RAChhap

Woonderful answer!!!

stoppain

Hi to U where I live ,I will buy from Joanns or quilt shop
,but not form Walmart, just pour quality

wrldwndrr

About ten years ago, I made a quilt with all flannel.It has lots of small triangles and small squares. I used LQS for most everything but the backround was solid blue fron JoAnn's. It felt like really good quality flannel.
The LQS flannels are fine after many ashings but the Blue is ravelling and coming apart at the seams.

LQS for me!

Mkotch

I have been quilting since the 1970's and find that the quilts I made way back then, using cheaper fabrics, have not held up as well over time. If that is a concern for you, then try to shop at your LQS for most things. If you just want to "play around with fabric" (and many of us do that all the time!), buy wherever you find fabric you like!

IMACountryGirl

I used to buy ALL my fabric at Walmart or JoAnns. JoAnns has gotten very expensive.

I now have a LQS my friends introduced me to that has a huge sale section for $5.00 per yard!!! Same price as Walmart and alot nicer!

So now the LQS is where I go first and then if I don't find all the fabric there I can get any remaining colors at Walmart.

Check out your LQS's and see where their sale section is!

mmonroe

I purchase the quality of the fabric for the quality of the project I am making. For a quilted project for the kitchen that will be washed frequently, I tend to purchase less expensive materials. However, if I am making an heirloom quilt, then I make sure the time I invests matches the quality of the fabric I am investing in. Some of the quilts I make are quick projects, and for that, I tend to go to Joann's or Walmart. It just depends on how much time/effort I am investing.

It sounds like to me, the quilt you are planning to make would be considered an heirloom quilt. I hope you purchase quality fabrics, where ever that may be.

aronel

I get my fabric at Walmart and have never had a problem. JMHO

JANW

Look at all the old quilts that have survived from old used clothes to feed/flour sacks. You may want to pay more after you have more experience or if a certain designer has a collection you just love, but many quilts are beautiful from the fabrics from the other stores. JoAnn fabrics now has more quilters grade fabrics too.

penski

i am not a fan of paying the price that our local quilting shops ask for there fabric ,so i buy mine at joanns , handcocks and some at walmart,and i do make sure it is there good quality fabric , i have not had a problem buying , or using this fabric in my quilts

seamstome

I dont think LQS necessarily equates to more expensive. I had a post that was locked about going from the LQS paying 8-8.50 a yard with my discount card and driving down the street 1000 yards to Joann's where the batik was 12.99 a yard.

I would shop LQS on sale or on a shop hop to pick up the fabric I need. Or you could pre-shop at the LQS, finding what you want and like and see if you can catch it online at like thousandbolts etc.

Lots of the JA, WMT, etc and some of the expensive fabrics will fade and come apart. I had some Kaffe Fossett that was the worst I have ever worked with...while other fabrics from that same line were just fine. You never really know until you wash it and work with it. Before I bought alot of anything I was not familiar with, I would buy a FQ and launder it several times.

IMHO, you cant really go too wrong with Kona, Hoffman's, Kaufman's.

This is a large investment in both time and money, while I would not say pay premium prices, I would say avoid cheaper fabrics that wont do your time and work justice. If it was a choice between doing the project in not so good fabrics and waiting to do the project I would wait.