Fabric at my JoAnns's (Davenport) is getting nicer. They have been selling the old lines off at a much cheaper price and bringing in new stuff tht is nicer. Of course they also changed the majority of personell in the store. New managers and such, I only recognize one of the previous cutters. Maybe the owners of JoAnn's finally got the message that thin see though fabic isn't what the majority of us want.
Still, I buy a vast majority of my fabric from Facebook selling sites, if the seller can tell me the manufactures name. A few sales of layer cakes, charm squares, and jelly rolls still come from the internet.
My closest brink and mortor quilt shop closed it's doors beecause the owner wanted to retire.

Totally agree, but recognize that some only have access to big box stores. I'm quite lucky, having several shops in under 2 hours and a handful under 1 hour. Two Mennonite shops in under 1/2 hour... yes, I shop more than I should, lol.

The quilt shop where I work charges $3.75 for a FQ. Fabric costs have risen as have shipping charges and that has to be factored into the cost. Pattern prices have also gone up. Hasn't the price on everything risen the past few years? Quilt shops are closing at an alarming rate. If you like the shop, please help support it. You don't have to purchase all your fabrics from your local quilt shop. I don't. I realize not everyone has a local quilt shop. But if you continue to shop online soon you will ONLY have online shopping as an option. Support your local shops - yarn and fabric - the best you can. I'll step down off my soapbox now.

3.75-4.00 is average around here.
did you know there are 2 3/4 yards of fabric in layer cakes and jelly rolls? Sooo popular.
Hancock's lists layer cakes at 43.00 to 45.00 $16.00 a yard. How many of those are sitting around going unused in your stash? :)

same for jelly rolls. smaller is almost always more expensive in the retail world.

Practical isn't very popular in the quilt world but take one of your finished tops fold it neatly, lay it in front of your stash. How many of those tops can you get? 100? 1000? How many can you get in a tote, how many totes do we have?

FQ are occasionally on sale at JoAnns. Right now $1.50. I make mostly charity quilts so they work for that.

I have layer cakes and jelly rolls from years ago. When they were $14.99 - $19.99. $5 for charm packs. I bought lot from Craftsy at their sales for even less. I have stacks of fat quarter bundles all bought on clearance from years ago most being .50 a fat quarter. It is so hard to see today's prices. My last yard of new fabric was $15.99. I thought to my self this will probably be my last quilt shop fabric purchase at retail price.

So true, Lena! I try to buy as much as I can locally especially from small independent shops. I want them to succeed and be there when I need them. Joann's is the closest place to me and I rarely go there. I'd rather drive the 1/2 hour to the closest quilt store.

Sad but true. Our last LQS closed a couple years ago. I now shop exclusively online.

The shops around my area can't find anyone to buy and take over the independent shops, quilt shop or not.. Owners are retiring and can't find buyers to keep the shops open. . Shops are turned into office space, tattoo, nail salon, and vape shops.

In lower Delaware, where I live, you drive a half hour to get to anything except a grocery store or pharmacy. The quilt shop where I work (play) is 35 minutes from my home. From my family farm on the west side of DE, the trip is 50 minutes. A small state, Delaware only has a few quilt shops and I feel lucky to have one so close to home and lucky to work there too:-)