Quilt Store Quality Fabric
 

so, I have started following a lot of quilting blogs - I'm a bit addicted. :)

But they keep mentioning only buying and using "quilt shop quality" fabrics and say to never buy from big places like joanns, etc. I'm a tad confused. I'm pretty sure that joanns and other places carry not only lower grade fabric but also the nice stuff. So isn't it just more important to make sure it's a quality fabric vs. being snotty about where it's purchased? I'll admit that I'm doing all of this on a budget and sometimes I just can't afford the local quilt stores prices. And heck - my local Hancock Fabrics now sells Kona cotton solids in LOTS of colors!

This is the link that got me started - a layer cake swap where they said specifically not to purchase fabric from Joanns or other stores like it:

http://distantpickles.blogspot.com/2...some-cake.html

Am I wrong in my thinking? I guess I've just never been one of those "brand name needed" kind of girls.

I agree with you. I have found many nice fabrics at Hancocks, Joanns and even Walmart! I feel it to see how thick it is and if it feels and looks nice I buy it. I love buying from my local quilt store but I just can't afford to do it every time. I say if you like it buy it. You are the one working with it anyway. I wouldn't be able to sew anything if I had to get the fabric from the quilt store everytime. Once it's in a quilt it will look beautiful! Back in the day people used to recycle clothes and flour and seed sack bags so I would say using a "discount" fabric is just fine.

i take it to mean good quality fabric regardless of where purchased. tight weave, pure cotton, good solid colours.
i have purchased good fabric from Hancocks, there is no joanns in canada. we have 'fabricland' some of it is terribly thin and worthless. i have purchased good quality fabric at walmart, in the past, they no longer have fabric here.

I agree with Tartan -- I wish price of fabric was no object. I buy from Joanns -- our Walmart just got fabric in and I haven't liked the feel. I like to feel the fabric since some of what the LQS has been getting is very thin. The owner sent a whole batch back because it was very thin and poorly printed. I buy what I can where I get the best value for my budget -- and sometimes that is Joanns and sometimes my LQS (don't have a Hancocks or Hobby Lobby close by).

Get your fabric from where ever You want and don't let Some 'UpPPity' Place Tell you How or Where to Shop!!
PS: And They would BE the Last Place I would Buy from!

I agree that you need to watch the quality no matter where you buy. But if we don't support the LQS they may close. I just watch for sales and end of bolts and buy then.

Thanks for all of your responses and making me feel better about how I've been shopping! I absolutely agree in supporting the LQS, but it can't always be by buying fabric. I'm going to have my quilts quilted there (unless I learn and want to quilt my own one day!) and they have classes, etc. But I just can't see limiting my fabric buying to only them. :)

You're free to buy and use fabric from any source you want when it's for yourself. If you're going to be in a swap where they specify "quilt shop quality" then it had better be quality or the swap hostess will feel free to send you back your fabric.

The way I look at it, quilting was started by thrifty women who had only scraps from clothes they made, and swapped with others for variety. I 'honor' that tradition by being thrifty -- yes, I'd love to be able to buy the really nice fabrics from designers, but I have other things to spend money on, too. So I buy in the clearance areas at the LQS, some from Joann's, Hancock and very occasionally, Walmart (the fabric at our store is usually cheap). But I also buy at Goodwill, as quilters pass away and their family members donate not knowing just how much those fabrics are worth, in money and in their loved ones eyes. I also buy at yard sales, and even clothing that I see at yard sales where the fabric is nice and in good shape, which I then cut up. Our economy isn't going to improve for a very long time, so we all have to save where we can. But we can still enjoy our art and produce beautifully, well made quilts for others as reasonable prices, too.

entirely sensible.

When I started quilting almost 50 years ago, the fabric was 36 inches wide and some of it has faded through the years. There were also more chemicals in the fabric years ago. As long as the thread count seems to be very good and the fabric doesn't feel too thin, where fabric is purchased isn't that important. Just once in a while do try to purchase something from the LQS. With the wholesale prices going up and up, the LQS are having a difficult time. And NO I am not affliated with any LQS.

I agree with others. I made a quilt years ago with mostly fabric from JoAnn's, and it's one of the best quilts I ever made! Loved to death, too.

However, I just wanted to point out that the term "Kona solids" is not specific. There are Kona solids, Kona Bay solids, and Kaufman Kona solids. The manufacturer of the Kona solid makes a difference in the fabric quality. Here is an older thread on that topic:
http://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f1...s-t183557.html

I'm thinking that since the link referenced in the initial posting is for a swap it may be that the person wanted to be sure that the fabric was comparable for each contributor. Perhaps in previous swaps there was too much difference in the quality of fabrics sent. However, there have been a few times that I have come across a fabric in a quilt shop that was a bit thin. Perhaps it was ordered for the print, or some special thing. But usually quilt shops do carry high quality fabric. And the person writing it may have a personal philosophy that if we don't support the quilt shops they will close. I have found a great variety at JoAnn's so you do have to look at it.
But for personal preference I agree, buy where you can, or prefer.

While I prefer fabric at my local quilt shop, I do buy at the the larger 'box' stores....Joanns, Hancocks, Hobby Lobby, etc. With the rising cost of fabric, I just hope I don't have to give up my fabric addiction!!!!!

All I can say, is here we go again.....

I wonder if it isn't the material quality ... but rather that if we don't support our LQS's they will go out of business. Though I do know of a few material snobs.

ali

I wonder if the request was made because when doing a swap w/ people you don't know, that if everyone bought material from a LQS, there would be a better chance of the quality being similar.

i totally agree with this response. i don't make quilts for show, only to be loved.

While price is certainly an object for me, as for so many others, I have never felt that a direction to buy "quilt shop quality" fabric is uppity or snotty. I think that most of the folks who take the time and energy to develop patterns and them put them out on their blogs for the rest of us to use, usually for free, use the best quality fabric they can to help insure the best final product. And, they give the instruction to use the best quality fabric possible so that we - their customers so to speak - will also have the probability of the best outcome for OUR product. I have personally experienced the difference in the same project when made with a high quality fabric and a lower quality fabric, and that difference is surely noticable. So, while I have certainly done projects with fabrics from wal-mart, Hobby Lobby and the other chain fabric stores - and will continue to do so - I will go with the highest quality fabric available that I can afford. And, if I am using someone else's pattern and they recommend quilt shop quality fabric, I will take that recommendation under very careful consideration, and do what I can to get the high quality in fabric usually found in quilt shops.

Well said...

If you are doing a swap then you must follow the rules. I think they may specify LQS fabric so everyone is getting the same quality of fabric, so the swap is fair to everyone involved. If you are buying for yourself then it is up to you what you buy. I seldom buy "new" fabric, I prefer to use what is already made (being green), so I never enter a swap. It is your choice to enter or not, but you must be willing to abide by the rules.

My guess would be that they were looking for all fabrics in the swap to be of comparable quality so that a quilt made of them would look and feel right. Participation in the swap is voluntary, so if a person doesn't want to shop at a LQS, they wouldn't have to be in that particular swap. I like to shop at the LQS. They always offer a corner of sale fabrics, and I like to find great bargains there as well as regular priced items. I always try to support them because I would hate to see them leave. I also shop at Hancock's and Hobby Lobby which are in my hometown too. I want to keep the all. I loooooooove fabric!

When you sign up for a swap there are rules and regulations. If I do not agree with the swap, I pass it by. I have been involved in swaps where I sent in blocks, well executed and done to the best of my ability, and have received blocks that were out of square and the fabric was thin and bare. It is the way it is with a swap. I have seen some of the same patterns of fabric at the LQS and Hancocks or Joann's - so how can the "cake" moderator tell? If you want to participate, look for quality and go for it.

I buy fabric from many places. I get some for the local quilt shops (but gee, that gets expensive). My husband loves to drag me into a fabric shop and where I would buy one yard, he keeps after me until I have 5 or 6 yards of fabric. The stores love to see him in the shop. I have bought fabric from Walmart, Joanns and Hancock. Just check the look and feel of the fabric. I also get fabric from clothing I purchase at thrift stores. I work at one thrift store and when I see fabric come in, I'm on it. I've also gotten many good quilt books there. Oh, I also buy fabric that folks on this site.

Lynn
(can't have too much fabric)

This is why I don't participate in swaps. I have a large stash, but I don't always remember where it came from. I can always tell if it was originally a garment, but other than that I have a problem. I buy a lot of my fabric at a fabric outlet where the prices are VERY good, the only thing different is that it may be from last year or from several years ago.

When participating in a swap, it seems reasonable to me to follow the guidelines.

If one doesn't want to follow them, then don't play.

I think participating in swaps is kind of expensive - so one should probably be selective in which ones one wants to join.

I buy most of my fabric from shops on-line.
However, I also buy from Joanns and Michaels if they have something I like.
It is true that the big chains sell less than 1st quality, but I don't care as long as it's all cotton and not too thin.

Thanks for the link though. Distant Pickles has a terrific tutorial for a tube quilt.

I purchase fabrics from many places. My local quilt shop has beautiful fabrics and I do buy certain lines from her. I also buy from Joanns , hobby lobby, and Walmart. When we travel, I will stop at mom and pop fabric shops and some quilt shops...I get "souvenirs" of our trips. I have found fantastic fabrics...wonderful quality...at great prices at both quilt shops and big box stores. And have found the opposite...low quality....high price. Actually stopped at a cute shop on one of our trips. Beautiful fabric but the prices were out of this world....one piece was 15.00 a yard. The woman was nasty when I questioned the price...of course she did not make a sale. Just down the road, the next town down, was a small Ben Franklin store (I thought they closed). There was the same beautiful fabric for 6.00 a yard. I got several yards of that and of others she had.
We all purchase where we can, and most seem to understand "high price" does not equate to "high quality", nor does " low price" mean " poor quality".
I am sure the swap is not requiring large amounts of fabric to be purchased by each participant...maybe your budget can allow a small amount to splurge and enjoy the participation in a swap.

I haven't always, but now I try very hard to only buy fabric now from local quilt stores. It's partly a quality issue, but more than that, it is also a recognition of all of how valuable they are to me. If I have a question about colors or binding, etc., I can go in and ask them, whereas I'd never be able to do that at a crowded Joann's cutting counter, or a walmart. My LQS sponsors quilt retreats and work days. They know me by name. It's a community as much as a place of business. I'd be sad if they had to close because they couldn't compete with the lower prices of the chain stores. It does mean that if I'm buying for my stash, I usually buy a fat quarter rather than a yard of fabric, but that's OK because I like scrappy quilts.

Thank you guys for your awesome input and great points! I didn't mean to sound "uppity" myself! I was really just trying to understand if there was a difference and why one would specify something besides just "high quality quilting fabric". And yes, I absolutely agree that if you want to participate in a swap you need to follow the rules. I was not suggesting otherwise. :)

I've learned a lot - like I had no clue that the same LINE of fabric by the same manufacturer might have different thread counts based on the store it's sold in? Has this been verified or is it just hearsay? Seems crazy to me! I mean - how is one to know the difference, and who says at some point in the future the LQS's won't start buying this lower quality fabric if it looks the same?

Ok....back to drooling over all the fabric and quilt designs on these blogs I mentioned. :)

I too am not one of those "brand name needed" kind of girls either. I have purchased lots of fabric at many different sources. I bought some lovely pink flannel for a wholecloth baby quilt,at my local LQS, I washed and dried it, and then noticed the flaw right down the middle of the fabric. Needless to say, I won't be giving this as a baby blanket now with the flaw down the middle of the darn thing. I can cut up the fabric into blocks and salvage most of it that way, but, to say that ONLY LQS fabric is good is not true.

I buy what I like from where ever I choose...When the budget says Wally world, that it will be!!

I prefer good quailty brand name fabric that is caried by quilt stores. I can not always afford it and use other fabrics too that seem of good quality. I think if some one organizes a swap and it calls for LQS fabric they have a right to do so. If you do not want to buy LQS fabric then that swap is not for you.

I know on the boards it calls for good quality fabric like from LQS. This means cotton and good quality like the LQS it does not mean it has to be from there or have those brand names.

I find good fabrics wherever I shop, you just have to be careful and check it out good. I have found poor fabrics at LQS's as well. I was at Hobby Lobby two weeks ago and they were putting out some new fabrics that were so beautiful and the quality was really good. Came home with a bag full and will be going back for more this week.

I buy from several different sources. Online from J&O fabrics; local quilt shops; Joann's. It depends upon the project I am doing. Sometimes I am not as fussy about the quality as I am at other times. I do find one difference between Joann's and my local quilt shops; when I need help coordinating colors or need good suggestions, my LQS is much better. We recently had a new Joann's open near us and the selection of fabric is about half of what it was at the old location.

Another thing to consider: A lot of blogs have paid advertising. Sometimes the blogger will promote a fabric company/line/designer because they're PAID to promote it.

Absolutely true! We have a "Valu" type store in town and they have lots of fabric. Benartex and others come to mind. You just pick and choose and I find some terrific bargains. Nothing is really terrible. I did buy a few "thin fabric" FQs which are great for piecing very small designs.

Beware of fabric snobbery!!

pat yourselves on the back.
this subject usually ends in a brawl.
as Mr. Grace would say, "you've all done very well." :thumbup:

i think we have a nice selection of perspectives now and should quit while we're ahead. LOL LOL LOL