Patterns - How I get them cheap.

I was at Joann's a few weeks ago, and the lady in front of me was going to buy a pattern. She asked how much it was. The cashier told her it was $15 but if she could wait two days it would be on sale for $2. {I have no affiliation with Joann's by the way.}

That got me to thinking that a lot people might not know how cheaply you can buy patterns for. Most of the manufactured patterns I have, I got for a dollar on sale at Joann's or sometimes at yard sales. Every few months Joann's will have a sale where a certain brand of patterns will be on sale for a dollar; sometimes they are two dollars. {You'll want to sign up for their mailer so you know when these sales are happening} Most recently Simplicity patterns were on sale for a dollar. I'll head over, preferably without the kids, and browse through the catalogs. Anything that catches my eye that I think my girls would like I write down the number. They usually have a limit of either 5 or 10, so sometimes I have to narrow down my list.

Even though I don't buy patterns every time they are on sale and I don't always get the full limit, I have quite a stockpile of patterns. When it's time to make a dress, my daughters and I go through the pattern box and find something they like in their size. Some of the patterns I've used several times and others we haven't used yet.

The downfall of buying manufactured patterns is that they don't come out with new stuff very often. Lots of times I go and look, but I've already bought the ones that I like.

Click here to find out where I buy patterns online.