Honey

In all of the times that I have purchased unline, there was only once that I was dissatisfied and they gave me my money back. Contact whoever you got it from and let them know that it wasn't what you expected.

MsEithne

Different computers render colour differently. Online colour rendition doesn't just involve one computer, it involves two (the one that processed the photo and the one downloading the photo off the internet). If the exact colour is important, always get a swatch. Expect to pay for it, naturally.

I've gotten fabric in the past that I didn't like the colour when I got it home. This always happened in stores where they had fluorescent lighting and heavily tinted windows (for energy savings). Out from under the fluorescent lighting, they just didn't look right to me.

So, I overdyed them! It's easy, it's interesting and now I have a truly unique fabric.

Overdyeing gives you the option to just shift colours slightly to completely changing them (for the darker). Plus you can choose to add more "texture" to the look of the fabric by choosing dyeing methods that lead to mottling, light to heavy.

I honestly can't imagine just returning a piece of all cotton fabric to the store for a refund when I can have so much more fun with it using fabric dyes.

And for that matter, there are stencils and/or rubber stamps to add pattern elements, using permanent markers to add freehand elements, etc.

Plus, there's the fact that when cut into patches, the surrounding fabrics affect the perception of colour in any single patch. This effect is more pronounced with small patches rather than large ones. Sometimes a colour that leaves me cold on its own is just the neutral, spark or background for a group of other fabrics.

It's like almonds--you can eat them raw, you can toast them, you can add them to a wide variety of dishes (not just Mandarin Chinese, either), you can candy them, you can grind them into flour for linzertorte, you can grind them into paste for marzipan... so many possibilities that it's never a mistake to throw a bag of almonds into the cart.

NJ Quilter

This is why I really don't shop online. If I've seen the fabric at my LQS and know that it's something I want I will check pricing online and then possibly order. I'm just a very tactile person and like to know the 'hand' and color up close and personal.

QKO

A lot of online stores will send samples or sell you swatches.

It is really difficult to produce pictures that will render correctly on a wide variety of computer monitors.

If you're trying to match colors with fabrics you already have, some stores will do it for you if you send a sample of what you're trying to match to.

Most online stores, with the exception of a few giant ones, are small businesses, often owned by quilters, that will go a long way to make sure you're satisfied and have what you need to make your project successful.

BellaBoo

The colors don't match each other or what was shown on your monitor? No webpage can possible show true colors on every monitor viewing the page. I order 90% of my fabric online and sometimes the fabric isn't what I expected but I can always find a use for it. I have ordered a certain color I need five or six times from various sites until I get the color I was looking for. I would never put all my hopes on one fabric showing to be the exact color I needed if I couldn't buy more if it wasn't. A case like that would mean a car trip to the nearest fabric store. I find too many fantastic deals not to buy online no matter if the color is not perfectly shown. It's nothing that bothers me.

dmarina

I ordered some fabric on Ebay because that is the only place I could find what I wanted. It was "Hello Kitty" prints. They came from China (uggg). The quality was very poor, but the prints were very good. I was making a quilt of "Hello Kitty", so I had to use them. I will be sure to check when ordering on-line (EBay) where the fabric is coming from. Lesson learned.

RV Quilter

I also order 90% of my fabric online and have had no problems. I usually stay with name brands and have not been disappointed. Even with shipping it's generally less expensive and sometimes there are fantastic deals as much as 4 or 5 dollars less than from LQS. Plus there is so much more to choose from.

auntmarie

Call customer service anyway. I had two problems and both were resolved by customer service even tho they had a no return policy.

smagruder

I just received a sizable amount of fabric from an online site.... two of the pieces were not good quality. One is paper thin so it becomes a throw for my grandson. The other was so off square.. I wanted it for a pillowcase for my grandson. Needless to say, I won't purchase from this site ever again. A shame because it is a pretty popular site.

donna13350

I probably couldn't quilt if I couldn't order on line...closest LQS is 50 miles from here, and tiny. I love the freedom of having a huge variety to choose from...I get choices on line I could never even dream of with just local purchases. I have never once had a problem ordering on line...most sellers want your return business and are very pleasant to work with, in my experience.
If you had a color problem, could it be that you have an older monitor? The newer monitors are pretty accurate, while the older ones could really warp a color!