Jingle

I mostly buy fabrics from Walmart. Never bought any 'cheap' fabric there. Meaning thin. I don't buy from quilt shops, too expensive for me.

My Walmart is just starting to replenish their fabrics. Most of their shelves were bare for a long time. Everyone was making masks and cleaned them out.

petthefabric

Most of the Walmarts in our area do not carry fabric. There is one but it's not anywhere near where I usually go in Fresno. And currently, I buy very little fabric-down sizing. I do need a couple of backs, so might make the trip.

craftiladi

In re-reading a lot of the posts here just proves we are all different, we all have our likes & dislikes. Most important for me is the budget. As I stated earlier in a post I was a young mom of 3 when I first started sewing. If my only resource was quilt shops I probably wouldn't have stuck with sewing for very long. I remember the very first quilt I made was from old clothes or whatever I could find, That quilt is still around 30 years later, tatter & well-loved. Not overly fond of the word "Snob" but the first guild I went to those ladies made me feel like I was back at high school & I was the only kid wearing a K-mart dress. Just like anything else, there is always going to be those that make you feel not good enough. I would be broke if I followed only trends & could only shop name brands. Does that make me not a quilter, I think not as I constantly remind myself the ladies way before us started exactly the way I did. I am pretty confident in saying my quilts are well received & loved. Only we know what we can afford. I love a bargain as it allows me to have money for other things. Not sure where I intended this message to go just don't want anyone getting their feeling hurt because they only shop at quilt stores (btw I love to support my local shops when I can ) or can only get their fabric from Walmart or even thrift stores, We are all here for the love of quilting & sharing.

Waal

Well said, Dee.

Iceblossom

I'm lucky I live in a relatively affluent area and I can find fabric in thrift stores, at the rate I sew I couldn't afford the $12/yard I now figure on as "average non-sale price". It is in my area at the local (non Joann/Hobby Lobby) stores and chains. It's what I see on line -- plus postage. Fabric is hit or miss, but I've gotten every name brand you can think of and not just weird or badly printed or what you might think and I'm typically paying $1-2 a yard.

I have "buying full price fabric" as a very rare option to me, and I'm usually not comfortable spending more than about $20. For the first time in years I bought two yards of fabric on line that weren't on sale, think it's about $27 including postage. Last year I bought a couple yards of the perfect fabric for a project, in both cases $12 a yard, plus gas and time to go to the not-quite so LQS. I'm comfortable doing a queen sized top per month, that's 10-12 yards of fabric and $100+ just for the top.

Price is a very real factor. I'm just happy as I can be when I luck into something I could and would use at $1 a yard, wherever that may be.

Final thought, last year I did a top from a thrift store bag of mixed mostly Walmart and a few Joann fat quarters. The quality of the fabric varied quite a bit, I think some of the Waverly ones (polka dot and such) are actually commercial runs of high end baby lines. In general, the more seasonal and trendy the design is, the lower quality. If it's seasonal and folded/bound, it's like "craft" weight/weave and not "quilting". It's just meant for a table cloth or napkins or accents, that doesn't mean it's bad either just that it has a different use. Same thing with the poly blends.

The problem bleeder fabric I got that ruined a top was "quilt shop quality". I've had pieces of a few of the known-name designer fabrics that once washed and the sizing and such gone were simply bad quality greige goods. As well as I'm more likely to be "shorted" on a stated bolt size width of fabric and have a barely usable 40" width even before washing with the designer names than with the medium brands.

juliasb

Our Walmart stopped carrying fabrics years ago. I would buy my holiday fabrics there as I knew they would be used only for seasonal quilting projects and not for daily use. I don't consider my self a snob but I did find a higher shrinkage level in the Walmart fabrics compared to JAF fabrics.. I had a friend say once that it was more fun shopping for fabrics at my house that it could ever be at Walmart. Not apposed at all. I do use quilt shop fabrics for most of my quilts now a days because I do prefer the higher quality of the fabrics. I can always feel the difference. But like I said there is always a place for all levels of fabric quality including Walmart.

rjwilder

My last fabric shopping trip took me to Hobby Lobby, JoAnn's, Walmart and my LQS. I was happy with everything I purchased. I bought all prints, no solids. I wash all of my fabric before it ever goes into my stash. All of the fabric shrank, all of it lost it's crispy feel. Only one piece came out with the print all crooked and messed it. I folded it in half, tried to press it and pulled at the corners a bit to try to get it straight again. Nothing worked.....it was the piece I paid $14.99 for at my LQS. I took it back, showed them the mess and they would not replace it with something else.