My fabric stash is a mess! Can you relate?

I want to pick out fabrics for my next project but I've been avoiding it because my stash is so unorganized.

I want to organize it, but I've been avoiding that because I didn't know until now how to keep track of each fabric's design details while being free to rearrange them as I see fit.

Recently, I discovered fabric stash apps! There are several of these fabric tracker apps that promise to help you organize and track the fabric in your stash.

I decided to take several of them for a test drive and share my experience with you. So if you're like me, and you've been collecting a killer fabric stash but don't yet have a fabric inventory system in place to get it all organized, then this article is for you.

Keeping track of your fabric stash with a fabric app is easier than you might think. Here are the best fabric apps for quilters wanting to track their stash.

What is a Fabric App?

Fabric tracker apps have been around for many years. Apparently, I'm just late for this party. I can't believe I didn't think of this idea before! 

A fabric inventory app is an app or program that you can download to your portable device which allows you to enter information about your fabric collection into the app.

Good fabric trackers allow you to search by specific fabric design features such as color, pattern style, designer name, etcetera.

It is a great way to keep your fabric inventory organized and portable so that you can refer to it at a moment's notice anytime anywhere.

So the next time you find yourself at your local quilt shop looking for the perfect fabric for your next project, you can easily pull up your fabric stash on your mobile device and look at your current fabric stash to match with.

How do you keep track of your fabric stash in a fabric app?

Whether you want to have a digital record of your stash to reference when you're out shopping so you don't buy the same yardage you already have back in your studio.

Or whether you want a way to keep track of the designer for each of your fabrics, there is a fabric app that can help you get it all under control.

The initial setup of a fabric app can be a bit tedious. Especially if you have a very large fabric stash. By tackling the process a little at a time, you'll have your entire fabric stash organized in no time.

The first step is to gather the fabrics you want to add to the fabric app.

If you want to store information about the fabric's designer and manufacturer, then you'll need to get that information somehow. There are a couple of ways to do this.

You could first look on the selvedge of the fabric for the designer name, fabric line name, and manufacturer name. If the information is not on the selvedge, then it may be a bit more challenging to locate the information. Especially if you purchased the fabric many years prior.

I have several fabric collections that I received in fabric subscription boxes. Some of which are still in their packaging! So I kept the printed materials that came with the box which gives me the fabric designer details I need.

Once you have all the information you need about the fabric, the next step is to enter that info into the fabric inventory app.

This is the tedious part. But again, it goes fairly quickly once you get it going. Some fabric stash apps have an autofill feature that speeds up the data entry process considerably. I have noted which apps I found to have that feature in my review below.

I downloaded several of fabric tracker apps, tried them out, and landed on what I believe to be the best fabric app for quilters!

Before we get to that though, I'm going to share with you the three fabric apps I found to have the most features for quilters. I'll give an overview of the features of each one. At the end of the post, I tell you which fabric app I think is best. Let's begin.

What To Look For In a Fabric App

We each have our own way and system of organizing our fabric stash. So I'm not going to cover all the various ways we could do it.

Instead, I first want to give you an overview of the possible features you might want in a fabric inventory app.

You can then decide which features match your organizational style and fabric inventory needs. Then look for those features in the apps you consider for your fabric stash management.

Here are a few important features to look for in a fabric app. Ask yourself how important these are based on your needs.

• Does the fabric app cost money? How much are you willing to spend to organize your stash?
• Can you include a photo of the fabric in the app?
• What kind of details can you record about your fabric within the app?
• Can the fabric app track your fabric inventory, including the size and quantity of yardage you have in your stash?
• How about the size of the pattern that's printed on fabric?
• Do you want to know where and when you purchased the fabric? What price you paid?
• Can the fabric app tell you where you stored the fabric in your studio? The clear plastic bin, or the bookshelf in the closet?
• Does the fabric tracker app provide a way to filter and search for specific colors or patterns in your collection?
• Do you also want to track your quilt patterns, notions, or other supplies in your fabric inventory app?
• Does the fabric app sync across your devices?
• Is the fabric app available for iPhone, iPad, Android, or your other prefered device?

The features that you consider important will determine which fabric app is best to use for your stash organization.

Top 3 Fabric Apps for Quilters

Below are my top three fabric apps for quilters that I personally downloaded and tried out for you. Each fabric stash app is listed below with its features and the pros and cons, so you can decide which one will work best for you.

By the way, I use Apple products, so my review is based on fabric apps found in the Apple App Store. There may be additional fabric inventory apps available through Google Play that I have not seen. So definitely take a look if you have a device that downloads apps from Google Play.

Cora Fabric App

When I first began my fabric app search online, I kept seeing Cora pop up over and over.

What is the Cora app?

Cora is the third highest-rated fabric app I found. So I thought it would have a lot to offer a quilter looking to organize her fabric stash. However, because my fabric tracking and organization needs are very specific, I found this app a bit lacking in features.

Here's what Cora has to offer you:

Cost of Cora

• It's free to try.
• Only the first five fabrics are free.
• You can try it out to see if you like it before deciding to upgrade to the paid version.

Photos in Cora

• Photos can be taken from inside the app or you can choose photos from your photo library inside your mobile device.
• There are options for viewing in a Grid View or a Stash View.
• Quickly jump to a zoomable picture if you need to see the fabric zoomed in.

Fabric Data in Cora

• This app uses metric or imperial units. This feature is customizable to your needs.
• The notes field is searchable.
• You can easily duplicate an entry for speedy data entry.

Search Functionality of Cora

• You can filter by color or length of fabric to easily find what you're looking for.
• You can sort by the price paid
• Searchable by designer
• Lots of sort, filter, and search combos.

Notions in Cora

• This app is only for fabrics.
• You cannot track patterns or notions.

Sync Capability of Cora

• No Syncing ability at this time.

Pros of Cora Fabric App

The user interface is simple and pleasing to the eye. It's very user-friendly.

You can sort your stash by color order, either from black to red, or the reverse. This is helpful if you have a smaller fabric stash that doesn't require endless scrolling to find what your looking for.

There are no ads in the free version.

Cons of Cora Fabric App

There's no name field for fabric. So you can't enter the name of the fabric. I found this kind of strange.

This fabric app might not be a good fit for someone wanting to know what the name of the fabric is just in case they want to buy more of that fabric in the future.

This app does not allow you to filter your searches by color. So if you're looking for a specific color and your stash is huge, good luck. You might be scrolling for days before you find it.

There is a lot of talk about this app online. It was one of the first fabric apps to come up in my search. But after looking it over, downloading it and trying it out by uploading a few different fabrics from my stash, I realized it was lacking in the features I wanted.

Sew Awesome 2 Fabric App

The Sew Awesome 2 fabric app has quite a lot of functionality! The user interface could be more attractive but it is very well organized and user-friendly once you get a feel for where things are located inside the app.

Once inside the app, I could tell the app developer had put a lot of time and care into Sew Awesome 2, trying to make it everything a sewist might need. But this fabric app is also lacking in my opinion, especially when compared to other apps I found.

Cost of Sew Awesome 2

• It's free.
• There are in-app purchases available if you decide you want the additional features.

Photos in Sew Awesome 2

• Pro users can add pictures/PDFs to each item.

Fabric Data in Sew Awesome 2

• Pro users can duplicate listings for quicker data entry.
• Pro users can add their own reference charts.
• User can add links to where fabric was purchased for easy reference when purchasing in the future.

Search Functionality of Sew Awesome 2

• User can filter by fabric name, material, type, brand, designer, and collection.

Notions in Sew Awesome 2

• Track your fabric, sewing machines, pressor feet, accessories, and more!
• Track your notions, too. Like patterns, needles, thread, buttons, hardware, interfacing, etc.

Sync Capability of Sew Awesome 2

• Syncing is available across your devices.
• Data you enter is stored in the cloud.
• Works in offline mode, as well.

Extras in Sew Awesome 2

• My Measurements section to save the body measurements for you or someone else you sew clothing for.
• Includes a Sewing Terminology Glossary
• Includes Sewing Reference Charts, such as the Schmetz Needle Chart!
• Tools included: Calculator, Ruler, and Flashlight inside the app.
• Link to Facebook Group where you can connect with the app developer and other users of the app.

Pros of Sew Awesome 2 Fabric App

Sew Awesome 2 can do a LOT for a free fabric app. It's basically an all-in-one sewing app with sewing-related resources and an extensive sewing-related inventory tracker.

There are no ads in the free version of Sew Awesome 2.

Sew Awesome 2 is also available on Google Play.

Cons of Sew Awesome 2 Fabric App

You're not able to upload photos of your fabric without upgrading to the Pro version. That Pro feature would be nice to have, especially if you want to see what your fabric looks like.

Which I think we all do. Right?

The free version lets you see the color category of your fabric but not the actual color or pattern of the fabric until you upgrade to Pro.

Also, you cannot filter your fabrics by color and there's no sorting option. So finding a specific color fabric could prove challenging with this app.

Stash Star Fabric App

This is the fabric app I finally decided to go with, based on the features I was looking for. It is by far the best fabric app for quilters, in my opinion.

Here's why...

Cost of Stash Star Fabric

• It's free.
• There are no hidden features in the free version. Only ads at the bottom of the screen.
• Only pay $3.99 to remove the ads.

Photos in Stash Star Fabric

• Photos can be taken of your fabric from inside the app, or you can access your photo library from inside the app.

Fabric Data in Stash Star Fabric

• Lots of details can be added about your fabric, including: fabric name, color, dimensions, fabric type, storage location, fabric pattern type and size, purchase info, and designer info.
• There's also a special notes field for anything extra you might want to note about the fabric.
• Add your own custom tags to help you organize and track your fabric stash.
• Preconfigured with common quilting attributes, such as precuts.

Search Functionality inStash Star Fabric

• All fabrics are viewed on a single scrollable page.
• Group fabrics by attributes to see certain ones quicker (such as: color, width, length, content, designer, etc.)
• Filter and search your fabric collection quickly and efficiently
• Filter by favorites to view specific fabrics for a project your working on.

Notions inStash Star Fabric

• This app is only for fabrics.
• You cannot track patterns or notions.

Sync Capability inStash Star Fabric

• No Syncing ability at this time.

Pros of Stash Star Fabric App

The free version is fully functional. No hidden features here. Just ads. So if you don't like ads, then you have the option to get rid of them for a mere four bucks.

You can add photos of your fabric very easily, either by taking a picture from inside the app or by accessing your photo library.

This app is super user-friendly and has an intuitive design made specifically for quilters. It's very quick and easy to get your stash into this app.

Want to track all the details of your fabric stash? I know I do! Especially when I want to make sure to give credit to the designer, or if I want to buy more of that hot pink fabric with circles all over it. Good luck finding that one again without some basic info like the name, designer name, and manufacturer.

I love that you can also track by fabric dimensions. Yes, precuts are already in the app. So if you've got a lot of fat quarters, this app is for you.

And of course, you can filter your search by all of those details, as well. So if you want to make that fat-quarter-friendly pattern you've been hanging on to, with this app you can search your entire fat-quarter stash in one place.

Or how about seeing all of your reproduction prints for that civil war era pattern you've been wanting to make?

Simply set the filter to Pattern type and select Reproduction to view all the reproduction prints in your stash.

And for those of us with multiple fabrics with similar attributes, this app has an autofill feature for super-fast data entry. You can also duplicate a fabric entry and make changes as needed.

This is helpful for multiple fabrics belonging to the same fabric line. Use the duplicate feature so you don't have to renter the data each time you add a new fabric from that particular line.

Cons of Stash Star Fabric App

The free version of Stash Star Fabric has ads at the bottom of the screen.

Conclusion: The Best Fabric App for Quilters 

In my opinion, based on my research and experience with each of the above fabric stash apps, I've decided the best fabric app for quilters is Stash Star Fabric.

If you happen to find that there are additional features not available in Stash Star Fabric that you wish to have in a fabric app, then, by all means, choose a different app.

My second choice would be Sew Awesome 2 for the extensive organizational tools and the option to track your notions inventory. So if that's your thing, then that may be your app.

Because all three of these fabric apps are free to download and try out, I recommend getting a feel for each one yourself. I hope you find one that suits your fabric inventory needs.

As your fabric stash grows and gets out of hand, I hope you will try using a fabric app to get it all organized. It has sure helped me to wrangle it all into a fabric stash that I'm happy and excited to work with.