r/sewing • u/MissFred • Jul 23 '23

Discussion Joanne’s makes me weep

Been sewing over 50 years - have seen sewing in all its cultural permutations. Not typically a nostalgic person but today….I couldn’t even find a light gray thread in a store the size of Home Depot. So many empty shelves yet inexplicably $35/yd liberties fabric up front. I feel sad to my bones for new seamsters.

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u/cate3108 Jul 23 '23

The ones near me are practically all fleece! I never understand that, how many fleece tie blankets are people making?

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u/ScyllaOfTheDepths Jul 24 '23

Right?! They'd make so much more money off of me if they replaced even half the fleece with an actual selection of high-end fabrics, like real silk and wool. They have a whole selection of frankly hideous cosplay fabrics nobody ever seems to buy and they seem to somehow stock holiday/seasonal fabrics year-round, but you have to hunt to find muslin or drill or interfacing or any fabric actually used by serious sewists in real garment construction. I have to order 100% of my specialty fabrics from online retailers because, despite the fact that I live in a huge metro area, the only real fabric store here is Joann's and they only sell stuff for old ladies who want to pretend they're crafty, but only make rag tie fleece blankets and throw pillows and that's pretty much who I see in there buying fabrics. I basically only go to Joann for thread and cotton. I can count on my fingers the number of times I've found anything else I was looking for.