Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft

I recently taught myself how to crochet via youtube videos… I’ve been working on making an afghan and needed to get some more yarn to complete the project. To be honest, I know NOTHING about how much yarn it takes to complete a project or what gauge yarn to use, etc… so I figured Jo-​Ann would be a good place to go to get some questions answered while I’m picking out my yarn.
So I find the yarn aisle and I’m standing there comparing two different skeins of yarn for a good 15+ minutes and a few employees passed me but never offered any help. I was going to approach the woman at the fabric cutting station but after making eye contact with me she pulled out her phone and turned her back! How rude!
Finally, I just decided to buy a whole bunch of this one type of yarn. I head to the check-​out and there’s literally about 12 people in line waiting for ONE register. This was a Friday night, so you figure people would be picking up their materials to do some crafting for the weekend, so you’d think they would adequately staff their stores… Finally, the woman calls for backup and the line starts to get moving. The woman who checked me out was super nice, she asked me what my project was, if I needed help finding anything, and even showed me where the back of the yarn package indicates the weight/​yardage and what type of hook to use! That was so helpful because I’m not kidding — I know NOTHING about crocheting so far.

This isn’t the first place I go to for my craft needs, but for fabric it’s ok. I actually don’t like sewing at all, but my mom studied Fashion Design at VCU and is a seamstress, so I’ve grown up around it. I was recently in need of a gold sequin photo booth backdrop and after finding them on Etsy and Amazon for upwards of $ 200 (yikes!), I decided that my mom (or her and I together) could make this thing for much, much cheaper.
So off I went to find myself some sequins. A girl can never have too many! This Jo-Ann’s is right around the corner from my house so it wasn’t a big deal to pop in one afternoon. Everything is pretty well organized by type of fabric. Because I’m an idiot when it comes to choosing fabrics, I brought my mom along with me. Yards, stitching, mesh, lining… all Greek to me! We walked through the aisles and found a few options that were just inside the «affordable» line. They would have been even more affordable with those handy dandy coupons that JoAnn’s always has. At the end of the day, though, I was just in «like» with those fabrics, not in love, so I left empty handed.
Even though my experience here was just so-​so (no customer service, not that many fabrics to choose from), it’s still better than other fabric stores in the area.
And if you’re wondering if I ever got that glamorous gold sequin fabric to make a photo backdrop? Yes! And you, my fellow Unilocalers, will be seeing it soon ;-)

The fabric selection was amazing, everything was on a great sale, and we ended up purchasing a few different fabrics for upcoming projects. However, the staff (other than one VERY friendly girl) was so unhelpful, rude and unfriendly. Everyone we asked for help seemed exasperated and like we were wasting their time, the cashier actually rolled her eyes and sighed when we asked for a price check on an item, and we had to wait for at least 10 – 15 minutes to get our fabric cut. If the staff was trained in assisting people with more patience and kindness, this store could get 5 stars.

I came to this location to place a very large order for fabric in order to tent a ceiling. Staci at the cutting counter quickly realized that I would need to place this order online, due to it’s quantity. Even though she knew I would not be placing the order at their store, she still spent well over 30 minutes measuring out exactly what I would need and writing me a detailed note so that I could go home and order it. She was beyond helpful, friendly, and a great employee. Great experience.

I get super overwhelmed every time I enter Jo-​Ann. I usually try to mentally prepare before any visit, but sometimes that just doesn’t work.
Recently, I was on the hunt for fabric to make napkins and placemats, and I wandered through the fabric section for an hour before leaving empty-​handed. I actually found a few fabrics that I wanted to purchase, but when I got up to the fabric cutting counter, the line was super long and the paper numbers you grab to save your spot were out. I stood there for a few minutes looking completely lost, with no one available to help or swap in new numbers (they were all cutting fabric!), before putting the fabric bolts back and leaving. It seemed silly to wait around without even having a spot in line, and I was feeling so defeated so I just couldn’t do it anymore.
They have quite a wide fabric selection, so no complaints there, but I do wish it was better organized. Or at least organized in a more sensical manner. I know they try to organize it by type of fabric, and then sometimes by color, but it always ends up being pretty confusing (and the colors end up being pretty mixed up) in my opinion.
I would still shop here when I’m in a pinch, but it’s definitely a place that I can only visit when I’m in a very patient mood.

Jo-​Ann Fabrics is a great place to get craft and clothing materials, and their customer service is amazingly good for a retail store.
I’ve come here several times with my lady friend who was looking for materials for her fashion projects. This store is huge and the sheer size of their fabrics area is impressive. There is a wide range of prices here in terms of price-​per-​yard of material, though you should be able to find what you need. Parking here is easy no matter what time you come.
Service here is quite good, both in the fabric-​cutting area and at checkout. The staff members are polite and informative and seem to sincerely enjoy working there.
Overall, there aren’t a huge number of places like this to choose from, though I am glad Jo-Ann’s is still a high-​quality option.
Overall: 4.0 stars
— — — — —
Pros:
— Staggeringly large selection of fabrics and crafts.
— Very kind and convivial staff.
— Smartly laid out sections make it easy to find what you’re looking for.
Cons:
— If you’re making an article of clothing for yourself, you’ll probably end up paying more for the materials to make it than you would to just buy the dress from a store. Still, if this is something you’re happy to do, then Jo-Ann’s is for you.

I go to Joann’s a lot, but generally not for fabric or batting. I’m a quilter, and for the most part, their quilting fabrics are of horrible quality. They pill, they bleed, they shrink, they have no oomph. You can find MUCH better fabrics at the local quilt shops in town (plus you can get Quilter’s Dream batting, which is hands down better than anything Joann’s carries). However, I do buy their Kona solids, and their notions. I Schmetz needle is a Schmetz needle, after all.
As for coupons, I love to use them here. So if I’m needing some interfacing (Pellon is also Pellon, no matter where you go), this is the place for me. It’s also a decent place to find kids’ birthday gifts.
The staff… meh. There are one or two shining stars, but 90% of them don’t look at you, don’t offer help, don’t know how to calculate yardage, etc.
For sure, avoid their minky knock-​offs. They are of such poor quality, I wouldn’t let them near my stash.

I have been to Jo-​Ann twice within the past week. During both trips I was asked if I needed help by various staff members, but the most recent time I had the pleasure to work with Dorothy. Wow, she is a great employee! She went above and beyond to help my picky husband find some fabric for a project. While she was cutting fabric for me she was still thinking of ideas/​options for him!
Aside from great customer service they offer everything to get your craft on!
Tip: Be sure to check for coupons online before heading to Jo-​Ann. Their website even lets you send the coupon to your phone!

There is so much to look at here my head was swimming! I’m new to the sewing world and wanted to make my baby niece a stuffed animal for Christmas. After some figuring out, I picked a cute, soft fabric and grabbed a number to get it cut. When it was my turn, I inquired to the girl if my fabric was appropriate for a baby and she confirmed that it was 100% cotton and therefore safe. She also helped me to find the stuffing and then pointed me in the direction of the fabric pens. After some hemming & hawing I picked a pen, not really sure if what I grabbed was right.
The place was very busy so naturally the line for the registers was very long. While waiting in the line, I saw the same girl who helped me get on a register and start barreling through the customers waiting. I was actually pretty impressed and could tell she had been doing this awhile, telling customers she could help the next «guest.» When it was my turn, I ended up getting her and I joked that she was my personal employee. I told her that I wanted the fabric pen to draw my design on the inside of the fabric and I was worried the one I chose would show through. She told me that there was another section with pencils that might work better, and she walked me over to grab one of those instead.
In the short time we were in the middle of the store, several people swarmed and asked her various questions about where things were. She was very helpful to everyone, despite trying to head back to her register to help with the accumulated customers. I wish I had gotten her name because she really was a model employee. Overall, I would love to spend more time here to learn more about different things I can make. Now that I have my sewing machine up & running I want to make everything! :)

This was my first time in this Jo-​Ann since it’s opening. Lots of fabrics to choose from at a range of prices. Lots of beads, buttons, threads and other crafting supplies. I love that they’ve introducted the «take a number» system when getting fabric cut. Before this, people would jockey for position in line, and it could get ugly. Placement of some things (the beads and buttons, for example) seemed a bit out of place. I don’t think I should have to walk all the way to the very back of the store for buttons. Other than the glitch w/​the register at checkout (first the price was actual, then the register mysteriously added $ 14), it was a good experience, and I can see going back to this location in the future.

Jo-​Ann. What can I say about Jo-​Ann??? I mean… it’s like the spastic younger sister to middle-​child Hancock Fabrics. The only reason I ever keep going to either place is because there is no «older sibling» fabric store to compare against them…
Normally, I wouldn’t have any reason to go to a fabric store. I don’t make clothing, I stink at sewing, and I really don’t have a crafty cell in my body. But, I am a reenactor, and therefore I periodically get the urge to go into stores like these and get all stoked on the different bolts of wool and natural fiber materials… and then reality sets in when I realize that stores like these make their money by selling skeins of sparkly yarn and leopard-​print polyester fabric to people who collect too many cats.
Taking that into account, if I’m not being idealistic when I walk in there, Jo-Ann’s does have a pretty decent assortment of cotton threads, fabric dyes, and whatever notion an ignoramus like myself thinks he might need. The prices are decent, and the staff is helpful and polite without invading my space and red-​flagging me as a stitch-​virgin while I blindly stumble through their store.

It’s a chain store and one kind of chain store is just like every other of its kind so normally I don’t review them. Since chain stores, by definition, are everywhere you’ll likely have been to a Kmart so you know what I mean when I say that this particular JoAnn’s looks like a Kmart. This probably explains why all the long time employees look soulless. They appear to not only not care about the customers but to be ready to lay down and die peacefully in their sleep at any moment. Any time I have to ask where something is they sigh softly and look at me like I should know where that thing is before they tell me.
They have a pretty full range of craft supplies, patterns and lots and lots of fabrics and stuff for quilts. You’ll probably find what you need here. Just prepare to be really sad if the clerks have to tell you where it is. I always feel bad for them, because they appear so sad and beaten down.
There is, inexplicably, a small rotating shelf of cookbooks at the back right by the bathrooms (the door straight back from the entrance marked «employees only»). They’re weird cookbooks too, like cupcakes, slow cookers, make anything from cake mix. Weird.
The sales are great and you can ALWAYS find coupons here. Go to their site, do a google search, print them up from home. The Sunday paper constantly has coupons for anywhere from 20−40% off. You never have to pay full price here. In fact, when you purchase something they stuff a coupon in your bag. Even at the store things are discounted deeply. I once got a bunch of Coates and Clark thread for 1 $ a bobbin! The clerk scanned them up, looked at the monitor like, «that must be wrong!» and squinted at me like I was somehow trying to cheat her with my magic bar code powers. I told her they’d come from the sales bin. She looked sadly back at the monitor and said in a flat monotone, «You’re getting a great deal»
One last thing about the clerks. They always look askance at me when I bring my own bags. Last time I was there the clerk refused to put my things in my bags because, as she looked at them in mild annoyance, «I just know this isn’t going to fit.» I took my things from her and stuffed them in the bags myself, chirping, «See, fits fine!»
Three stars instead of two for the awesome deals they always have and my extreme pity for the super sad clerks.

My dad taught me how to recover old chairs when I was in high school and it’s been a great skill to have, since I love picking up chairs at thrift stores and yard sales.
I almost always buy my fabric at this store, as they have a large selection of upholstery fabric and always have a bin of remnants. I can usually score a really high quality piece of fabric for $ 5 or less.
I’m not so much into the crafty stuff, although if you’re a scrapbooker they have a lot of those materials as well.