I agree with "you get what you pay for".... When I am giving a quilt as a gift, I always buy the better fabric, usually from my quilt shop. When I'm making prayer quilts for our church, because we work from donations, many of our quilts are made from Joann fabrics and there's definitely a huge difference in the quality. like others have said, get the best you can afford for those special projects. Joann fabric is always a good choice for a beginner until they master a few quilting skills. Also, don't always use the expensive fabric on wall hangings or mini quilts because they get no ware.
Good luck and enjoy the art...no matter where you buy your fabric.