Cheap fabric?

MikeVDS · Post by **MikeVDS** » Fri Dec 29, 2006 3:06 pm

We're making a cover for our dome and will need about 450 yards of material (~4000 sq. ft.). I was thinking burlap might be a good material and cheap but it looks like it will run about $1.00/yard. I've found a good material for about $0.30/yard, which may not even need fire retardant. Anyone have any good suggestions? We're going for a "lost on a desert island" type feel. I'd like to take large pieces of canvas and lash them together loosely, leaving gaps of a few inches between large pieces, but canvas is expensive. We have no set budget, but the more we can save on each project, the more projects we can afford to take on.

Post by **mdmf007** » Fri Dec 29, 2006 9:09 pm

Painters Canvas from Home Depot or any other large outlet works good.

We bought 10 of them last year. the alrge ones are 40 feet x 20 feet - pretty tough fabric as well. At the time it cost 49.95 a package.

just an idea.

later

Bob · Post by **Bob** » Fri Dec 29, 2006 9:35 pm

Some concrete yards & masonry suppliers sell burlap off ten foot wide rolls for pretty cheap. It's used for moisture-curing concrete slabs.

MikeVDS · Post by **MikeVDS** » Sat Dec 30, 2006 1:18 pm

Ok thanks for the ideas. I'm still looking into it though I may make a purchase on the 15th (payday)

pinemom · Post by **pinemom** » Sun Dec 31, 2006 7:19 am

me too me too...looking for cheap light colored fabric(that can be dyed) to cover 2 domes 22ft in diameter...if ya'll find something uber cheap let me know and I will do the same!

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 6:50 am

Try browsing the yellow pages for banner shops in your vicinity- While I was working at one here in 'Kazoo it was almost my second job to rescue HUGE quantities of fabric from the dumpster. Serious, heinous waste of really nice heavy material, often with free pop art included! Also check tent and awning establishments.

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 8:27 pm

I'm still working my way through that C.A.R.E. package you sent me last summer

We have a couple big awning shops here in Eugene, I'm going to hit them up for their scraps. Though I'm fully expecting them to smile and shake their heads...Eugenians are pretty good about recycling and cutting down on waste.

The thought was to make a 20-foot crazy-quilt groundtarp of canvas for my camp's footprint.

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Wed Jan 03, 2007 6:06 am

diane o'thirst wrote:I'm still working my way through that C.A.R.E. package you sent me last summer

.

Excellent! Good point about larger population centers- Might have to stand in line for Free Goodies. Around here it's no problem, but what you don't get to in time goes straight to the landfill. Damn, I need a barn!

falk · Post by **falk** » Wed Jan 03, 2007 10:13 pm

Learned this the hard way: pre-shrink all your fabric. Cotton canvas shrinks about 10% when you wash it. Even if you don't wash it, it will shrink anyway.

It's no fun to arrive at the playa and discover that your canvas cover doesn't fit the frame any more.

MikeVDS · Post by **MikeVDS** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 6:24 am

That's a good point that I didn't think about. Thanks for the insight.

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Mon Jan 29, 2007 2:26 am

I'm facing a semi-similar quandary with my shelter this year. I'm getting (ANOTHER!) Costco canopy but the damn thing about them is they're piss-poor insulators. They offer negligable at best warmth at night, and I'm fairly sensitive to chilling.

So I was looking around for possible insulation layers. I had some military/disaster blankets in my closet and I measured. I figured that I'd need about twelve of these babies to fully line the walls of the carport.

After a search on the 'net, I came back to good old Sportsman's Guide and guess what: they had a twelve-pack of disaster blankets for $57. The blankets measure 65" x 90" (that's 5'5" x 7'6") or 41 square feet. Each blanket would cost about $5.75. Not sure how to crunch the per-yard numbers on that one, but at a guess, it would come out to around $2/yd. (Math whizzes, feel very free to put a finer point on that figure).

The upside/downside is that a dome covered in those babies would be nice and warm: bad during the day, nice at night. The other downside is that they're drab, grey (but certainly no uglier than burlap) and according to Sportsman's Guide cannot be laundered (I'm using them as insulation layer under the carport tarps and facing them on the inside with nicer material, like potlatch blankets and Indian bedspreads).

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Mon Jan 29, 2007 6:10 am

Last year my Hushville neighbor kYtten brought a frequency-one PVC structure that she had sewn a custom cover for- All thrift store sheets, with neckties for fasteners. It was very cozy inside, and had a major "Mongol yurt" or "Arabian Nights" vibe. Church rummage sales are a good source of this kind of material, as are thrift stores. Sometimes the Chinese tarp-and-tool places have mover's blankets- Those nice quilted numbers.

phil · Post by **phil** » Tue Jan 30, 2007 4:59 pm

> After a search on the 'net, I came back to good old
> Sportsman's Guide and guess what: they had a twelve-pack
> of disaster blankets for $57.

I took a look at these, and Louise happened to be there. She says she suspects that the blankets are recycled woo and not woven - just sort of compressed like felt but not as good. She thinks the reason you are not to launder or dry clean them is that they will fall apart.

Whether this has any impact on your decision is up to you.

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Tue Jan 30, 2007 5:05 pm

It does. Thanks for the note. I thought that was odd. "Do not launder or dry clean!"

Eh, well...back to the drawing board...think I saw Harbor Freight carrying those furniture quilts for $2.50 each. My mover from Pacifica to Eugene testified to their warmth, since he'd spent many a night wrapped up in them in his truck cab.

CapSmashy · Post by **CapSmashy** » Wed Jan 31, 2007 6:33 am

Furnie pads (mover quilts) are very versatile. We use them on sets for everything from making the ground soft for an actor to lay on, to catching a gun as it gets "knocked" from someones hand, to helping shield the camera guy from us crazy fx guys, etc.

I think they would be warm as well.

Hmm...all I am finding on the HF website are the $5.99 cargo pads.

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Wed Jan 31, 2007 12:18 pm

Which is about how much the...heh-heh...<i>one-use-only</i> junk wool blankets at Sportsman's Guide would be after shipping.

Dork · Post by **Dork** » Wed Jan 31, 2007 12:48 pm

Out of curiosity, what is the good $.30 per yard stuff you found?

MikeVDS · Post by **MikeVDS** » Wed Jan 31, 2007 4:34 pm

I've found quite a few things about that price. Lots of different discount fabrics can be found about that price. Someone posted some snow camo tarp things on here from sportsmansguide that were about that price. I was actually going to buy those but they sold out real quick. Ideally I'd like canvas (even if it's old) in pieces around 10'x10'. I don't think that cover will pan out this year. A hawaiian print, or many hawaiian print fabrics would be cool too. I'm not sure how well some of these fabrics i find will hold up in the wind though. A few burlaps were around that price too. I don't think I've found anything cheaper than 30 cents a yard, but close to that seems pretty common. Nothing great though.

vic · Post by **vic** » Wed Jan 31, 2007 7:48 pm

You might want to consider old sheets, table cloths and the like from the rejects from thrift stores (such as Goodwill). They sell the lower grade stuff by weight. It might take a little effort to find out who sells the culls at your local store or collection center. Often they bail the stuff up and sell it by weight to shippers that take it out of the country. A cheap source of mixed fabric. They usually sell the clothes separately from sheets, curtains and table cloths.

Cheap fabric?

Cheap fabric?

Don't forget to pre-shrink

cheap fabric