Reputable professional quilters brag in magazine ads about the excellent quality of Keepsake Quilting Fabric. I love Keepsake catalogs and am happy when one arrives in my mailbox. However, I'm very disappointed in the quality of Keepsake fabrics at my local Joann's store, so I try to avoid them. Do you think there is a quality range - from crappy to excellent - of Keepsake fabrics ... where some stores get the poorer quality on their shelves? Their catalog shows an extensive selection of lovely fabrics but I would be afraid to order from them.

I think it may be an opportunity to order a few F4's or so and see what the quality is like. I've had people ask me about the quality of the fabric I have purchased online from Fabric.com, too, and I always tell them that I'm incredibly happy with it. It's just a matter of trust. Give it a try - you may be incredibly happy.

Totally different fabric!!! Keepsake quilting is a quilt shop. They do not make their own fabrics, they sell the top quilting brands such as Hoffman, Kaufman, Moda, etc.
Keepsake quilting fabrics you see at JoAnns is not, I repeat, NOT near the quality of what you find at the Shop. It is not the same thing. Consider Keepsake quilting catalog like your local Quilt Shop, not fabric store.

I have ordered for Keepsake quiltimg many times and have never been disapointed with their fabric. They do have fabric that is on par with my lqs. But did you know that manufacturers make different grades of the same fabric for different places? Top of the line usually goes to quil stores and some of the online places, medium goes to places like Joann's and Hancocks and lower grade goes to places like Walmart. I didn't realize this until I read it a few months ago. So, even fabric with the same name is not created equal.

My rule is.....the hand test tells all...if it feels good, it probably is. If it feels like sandpaper, it probably isn't!!! Easy!!!

THANK YOU For saying that---I tried to explain this on a different thread and well.....we will just leave it at that.....but YES! ONly good quality fabric is sold at our LQS.

weezie

I am a lucky one - Keepsake Quilting is only 1.5 hr from where I live. Their fabric is of exquisite quality. I would also like to note here that JoAnns advertises "keepsake calico" as opposed to Keepsake with a capital letter. I have never seen "keepsake calico" at Keepsake Quilting.

Do not hesitate to order from them - They are a wonderful shop with a great staff. They also have a "to die for" sale in June - they cover the parking lot with a tent. There are so many customers that you line up to get into the tent.

I was going to say the same thing - Keepsake is a quilt shop that sells only quality fabric.

seems like around here anyway, when joannes built their new store and forced our walmart to give up their fabric department, they took over their supplier too...and they took the walmart $1 a yard crap, marked it up to $9 a yard and call it quilt fabric...i am so very disinheartened with our joannes. only shop their with 50% coupons, for supplies and notions...never buy their fabric, it's crap

I bought the fat quarter bundle from Keepsakes, 100 fat quarters for $99. Every fat quarter was different and top quality quilt shop fabric. I always check the catalog for bundle type sales. I don't buy JoAnn's or Hobby Lobby fabrics anymore. I don't even look at them when I'm in the store. Online quilt shop sales are much cheaper and much better fabric.

My current quilt is being made with Keepsake fabric and it is wonderful. I have ordered from they several times and have never had a problem.

That was the information I needed. Thank you all. I can and do find some good fabric at Joann's, but it is very difficult most of the time and impossible much of the time.

I don't have a very big stash and I add to it as I need a particular fabric/color. Much of the good stuff that I've bought at Joann's has come off the Red Tag table, stuck in amongst the really awful home dec. & garment sale items. If it was $9.00/yd. to begin with and is marked down to $5.00/yd. and I have a 10%-off-entire-purchase coupon, I do o.k. Sometimes I get an "end-of-bolt" deal, too, if I ask for it (should NOT have to ask!).

I won't be afraid to order from Keepsake now.

Keepsake Quilting carries name-brand quality fabrics. I don't think that they identify who the makers are - at least not in their catalog - but I usually recognize the fabrics as having been part of some maker's line. And the people at Keepsake Quilting are very skilled at putting together combinations (medleys) that include various makers.

Keepsake Calicos is just a name that JoAnn Fabrics uses to distinguish their everyday calico line from their novelty group, or their Debbie Mumm fabrics, or their special-purchase-bargain-price fabrics. You'll find that the quality of the Keepsake Calicos is quite variable. Some of the brands that are included in that line-up are made by Classic Cottons, Santee, Fabric Traditions, and MBT (division of Marcus Brothers Textiles). And it also includes others that I have no idea who they're made by.

I would NOT be afraid to order from Keepsake Quilting!

I have bought fabric from Keepsake catalog and it was beautiful.
The quality was excellent.

Margie

Keepsake Quilting (local to me, too) also has an unconditional guarantee on anything you purchase from them. If you are not happy, for any reason at any time, send it back to them (insured and prepaid) for a refund or exchange. There's a return form on every packing slip. The Keepsake Quilting store opened in the late 70's in response to the renewed interest in quilting.

I don't know for sure, but I'd bet JoAnn's called their fabric brand 'keepsake' in order to take advantage of Keepsake Quilting's reputation. And FYI, there is also no relationship between Hancock's of Paducah (sellers of only high quality, name brand fabrics) and Hancock Fabrics (the chain of craft and store brand goods).

There is a quality range for all fabric mfrs. BUT...remember those ads are paid ads. Most professional quilters use LQS fabrics. They won't use less than quality fabrics for making show quilts that are worth a ton of money/prizes. Having said that, I am in no way commenting on this brand of fabric - only on paid ads that write statements for people to repeat :) You just have to try things for yourself.

I haven't tried any because I have enough here locally that are in the show-worthy and/or and economical range. I don't find a bargain by the time shipping and handling is paid...but I do live where I can get these items, and many people don't. I have heard many pro's and con's about this particular fabric, and personally don't know what to believe. If you like the pattern, you can try a FQ and see what you think. And let us know!

Whittles is a great place - I've been happy ordering from them online and they are great people in person...
We stopped in on our way home from picking up our grand daughter - 5 months later we stopped again and we were remembered~~!! that totally impressed me - the local Joanns folks don't even remember us and we've been in there numerous times!
Whittles sells stuff that's a few years old...
http://www.whittlesfabrics.com/
I'd rather do that for $3.50 a yard than the junk that's been appearing at Joanns....
as somebody said, if it feels like sandpaper forget it...
or you can hold it up and read the paper through it...

yes, I have some wallyworld stuff - it's used for laprobes at nursing homes - where it is washed to death then tossed out....

Wow! This is really good to know. I've never heard a comment by someone who lives close them - didn't even know it was an actual LQS type store vs. internet only. Thanks!

ps - finding the lqs quality fabrics at discount prices - like at Whittles, fabric by the pound, Sirs, etc, in no way lowers the QUALITY of the fabric - it's just a year/two years "out of style"...
shoot, I have stuff older than that in my stash!

Their online store is great! I have used them several times and really like the merchandise and the customer service. I have never been disappointed.

Ditto on Keepsake Quilting being local to me, about 1.5 hrs north of here. The crap in Joann's is NOT the same fabric sold at Keepsake Quilting! I also think it's Joann's attempt to capitalize on someone else's reputation. When I walk around Keepsake, like most people, I feel the fabric. It all feels wonderful and, having bought many yards over the years from them, it is really high quality stuff.

I should also warn everyone that it is not easy to escape from this shop once you enter! After you recover from sensory overload, you now have to decide what is coming home. It's so bad, they have comfortable chairs on their expansive porch for DHs and significant others to wait it out. Happily, there is a Duncan Donuts(?) nearby for DHs to get coffee. They need it!

I've also had experience with returning something that I didn't think was up to their standards. In this case, it was not the quality of the fabric, which was fine, it was the measurements of a charm pack (10" squares?) I'd ordered thru their catalog. The blocks were off just a bit and not square. In this case, I brought the charm pack back to the shop and, no quarrel, they immediately refunded my money! This was the one and only time I've had a problem; they stood by their guarantee! Interestingly enough, that particular charm pack was not offerred again in the next catalog; I'm guessing one of their suppliers got a slap upside the head.

One last note... I was at Joann's a couple of days ago. All of their fat quarters were gone! Or, at least I thought so because the small plastic squares they use to display them near the fabric bolts were all gone. Turns out, all the FQs were in a cardboard box on their cutting counter, marked way down, to get rid of them. Perhaps you heard that their latest FQs were cut just short of a true FQ. Joann's is in the process of getting another FQ supplier. Should be interesting to see how this new vendor will work out.

I agree.

thanks for all the info.

Keepsake Quilting is NOT a brand. That's the whole point. It is a store, a Local Quilt Shop to some of us, same as anyone else's LQS. It just happens to sell mail order as well as in person. There is NO Keepsake Quilting fabric, they sell no fabric with their name on it, NONE.

Keepsake Calico is a brand name of fabric sold at JoAnn's Fabrics and Crafts. It is NOT sold at Keepsake Quilting, never has been and never will be.

I'm so glad to read this, I'll be ordering from them now. :D

Me, too! I'm glad I asked the question. I've always been under the impression that the Keepsake calico at Joann's was made by Keepsake Quilting of NH. Since Joann's Keepsake calico is mostly see-through and generally disappointing, I could not bring myself to order any of the yummy-looking fabrics that are shown in the catalog. But now I can! That's really good news and I appreciate the clarification. (You lucky gals who live near the store!) I also always thought that Hancock's of Paducah and Hancock Fabrics were affiliated.

Keepsake Quilting is one of the few places I ordered from when we had no lqs here. Their fabrics are wonderful. They also offer a club you can join that gives you discounts on fabric, books, and shipping.

Thanks for this info. I had avoided looking into Hancock's of Paducah because I thought they were related to the chain. My loss, I am sure.

I have been to Keepsake Quilting several times, even though it is an over night trip for me. It is the best, highest quality, and I have ordered from their catalog too. You won't go wrong with them . Marge

I read an article that the two owners of Hancocks got in tiff over business, one stayed Hancock's of Paducah the other formed Hancock's Fabrics. Hancock's of Paducah is far superior in customer service and quality of goods.

I am hoping to clarify the issue of Keepsake Quilting fabric quality. A customer of Keepsake Quilting was kind enough to alert me to the confusion regarding Keepsake Calico fabric at Jo-Anns.

Keepsake Quilting has NO relationship with Jo-Ann fabric and - in fact - Keepsake Quilting has tried to get Jo-Ann fabrics from NOT using the "Keepsake Calico" name.

The real Keepsake Quilting (the website/catalog company) sells nothing but the highest quality fabrics. We are so confident in what we sell that we have a "no quibble" lifetime guarantee! For any reason at anytime an unsatisfied customer can return fabric they bought from Keepsake Quilting.

Like someone else said, they are NOT related. The fabrics from Hancock's of Paducah are beautiful high-quality fabrics. Hancock fabric stores, however, are not a shop that I buy at. They are similar to JoAnns, lower quality.

Thank you so much, Mr. OBrian, for taking the time to come over here and confirm the total lack of association between Keepsake Quilting and keepsake calico/JoAnn's. (Rob O"Brian, btw, is the President of Keepsake Quilting. :oops: )

I suddenly feel like a road trip! Walking through the doors of Keepsake Quilting is like walking into a rainbow! There is nothing else like it...nothing. :thumbup:

I just received the latest Keepsake catalog last week and have drooled over it ever since. There are so many kits and fabric packs I'd love to get. I've wondered before about the quality of their fabric, so it's good to hear how satisfied everyone has been with their purchases from Keepsake.

I'd love to visit the Keepsake store some time. But I only want to go if I can take lots of $$$ with me. ;)

I wasn't disputing it ... I was just acknowledging my error in thinking (for years) that Hancock stores were part of Hancock's of Paducah. Also, I'm not disputing that the keepsake calico of Joann's is no part of Keepsake Quilting. In both instances, I am very glad to know the truth of it.

I discovered, to my dismay, that a favorite store of mine,
a real high end store, was only a "C" in the chain. The "A" stores
were on the CA coast, and in my little town we got cheated. Even
in a larger store 50 or so miles away the quality difference was
easily seen, it was a "B" store, and until then I could not understand
why. A customer informed me of that, and forced a sales clerk to confirm
it. Of course the price difference was very obvious as well as the quality!!
Now I'm wondering about some of our other chain stores here..I'll try to
check them in other towns as I visit them.

Lucky for all of us that neither Keepsake Quilting nor Hancock's of Paducah are chain stores. There's only one of each of them and they are both real treasures! No big corporate "attitude" in either organization, that's for sure!

How nice that the "big cahoona" at Keepsake took the time to come here to clarify...now thats customer service! I'll have to dig my catalog out from the stack and heat up that credit card...again... :lol:

Oh, so glad to read this. I've been getting the Keepsake Quilting catalog for awhile now and didn't know whether to order from them or not. Now I'm going to give them a try!

IMHO, you will be glad you did.

Keepsake Quilting and Keepsake fabrics are not one in the same.

Keepsake Quilting sells 1st quality cottons like your local quilt shop. They carry all the major brands, like Hoffman, Timeless Treasures, Moda, etc.

I have ordered from them many times. They offer top quality and their shipping charges are very reasonable. If they have something that caught your eye, don't hesitate to order.