My own experience in my very small town, is that Walmart is carrying more and more fabrics, and in some cases changing from what I used to find there. They no longer sell interfacing by the yard nor muslin and i could not find any plain white to use for my nightgowns for the dolls I make and give away to kids with devestating medical problems. I saw lots of pretty fabric, but still have plenty of that. It was the doll bodys and the nightgowns I was running short on..anyway....nothing I could use. The nearest fabric store is 2 hours away for more fabric, so that isn't an option. On-line the places carrying fabric to sell and their P&H charge is extreme. OKAY...I'm rambling.
I have a sister in law that lives 17 driving hours away. They come up here in the RV each summer. (She will be here early June) She lives in a large town. I explained to her my biggest need was for muslin or something similar, for more doll bodys, and asked if she could find some there and let me send her the money to buy it. She could bring it up with her. She went out the next day to JoAnne's fabric & craft store. There was some muslin there. The lady had her go up front and get a 40% off discount coupon they leave out for customers. It saved her $14 off the price. She got just over 12 yards of extra length (did she say 90 or 60 inches wide....I forget, but anyway, she called me first with my approval, bought it for $58.10 . I considered that a great buy and I can dye some of it for different skin tones if I wish. I will get several doll bodys from it. Anyway, she had been telling the clerk why she needed all this and about the dolls, and the clerk just did everything she could to help. After measuring it all out, she put it all back on the cardboard bolt, she got some 'plastic wrap' and encased it all so it would remain dust free between there and our home. So she saved $14 by having my SIL get the coupon, then going to all that extra trouble and 'doing it with a smile.' It really warmed my heart to hear it all. I wanted to share, and hope my reply hear made sense. Three cheers for what the Wal-Marts are doing in the fabric world and more cheers yet for this clerk in JoAnne's (in Yuba City, CA) that went above and beyond her job description to help out my SIL, myself and the future dolls that will be born because of it all. Thanks for reading my little story.