Fabric Quality
 

Hello everyone! I hope you're all staying safe and healthy! I am wondering how you tell if fabric is good quality or bad? I recently bought some from Joann Fabrics on black friday deals, and then I found some things online saying that it was horrible quality for quilting. Well, now I'm bummed that I spent all that money and unsure what to do with it.

So how do I tell if it's good or bad? Do I look for a certain feel? A certain thickness?

Thanks in advance for your help! :)

I've had good luck at JoAnns and Hobby Lobby with SOME fabric. I go by feel and also hold it up to the light to see how thick it is.

Short form: Trust your own senses and feel and whether a fabric is worth your time to deal with. You will develop preferences, but it is a reason many of us don't want to buy on-line, we are each looking for certain things. Price/name brand can help but are not guarantees.

There are many ways to judge fabric quality, one of which is thread count, however dye saturation/treatments like metallic embellishments also add to cost/quality. The term for the raw fabric is "greige" goods and many things can be done to the exact same piece of raw woven cotton and different industrial rolls of fabric can be woven differently. Among things I'm looking at is how the fabric drapes, that bias movement and I don't think most quilters even look at that. But mostly you want a nice straight and even weave that you can't see through, you shouldn't feel the individual threads, it shouldn't ravel.

Ultimately we have to be the judges of what fabrics we use, I have gotten some very high quality pieces of fabric from Walmart (I think some of the Wamsutta pieces are from high-end products and not exactly made for selling as yardage) and I've gotten brand names from the LQS (Local Quilt Store) that after I prewashed I considered non-usable. We have many discussions here on prewashing, all I can say is I'm a fan and I believe my projects are better for taking the time to do it.

Some of what is sold at Joann, Walmart, etc. is considered "craft" quality, which is a general division and is perfectly fine for things like seasonal table cloths or clothing that is not meant to be forever. It is typically mixed in with the other fabrics or may be in it's own (often seasonal) group. You can often see as well as feel the difference and for those of us sensitive to smells, there may be some distinct odors of starch or other treatments. Often the designs are not very complex, nor is the printing very close, and the colors "cheap" from the lack of saturation.

Quilting quality may be slightly different than LQS quality (usually meaning the name brands like Moda, Benartex, etc.), but has a higher thread count and typically then a tighter weave (less see through). Many people associate a certain weight of fabric as a sign of quality, however other people (including me) just love working with batiks or lawn fabrics because they are also (typically) quality fabric just of a different weave.

A lot of people believe in pure cotton for quilting, I can say that I prefer it for enough reasons to be a thread of its own (like prewashing), but I haven't always had the luxury or the right color or whatever it is on why I wish to add in a blend of some sort. Sometimes it is for texture, a bit of linen or silk or whatever again in fabric that is prewashed is not a concern to me and I've worked with a 10% spandax fabric because it was perfect for the person. And I have a huge horrible piece of slippery poly blend that's probably somewhere around the 40/60 (mostly poly) that I'm going to use for the back of a quilt just because I love it and its perfect for that project but it will be a pain to work with and it may or may not last -- just never know with the polys some of the most surprising flimsy fabrics turn out to survive direct nuclear blasts and others just disappear.

Thanks everyone! (And Iceblossom, that was exactly the type info I was looking for, thank you so much!!)

Iceblossom well said -- from a professor emeritus who taught classes about fibers and fabrics. I always enjoy your posts because they're informative and well written. Thank you!

Thanks Sally, I should confess that I'm 60 now and still just love textiles of all sorts and when I was going through college (both times, starting in my teens/20s and then finishing in my 40s) when I had to write papers it was amazing how I could use quilting in particular or textiles in general so I do have some book learning under my belt from history to manufacturing to all sorts of things. I'm certainly not the only person who believes that the modern industrial revolution including computers (as well as various social issues too) all comes from the desire for the miracle fiber of cotton.

It's been a life-long fascination and I've gone through some definite phases :) Starting when I did just before the rotary revolution and then being able to ride the wave, and especially here in Seattle where we were a quilting hotbed of activity didn't hurt either. And at this point in my life, I'm having to make adaptation/discover different methods on still managing to sew with vision issues, so I'm finding new things to learn.

I learn so much from the people here on the boards and the quilters around me. I was, like many, a solitary quilter for years but really have grown to appreciate the community around me and the sharing that goes on in many ways in quilting. The sharing of stories, of fabric, of opinions... it's all wonderful and the internet is a wonderful thing where we can share our knowledge even if not in the same room.

Quilting board is where I can have my coffee breaks and chat over a subject I hold dear. The hubby tries but his eyes glaze over really quickly some times :p

Ditto what Iceblossom said.

I particularly like walmarts solids.

When I buy fabric from the chain stores, I do look at the weave and anything that is loosely woven stays in the store. When I do buy fabric there, I almost always wash and dry it as I do my regular wash. Sometimes the stuff I have gotten feels fine....but when it is washed....it is much thinner...like they really must have put some sizing or somethin in it. And also I like to measure it before tossing it into the wash, then dry, iron, and measure again....I have found some of the fabric is an amazing shrinking fabric...sure wish I could wash myself like and shrink as much. Now I have used some of that amazing shrinking fabric...but it has been preshrunk by me so hopefully, doesn't end up puckering the whole quilt unevenly.

I've always had to be picky about the fabric I purchase because it's usually $10-15/yard. The colors are vibrant, and it feels like great quality. The fabric that I bought for $5/yard (store initials: J A) looked faded after prewashing. I stick to the designers that want to protect their reputation. I usually buy online from a company that allows returns, but I have not had to return anything yet.
try fabric.com

Is the fabric suitable for what I want to use it for?

that is the first question that i ask myself when selecting fabric - or anything else, for that matter.

just about everything has "quality" - good, bad/poor, indifferent/so-so.

To a big extent, there is no substitute for experience. I have not figured out a shortcut to getting it.

I am in the wash all components possible before cutting them group. I am convinced this step is worth the extra effort to help get the result/look I prefer .

because I am old(er), I sort of roll my eyes when I see see a fabric described as "quilting cotton".

I would describe most "quilting cottons" as poor quality (low end) bed sheets. ( Comparatively low thread count, comparatively loosely woven to good/fine bedding.)

I buy Moda and Art Gallery Fabrics almost exclusively. I've never had a bad fabric in the bunch.

I am a touch and feel person when I buy quilt fabric and most clothing so I hope all stores never go away and it doesn't get to the point of all line buying. At my age I don't think I will see that happen-I hope.

I also like to touch and feel fabric before purchasing it. I really like supporting quilt shops. I'm the same way with clothes, shoes, purses and thread. Colors looks much different on line. Quality makes a huge difference in purchasing any item. It is really hard for me to shop on line. I have, but not my favorite way to shop.

JoAnn's has some decent fabrics, some very nice fabrics and some we won't mention - I will not purchase their fat quarters, for instance.
Since you have already bought fabric, you have two options. Return it if you are concerned. Uncut, unwashed fabric can be returned - at least it could when I worked there in the 90s. I personally would not return less than a yard. Option two - my choice - would be to wash, dry and press the fabric and then make your decision whether it is quilt worthy. I have made some quilts that I feel are nice with fabric from JA or HL. I have one thin piece from HL in a quilt on the machine now. I had to have just that color - I am confident it will be all right once it's finished and quilted. It's sewing up nicely - no stretching or anything.

I have purchased fabric from JoAnn's, Hobby Lobby and many online retailers. I've also purchased fabric from quilt shops. Most of it has been fairly good quality. It has worked for what I've made, quilts, pillow cases, tote bags, etc. I hate to say it but the worse fabric came from quilt shops, at $14.00 a yard I expected better quality. It felt ok at the store but when I washed it I was shocked at how thin and wonky it was. I always prewash my fabric before I use it, I don't want any surprises after I've completed my project and it falls apart in the wash.

Since I have RA, and can no longer drive because of it, I purchase fabric online. I pretty much stick to the well known brand name fabrics - MODA, Bernartex, Wilmington, etc., and haven't had any problems with them. I purchase from sites like Fabric.com.

Sometimes I'll buy from less well known sources - like Connecting Threads because I LOVED the print and it was at a great price. They design their own fabrics and I've only had a problem with their fabric once - after washing/drying it became very thin. I had to apply a lightweight interfacing to it before I felt it was acceptable (it was for a garment, not a quilt).

As with anything else, you can have great fabric as well as lemons, even with name brands. Wish I could still get to a fabric store in person but, with COVID right now it's just as well I don't.

Note: IMHO, Joann's used to be a good store but I feel their quality has gone down - anymore it's like the Walmart of the sewing world. I don't like purchasing anything from them nowadays.

I recently ordered fabric online from a quilt shop and I ordered 4 different ones and you can see a big difference from one fabric to the other fabric

Go by feel, you can get quality and bad quality from anywhere. As long as you know what to look for you will be fine. I have gotten both from joanns. I just got a few nice quality from joanns to make stuffed. Nice drape, hardly any fraying when cut with scissors so it is possible. I have gotten some fabric that frayed like crazy from LQS. Keep in mind there will also always be fabric snobs out there. Don't always trust opinions. Ilike to see for myself

If I am buying on line I buy from a vender I am familiar with. I have only had 2 bad cuts when I went to 2 venders I had not use earlier. I check for feel and smell when buying for LQS or JAF. I have only purchased 1x from Holly Lobby and the quality was "Okay". A little better than craft quality, ok for dress making but not quite what I want for a quilt.
It take a bit of a while to get the "feel" for quilt quality fabrics. One fun thing is have a shopping day with a quilting buddy and check things out.

You guys are so helpful, thank you!! I wasn't getting emails about responses and I forget to check here often, but I appreciate all your responses. I fell pray to the sale from Joann, usually I like to feel the fabric also, but...lesson learned. I washed some of it, and it feels not too horribly thin after washing. Since I already purchased it, I'm going to make a quilt from it and see how it holds up. Guess this will be a learning experience all around! :)