A blog about quilting and using the LEFT-EZE Rule - my HST/QST Ruler designed for LEFT-HANDED Quilters -
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Wednesday, March 6, 2013
BOB and Mini-Charm Packs -
Have you seen those new PRE-CUTS?
The Mini-Charm Packs?
They are little sets of PRE-CUT 2-1/2” Squares - so CUTE!!
BUT - BOB thinks that the pricing on some of them is down right EXPENSIVE!
I saw a set of 42 - 2-1/2” Mini-Charms for $5 -
And a set of 42 - 5” Squares (Charm Squares) for $10 -
And a set of 42 - 10” Squares (Layer Cake) for $40 -
And a set of 40 (not 42) - 2-1/2” Strips (Jelly Roll) for $40 -
Same company - same fabric line - just different sizes - ;))
And the pricing SOUNDS right -
You can get 2 sets of the Minis for the same price as one 5” set -
Because 2-1/2” x 2 = 5”
And you can get TWO Mini-Charms from a 5” Square -
BUT don’t be fooled!! -
BOB can get FOUR 2-1/2” squares from each 5” Square -
So BOB thinks that you should get FOUR sets of the Minis for the same price -
NOT TWO - ;))
If I bought $10 worth of the 5” Charms and cut each one into quarters -
42 Charms x 4 -
I would have 168 Mini-Charms -
If I bought $10 worth of the 2-1/2” Mini-Charms -
2 packs of 42 -
I would have 84 Mini-Charms -
HALF as many - for the same $10 -
And that doesn’t sound right to me.
$10 should get me the same number of Mini-Charms -
Not HALF as many just because they are PRE-CUT -
The pricing on the Layer Cake sounds about right -
You can get FOUR 5” Charms from each 10” Square -
And the price of one Layer Cake is FOUR times the cost of the 5” Charms - ;))
So - just for fun -
I tried to calculate the $$$ per yard -
Check my math - I could be wrong -
Or just skip to the last part - ;))
2-1/2” Mini-Charms - 42 Mini-Charms for $5 -
2-1/2” strip - 40” wide = 16 Mini-Charms per strip
1 yard - 36” long = 14 strips @ 2-1/2” plus 1” extra
14 strips @ 16 Mini-Charms per strip = 224 Mini-Charms per yard
If -
42 Mini-Charms for $5 = 11.90 cents each
then -
224 Mini-Charms @ 11.90 cents each = $26.66 per yard
5” Charms - 42 Charms for $10 -
5” strip - 40” wide = 8 Charms per strip
1 yard - 36” long = 7 strips @ 5” plus 1” extra
7 strips @ 8 Charms per strip = 56 Charms per yard
If -
42 Charms for $10 = 23.81 cents each
Then -
56 Charms @ 23.81 cents each = $13.33 per yard
10” Square - Layer Cake - 42 Squares for $40 -
Same as the 5” Charms -
You get 4 - 5” Charms from one 10” Square -
And the price is 4 times the cost of the 5” Charm -
56 Charms @ 23.81 cents each = $13.33 per yard
2-1/2” Strips - Jelly Roll - 40 (not 42) for $40 -
2-1/2” strip - 40” wide = 1 Jelly Roll Strip -
1 yard - 36” long = 14 Jelly Roll Strips @ 2-1/2” plus 1” extra
40 (not 42) Strips for $40 = $1.00 each
14 Strips @ $1.00 each = $14.00 per yard
=====
I know that they charge extra to PRE-CUT them for me -
But that's a LOT extra -
And it might be worth it to YOU -
But for the amount of FABRIC that I get for the $$$ -
I think that - at these prices -
If I want some Mini-Charm 2-1/2” squares -
I’ll buy some 5” Charms -
Or some 10" Squares -
And cut them myself -
Thankyouverymuch - ;))
But then again, it's probably just me - ;))
and people wonder why I don't buy precuts.....Thanks for doing the math for me :-)
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome, Katie! - ;))
Deleteit's not just you. The price on the mini-charms is outrageous and the company seems to thing that quilters can't do the math.... Except isn't that our whole point on a daily basis to utilize math to create some very beautiful and creative quilts?
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mallorie - and YES - I agree with you - I don't think that some companies realize that we CAN do the math - and that we DO math ALL of the time trying to figure out block sizes - layouts - border measurements - etc. - with EVERY quilt we make. We are not as dumb as some of them think we are - ;))
DeleteI saw some pretty little 2 1/2 inch squares and without doing the math put them down thinking they were way too expensive! I didn't think about it any more - so I'm glad you figured this out and posted it you us. Besides saving money, I would rather to the cutting from a cut of fabric and not fiddle with those little triangles are on the edge of precuts.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Linda - you hit on another of my pet peeves - the "Pinked-Edges" - UGH!! I don't know if you remember - but I posted about my "Jelly Bean" quilt that I made with pre-cut strips a while back. By the time I lost a few of the thread "triangle tips" on each side of six strips - I came up about 1/2" short on my block. I made it work by making my blocks 1/2" smaller - but it would have been a LOT easier if the strips had had STRAIGHT edges - thankyouverymuch - ;))
DeleteThere you go... you and your math!! haha
ReplyDeleteI personally rarely ever buy any precuts. They may save me time cutting but there is rarely any leftovers. And buying fabric is a lot like cooking. I cook for leftovers and buy fabric for my stash.
There you go - I like the way that you think - great minds and all of that - ;))
DeleteThere was a time when I would only buy fabric for a specific project and had "some" scraps - but not much. Then I was "into" Jelly Rolls - and I have quite a few still in my stash. But then I started liking "scrappy" quilts and didn't need yards and yards of stuff - except for backings - so I started getting the 10" squares and 5" charms. I don't need a lot of any ONE fabric - I just want a LOT of different fabrics. Now when I go shopping - I just get a quarter yard of whatever strikes my fancy - it gives me the variety I want/need - and I can cut it myself - ;))
I prefer to cut myself most of the time. That is why I have stash even if the most I often buy is half yards or fat quarters. Looks like we are getting ripped off for them running them through a die cut. I can never tell where exactly that I need to line up when they pink it and I combine it with the stuff I cut myself. Drove me nuts when I made the popsicle stix quilt.
ReplyDeleteYou already have the list about what you can get from a fat quarter? Lots of possibilities for a nice scrappy quilt--------
99- 2 inch squares
50 2 1/2 inch squares
42 3 inch squares
30 3 1/2 inch squares
20 4 inch squares
16 4 1/2 inch squares
12 5 inch squares
12 5 1/2 inch squares
9 6 inch squares
6 6 1/2 inch squares
Thanks for the list, Linda!! - ;))
DeleteAs far as where to line up your strips - I found a cool technique for sewing pre-cut strips by Brenda Henning - Bear Paw Productions - where she measures 2-1/4” from the LEFT - my king of lady - ;))
Here’s the link -
http://www.bearpawproductions.com/userfiles/file/Strip%20Width%20May%20Vary.pdf
I meant - my KIND of lady - ;))
Delete