Patterns and other independent patter making (online).
As far as how I shop for patterns, lately I've been very, very selective. Because my pattern collection is hugh. I do mean insanily hugh. So I try to only buy those patterns that are unique. When I pattern shopping for clients, I purchase design/style that they requested.
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