I agree with ube that the selection for a store that is supposed to specialize in fabrics is really sad. At my local JoAnns, the aisles are narrow and cluttered and more than half the store is devoted to home decor and crafts rather than fabric. Honestly, I don't know how they pass the fire department's yearly inspection!

I usually cannot find what I want, but JoAnns and Hobby Lobby are the only game in my hometown. The nearest LQS is not so far away (15 miles), but it would be the only reason for me to travel that direction.

You said it sister!!! This isn't just a quilting thing, it is a society in general thing. People get so caught up in having all the fancy names and lose sight of what is really important. One of my friends lives in a small house in an older neighborhood. She redid her basement, spending upwards of $40,000. She tried to sell her house a few years ago and was upset that it was valued at the same exact price that she paid for it! She out priced herself for the neighborhood she lives in. This is also the person who can only drive a high end luxury car. Her car payment is twice what her house payment is and lives paycheck to paycheck!!! Life is so much easier if we buy what we can afford and find happiness in what we have, not what we want. A quilt is a labor of love, a craft, an art; it doesn't matter where the fabric comes from. A quilt made from chain store fabric is no less of a quilt than a quilt that is made solely from LQS fabric.

Don't know if Cloth World was a national chain - but Joanne bought it. Now you have people working there ---
I felt like making a Chambray shirt. The clerk had no idea what chambray was. Batiste, either. The last time I asked about washaway thread - no one had ever heard of the stuff, not even any of the customers.

The big trouble with Joanne, the local Hancock, is the fast turnaround for what designers hope will sell. If something like chartreuse and hot pink are supposed to be new- most of the fabric will match or go with those colors. Hobby Lobby doesn't seem to turn around as fast, and a local quilt shop will keep the older colors that still sell well on the shelves.
Looking at the local Hancock, the colors are not very good right now. Joann is a tad better.

I guess I am one of the few who doesn't shop at Joann's (don't have one anywhere around me) and refuse to walk into Walmart altogether (I believe everything they sell is inferior and doesn't last long - bought a flatscreen TV and it quit working in one year) so when I do shop, which I am doing seldom, I shop at my LQS. She is going down fast because of online shops and people shopping at Walmart and Joann's and she has such outstanding customer service. I take my quilts to her so she can send them to the LAer and I always buy something from her, just anything, to try to help keep her shop open. She blocks my quilts when they come back from the LAer. She has 4 LAers she uses and she and I discuss which one to use for each quilt. She is invaluable to me. I bought a layer cake from her and she cut it into 5" squares while I waited - for free - because she wanted to help me. I call her with a problem and she'll stay on the phone for an hour trying to help me figure it out. I bring in my quilts in progress for help, even though I bought the fabric at another quilt shop, and she'll help me. She sold me a 22"x70" mat when they were on a ridiculous sale for stores only to me for cost. She bound 6 of my quilts for next to nothing and did a fabulous job. I gave her a $25 gift card to her favorite coffee shop and she came from around the counter and gave me a big hug. I missed a class that I paid for so she said to pick any class I wanted and she would set me up in the room next to her and she would teach me all day while she worked. I love my LQS. I will go no place else. I quit going to the other LQS out of loyalty. I try not to buy online anymore. I want her to stay in business. She sells high quality fabric, which I love. She gives away great customer service you can't get at Walmart or Joann's.

I buy 98% of my fabs at joanns. I am not a fabric or thread snob. Keep in mind, our ancestors made beautiful quilts out of feedsacks. And people now are dying to get their hands on feedsacks.

I'm glad she's helpful and sweet, but it sounds to me like there might be reasons other than just the online shops for her business to be going downhill.

You know some people only wear designer clothes and carry a purse that cost big $$$. We all have to choose.Personally, I shop on line, at Joanns , even at WalMart. We don't have an LQS in Miami, I have to drive an hour north and really I just don't think its worth the gas! I just ignore the quilt police and sew for pleasure.

Many of my issues with Joann's has to do with their coupons and pricing. 5 of the last 6 times my receipt is wrong. As much as $16. You have to watch them like a hawk at our local store. I am not the only one. The woman ahead of me the last time was screaming about it in two different languages. It amounts to the computer doesnt jive with ads and the signs. Signs are in the wrong place or the sign is there but it "really" isnt on sale or it is on sale and the sign is over some place else so you can't use the coupon. They have so many "ads" in one flyer I think they have no clue what is on sale from one hour to the next.

I buy notions, thread, interfacing, fleece, etc there by the gobs, usually at 55% off. As a rule, if I am crafting or making something seasonal, I buy at Joann's. If I am quilting I buy my fabric at the LQS or at Hancock's of Paducah or Connecting Threads, etc. I find many of Joann's fabric selections just do not hold up to wear or the colors are not right, even if the price seems to be.

As I've said before, one of the things that really got me into quilting is the wonderful quilt shop one mile from my house in our little country town. The owner is a passionate person, and most of her employees spend every minute they can helping you if you need it. If you want to just wander around, as I often do, petting the fabric, that's ok too. They have good quality stuff and I buy what I need when I need it, or want it. I've taken classes and brought in works in progress for advice on how to quilt it, back it, or improve it. There are three other good shops 10-15 miles away, each one different and each wonderful. They have occasional sales and helpful employees. I want them all to stay in business, but I also need to save my retirement bucks. I shop there carefully and am delighted when daughters give me lqs gift cards for holiday gifts. I do buy batting and notions at the box stores or an independent discount fabric store near here when I can. One big difference now is that we consider quilts not as necessities made out of scraps, but as art, made out of the best materials we can afford. Everyone does the best they can, and what feels right to them. It's too bad people set up ways to compete or scorn one another. I love sharing ideas and reading what works for others. Lighten up, quilt police! We're all in it for the fun!!

We only have Wal Mart. There is a LQS about 25 miles away but their prices start out at about 12. a yard. My dh and I live on SS alone so I cannot afford those prices. I buy lots of fabric at Goodwill. They have bundles of fabric starting at 2.99, also I buy at garage sales. I also have remnants from sewing factories where I once worked. The closest Joanns for me is about 60 miles also Hancocks and Hobby Lobby. They are at Tyler, or Dallas and we don't do either one unless it's a necessary trip like a dr.s appt.