I just cringe at the thought of only having what is on the racks at stores like Kohls as my only source of clothing!

I have the most comfortable and wonderful pants that I sew for myself. How sad to not have them.

I just can hardly believe that something that I have taken for granted my entire life is now no more. I have sewn most of my own clothes for most of my life. When I was growing up all of my friends sewed. We didnt have much shopping anywhere and so we all sewed. And I lived many different places, not just one part of the country. I remember when shopping malls came about, and now I have seen them pass on to oblivion as well.

So what are people doing with all of these inexpensive sewing machines that have been sold in the last years?

What I see on some of the sewing forums is that they are sewing lots of "plushies", (toys) and are trying to make skirts from their jeans and lots of corsets for flashy wear, and , for some darned reason, they want to make costumes and remake hoodies. What I dont see a lot of is just regular clothes being made.

But I really do see this fleece as being so undesirable in any way. Most of what gets made from this fleece requires few sewing skills. It is the nature of the fabric, since it lends itself poorly to tradtitional sewing and the types of things that require skills. It would never be appropriate for a shirt with a button placket and a shirt hem, for instance. I never did understand how one can "sew" a blanket, which seems to be the most usual thing for it. What do they "sew"?

I think it is just awful stuff and doesnt even make a nice blanket.

My houserobes are another thing that I am glad that I can sew. I want mine to be of something nice like a heavy cotton and would just hate to have to wear those synthetic fibers . I have also sewn all of hub's robes for the entire time lifetime that we have been together. He is currently wearing one of lumberjack flannel. It is a nice heavy flannel and he has had it for years and wears it a lot. It is good fabric and very well made. I got the fabric at Joanns many years ago, when the store was a sea of beautiful fabrics! All gone!

I will keep trying to find fabric for a few basic things, such as my pants . I go to the local resell venue and try to find tops.. There sure is a lot of trashy stuff that people have passed on down the line. There are a lot of really sad looking garments on those racks! I look for fabrics as I cruise the rack. I can usually spot a linen or cotton.

Thank you for offering your perspective.

That was my exact reaction the last time that I went to a Joannes Fabric Store. Sewing is going to be a lost art.

I am hearing rumor of Joanns going backrupt or whatever it is that drives companies to quit or reorganize. I highly suspect reorganizing. Probably not towards garment sewing.

I expect this to happen soon and I have often wondered if this is what is beginnig to happen as I see less and less restocks and less and less of any desirable fabric. It seems that the entire store is at a discount price that keeps you from using the coupon for it.

Lol claudia... I have seen you hate on Joanns in a bunch of threads, but starting a hate thread just to hate on them is a new one.

The fleece thing just cracks me up. A lot of it is not my speed, but it can easily be sewn into button down shirts, pants, robes, jackets if one knows how to use fleece.

The lack or underwhelming of patterns/catalog has nothing to do with Joanns. While costuming, celebratory, and crafting sewing is still rather common, it's less common for people to sew their own everyday wear. Like a large amount of other crafts, sewing tends to be more expensive to make your own than buy off the rack now.

Joanns is an average store, it carries some of most of the craft supplies commonly used, including sewing. They aren't trying to be a high end store, aren't trying to cater to a very small crafting group of people that sew their own everyday wear.

If they go under it will be no loss for anyone. It is the worst run place of business . I expect that they will reorganize into a craft store with no more fabric than Walmart and have some online presence.

I make no apologies for my disdain of promotion of forever fleece . It will outlast humanity.

Horrors!

Ya missed the boat on that one... Joanns already reorganized into a craft store a few years back. It's a craft store that is filled with half fabric and half other crafts. It's obviously not the store for you, but that's OK, because there are a couple dozen other crafters to take your place with them. In a way, it is like Walmart- some folks really don't like shopping there either, but there's always plenty of other folks that do.

I wouldn't expect or want you to apologize about your feelings on fleece- your crafting snobbery cracks me up. I've known folks that feel almost the same way about synthetic velvet and fur or non-natural and modern manufacture buttons. It's extra funny you hate Joanns so much, yet find reason to shop there despite all the fleece you know will be lurking. And then had to make a thread about it.

I have some magazines from the 70s that deal with the making of things, mostly home arts. What a remarkable diifference betweeen what people used to do with their creative moments and what they do now. Back then is was more the real needlearts of embroidery, lace and original piecing and, of course, needlepoint and , maybe, rug making, or some such as doing those Ukranian easter eggs and things like that. There was no glue and glitter and sheets of foam back then.

Of course there will be change. It all changes. But you hope that we grow forwards and onwards with new concepts and new values that have substance and goes beyound "making stuff".

If it is so easy that many can do it, it has lost it's status as an art form and becomes a mere act. Joanns offer only the craft part of "arts and crafts".

I think that the company is repositioning itself and morphing into a form that will leave behind the art of building, constructing and creating with beautiful fabric. They are exiting the building at this moment. Actually, they may go the way of Bed and Bath, who have emerged in name as an online store.

What a colossal mess this place is! They may do as well to dump it all into a big pile and let you cull through it. There are boxes of unpacked merchandise stacked everywhere and merchandise pulled off of the shelves and the pegs. Some shelves just have the stuff all piled on a shelf in a big pile or all over the floor, all a jumble of stuff. There is no incentive to do better as they are the only venue around that still poses as a fabric store.

My suspicion is that they will either redesign or close the store. It will get an upgrade or just close the doors. One of the acting CEOs describes the "positive performance in our

"sewing technology catagory". Unfortunatly , I think he means "fleece". I counted six cavernous aisles of fleece at the local store!!! and not one darned thing that I would want to sew a new blouse or pants from. Much of the rest of the store was given to costume.

And that Lucky Brand denim is said to be none other than what was already there with a label added to it. It is part of the strategy to buy and use the brand names.

I know for sure that I am not a lone voice here when I decry all of that fleece and the rest of the holiday junk, every holiday.

I remember in the past couple of years where they are left with so much holiday junk that they can hardly give it away afterwards. Seriously, I remember picking up a free item.

I have heard speculation that they are clearing out the warehouses and there was a flyer declaring how there were going to be thousand of yards of discoutned fabrics. But, there was nothing at my local one. So who knows what happened to that.

They, indeed, have declared bankruptcy and are severing employee hours and laying off employees right and left. They are ruderless with no one at the helm. I hear the flap of the vultures wings coming for them.

This struck me as a little humorous. I would have been stymied at picking out a store that consistantly disappointed me more than Joann's Claudia but then you mentioned

...Kohl's...whose tagline, in my opinion, should read "Walmart quality at Target prices."

We're fortunate to have a Macy's, Nordstrom Rack, and many factory outlets in a town not too far away. Haute couture it's not, but it serves the purpose of being clothed appropriately.

The difference between Joann's and Kohl's is that I will still walk into Joann's. Kohl's has everything on sale, all the time. Just admit your merchandise is overpriced.

I saw a video on YT yesterday by a young woman talking about Joanns and all of it's business problems and she got stuck on the fact that those who run the company are business people who have no knowledge or interest in sewing or crafting.

She seemed to have so much to say about this, but I could not help but think, what does it matter if they know how to sew? They are business exexs, managers, marketers and the like, not makers of things! She seemed to have a lot to say about it all but the idea that these people should also know something about fabric , threads and yarn is preposterous ! Of course they dont! Why should they?

This is not someones passion or art. This is pure business. And, those are people schooled in business and marketiing. Of course!

Her video was very long and after I just tuned it out and switched.

ct, as to Kohls....there is not much alternative to department store shopping other than Kohls. When I do buy something, Kohls is the most likely place to buy it. I dont see them the same way that you do, at all. I, personally, am not thrilled with the major part of what is in any store. I think it is all pretty awful.

I shop Kohls clearance mostly. I live in an affluent burb of DC and all of the local malls have shut the doors and are awaiting teh bulll dozers. That took away Macys and any of the local flagship stores that were still breathing.

There is an oultet mall real close but most of the storefronts are empty and the rest seem to sell shoes. It is a large and rather nice structure but mostly empty. A few years ago it thrived on bringing bus loads of tourist shoppers and they flocked in with suitcases to buy the designer items that they thought were of such value. I saw them out there. It was almost comical to watch them pile off the bus. They were anxious and giddy to get in there and be the first in line.

After covid, it went mostly dark and has never come back.

So, Kohls is my go to if I need something . I wonder if they are in trouble becasue so many times it seems that there are more employees than customers. Now they have given floor space to some cosmetic company and that is a big yawn! Really? Is there not already enough of that?

Actually, Joann's problems are no longer a rumor. It was the subject of a recent article in WSJ, that Joann has some rating so low that the next step is bankruptcy. Talking to my local Joann store employees, Joann is due for a "restructuring" after the first of the year. Personally, I'm glad I have a Joann at the moment, as they usually have what I need AND are the only craft/sewing store locally that's open on Sundays. (HL, a local quilt shop, and all of the Mennonite stores are closed on Sundays).

We are .in an area that used to have a 120+ store outlet center. It is now down to less than 20 stores, with 2 more leaving at the end of the year. We have Kohl's, thank goodness.

I used to make my own clothing as well, but found for the past 15 years that it really didn't do anything for me any more. But either the clearance racks at Kohl's, an occasional "find" at Target, or shopping from 3 different catalogue shops, usually gets me the clothes I need.

Donna

There is a lot of discussion online about the demise of Joanns. Joanns has been disappointing it's customer base for quite a while now. You can read so many stories of angry and disappointed customers.

I have never had a time in my life where there was not a fabric store locally. Joanns has served that very poorly for some time now, but at least it was there, for what ever good it was.

i may even sell my Babylock serger and just pack it all in.

Any bit of sewing I do now I can do with either of my two sewing machines.

I dont expect to be doing much sewing, and cant make peace with online purchase of things like clothes and fabric, or shoes.

Mostly it is an expensive hobby now.

I will still make my pants. i cant imagine wearing the things that I see in the stores.

What are they going to do with all that fleece! ugh!

Since writing that, above, we have lost our local Joann store. The manager stated that the lease was up, rent was going to go way up, so it was decided to close our store permanently.

Right before they posted the "Going out of business" signs on the windows, though, they raised prices on almost everything. Then started the "20% off", "30% off" etc. I was not in town during its final week, but have been told things were at 70-75% off, but you had to buy the full bolt that was left. One week, Ott Lites were 50% off (and I didn't buy one). The next week, they were in Store Closing Mode and Ott Lites were at 20% off there, but still 50% off online. I bought mine online.

Yes, I do miss Joann. I went up to one that was about 75 miles from me, when I was in that area, and will continue to do so whenever visiting family. I am now exploring mail order for fabrics, but it is difficult to find the "hand", the thin/thickness of the fabric, when buying online.

I received an email from Joann stores. Evidently there is some company masquerading as a Joann Clearance Center. It's a scam.

Donna

@claudia valentine, it's all very well saying that those running a business don't need to know about the product they are selling, but that would have to be one of the most ignorant statements I have ever heard. Yes, they need business acumen and marketing skills, but if they don't know the product, how can they know what the market wants? Your earlier comments about the awful fabrics they stock is a case in point. And that's one good reason they're going out of business.

Joann's is not going out of business. They filed chapter 11. At this time their court package is wholly approved and their debt is at a low. They are optimistic and the process is looking good for them. Since store closures were not part of the package plan, the store closing by Donna is an individual store decision rather than a company wide restructuring option.

The ones who do the marketing and financial mangement dont have to know this. They hire people to sort this out for them and they depend on the accumulated marketing databases that abound. A massive database of information about our collective needs and wants and habits is tabulated and evaluated by those who make the executive decisions about a large corporation like this. These databases are , themselves, very profitable. This is the criteria by which marketing decisions are made and executed and by which decisions on the future market are made. No one in that boardroom needs to know diddly squat about fabric or sewing. They dont care about the quality of one thead over another. They only care about the profit margin and the marketability of one over another.

But they do need a business education and the ability to interpret all of that large database into a profitable strategy for a large corporation. They got degrees in marketing and market research, not home arts.

Sure that you could find a few folks employed who sew, and Joanns may seek the advice or endorsement and maybe maintain a "creative" department of crafty folk. Sure that some creative jourlalist could write a great story how someone at the top just loves to sew, or knit and what a joy to be a part of that! Or maybe there is a large sewing room available to the employees, or some such scenario. But that is not relevant to the financial coprorate decisions that steer the ship. It is those that use that large database of marketing information and analysis that do that.

I took a look at who those people running the company are and a brief introduction of each and there is no mention of any of them having any other than marketing skills, brand management and finance skills. They are not a warm fuzzy group of sewing folks in there. They are corporate professionals and making a profit is what they do.

If they do sew, they are left with the same lousy selection as any other customer, I woudl imagine.

Here is a quote from Joanns as to their board of directors.

"he Joann Board of Directors has several responsibilities and duties that are essential for the company's success. These include setting the company's strategic direction, overseeing management, evaluating and selecting senior executives, ensuring compliance with legal and ethical standards, providing oversight on the company's finances and risk management, and ensuring that the company's shareholders receive a fair return on their investment."

Nope, no one here is talking about sewing or fabric or yarn. These are marketing professionals.

If one of them goes home in the evening and puts together a quilt...that is not relevant to running a corporation. A quilt shop is an old fashioned business model and probably one of the last places where you can expect to find a merchant who cares about both quality and customer. Another might be a yarn shop. The operative word here is "shop".

Each of these people came from other corporation and financial positions where the company sold things that they had no relationship to, either. They had no knowledge of high count bed sheets and quality cookware when they worked for Bed and Bath. And, they had no knowledge of canoes or water shoes when they worked for Dicks, either. For those who steer the ship, that is not something that they concern themselves with. They hire purchasers to help them choose merchandise.

If an item has a high profit margin on it, these creative folks will find a way to create a market for it, regardless. They are adept at making us think that is it the best thing ever and that we need it, now when we never did.

Ever wonder why Lindor balls are placed at so many check out registers? They have a high profit margin, that is why.

We are no longer "customers". That implies a relationship between the seller and the buyer who cares to please the customer and win their business for the future.

Now, we are "consumers" and are manipulated into buying whatever it is that the corporation wants to sell. Nowadays, the market is created by marketers and influencers and no longer driven by a need for the product or the customers desires or satisfaction. It is driven solely on the basis of profit margins and share holders stakes.

You,or me, walking into a store and walking out with a big smile and length of beautiful fabric and being so pleased that we cant wait to come back and spend more money, is not what these folks are concerned about. They already know that we will be back and we will buy . I used to buy based on which of my choices was the best, since there were many good choices. Now, I buy based more on which one is the least objectionable. As time pases, the customer base just grows to accept these limitations and not expect any more. I have seen times when the inferiour product was actually the one that they had the most success marketing . These folks are clever and are armed with loads of info about our collective consuming, but not so much about the actual merchandise, itself. That is NOT their concern.

I have seen this change happen over the last few decades. That old retail model that us old timers used to know is not how things are done in the world anymore. We dont deal so much with such quaint notions as "shopkeeper" or "downtown merchant". We deal more with these large retail entities that are motivated by much different factors that what we have known.

The world tilts a different way nowadays. The equations are different.

This is timely for me as I was in Joann's this morning, looking for some flannel to make a baby blanket. I just could not find anything I liked except a couple possible backing fabrics. The fabrics for babies were uninteresting in design or just plain unattractive, so I left empty-handed. Tons of awful marked-down fabrics which will probably still be sitting there in 10 years.

They do have a good selection of yarn and other products for specific crafts. Of course, a lot of Halloween stuff at this point.

I wonder if people here who sew a lot order their fabric online now because I sure wasn't impressed with what I saw in flannels today.

And, the flannel selection may be one of the best things in the store, so, what does that tell you about the rest of it? I, too. was in there a couple of days ago. It has been some time since my last walk in and it has gotten even more awful.

The holiday display as you come in certainly sets the tone for the rest of the store. Really?

I keep seeing the ads for all the 100s of bolts of cotton fabrics but the reality of that is pretty sad. And, the store is still a huge jumbled mess of stuff sitting in carts and piles everywhere!

I bought a length of ridiculously brightly colored floral cotton to make a pair of pj pants. I will be able to "glow" my way to the dark bathroom at night wearing these.

I am dismayed by the lack of sophisticated prints. You can find kids prints, novelties, lots of florals but very rarely a nice sophisticated abstract or a fine overall texture print. It is all so ugly , unless you want to look like you are dressed in a shabby chic pillowcase from the 90s. Yes, pretty prints but I dont want a dress made from them.

I understand how you were hoping to find something different from all the usual suspects that haunt the kids fabrics.

The world of garment sewing has passed, for the most part. It is now for those with disposable income and those who are adventurous enough to buy online. The young un's are sewing costumes, preferrably those that allow for lots of cleavage exposure or cover only the most naughty of bits, barely, or they may be trying to imitate AI images that defy the laws of physics, and are looking for a pattern that will do that really wierd thing like in the image.

And, for some reason that I cant quite wrap my old sewing head around, they want machines that can sew through two layers of steel, or eight layers of heavy bull denim, whatever! In days of yore sewing machines were touted as being able to go from sewing chiffon to heavy drapery fabric. Now some expect to have the strength of an industrial machine in a $100 machine from Walmart. Who is sewing so many layers of bullishly heavy fabric? That is what industrial factory machines are for.

It is a different world now. There is no going back. There rarely is.

There is a reason why refashioning of second hand garments has become popular. Some resell things can yeild some nice fabrics. . And, we know all too well how many mountains of discarded textiles there are around the world. I dont think that a week goes by but what I see images in the media of these things happening or see "tips" from fluff articles about how to save the planet by making 20 little unneeded things that you never imagined wanting, and still dont want, from a pair of old pants. Or, how to be a Cinderella and make a fabulous evening gown from an old table cloth or duvet cover or 60s era bed sheets. Sometimes it does work out, and they deserve mention and sometimes I cant unsee those old bed sheets, in orange and pink or "southwest" colors of the early 90s, often with a howling wolf somewhere in that motif.

I wonder what do some you who sew see as the future of the sewing world? What do you think will happen to the pattern publishing industry? Do you think that the nice natural fibers that used to be will come back? Why do we not have the ability to do a whole body scan and have a basic sloper pattern generate off of it? And, why would that not be something that could be accessible to many? There are so many ways things could evolve. The easiest path to follow is downwards towards the lowest common denominator, of course. But, maybe there is something better to come. What do you fellow sewists see as the future? What would the young ones want to see? I think that would be a fun discussion to have.

I am old and full of lament about what has gone away, but the future is for the young and what kind of future for sewing do they see for it? I am tired of lamenting the past and ready to see a new path that leads to a future, what ever that might be.

I think that the refashioning of second hand will flourish and will become a fashion statement. I saw in Kohls the other day that they are selling short jeans skirts that have the look of refashioned jeans. The big difference is that these were intended to imitate that look but they were cut with fabric that accommodates this, whereas many that are made from old jeans are short of the fabric in the right places that is needed to do it right. And, of course they are NOT made from repurposed jeans.

I see that remaking as something that will become more popular.

There is added appreciation for some of the older mechanical machines and sturdy models from yesteryears, for good reason. Older machines in working order are sought after. Maybe there will come to be retail outlets that only deal in older refurbished machines. Maybe?

I dont see 60s bed sheets of psychedelic orange and pink as becoming hot imitated items on the racks at the department store, but , who knows? It could happen. It could be the next hotteest thing! Let the future happen! Time to move on, where ever.

I don't know what the furure holds for sewists. I grew up when Beaconway and So-Fro had stores everywhere, heck, Newbury's had fabric, at leat a little. I remember local stores that had 'a little bit of everything.' The malls came in, and people wanted more variety than the little store in the village contained. (Actually knew a family that ran one of those little stores)

You're absolutely right, sewing clothing is now a hobby for those with disposable income. I buy basics that will last a long time. My things get pretty threadbare before I part with them. I am lucky, very lucky to alter clothing in a store similar to the old-fashioned merchants you described. This week, we sold clothing to - not a grandson of an old client, but to a grand-daughter's bridegroom. We don't aim to sell more,more,more, but to outfit people with multi-purpose things that will serve them well. We can't make clothing one-on-one at a price an ordinary human can afford, but the factories we partner with will create made-to-measure at a reasonable price.

I love my job. I am not a designer. Frankly, I'm awful. Late MIL could take a pattern and improvise something special. I can alter clothing to fit. Not the most inspiring 'sewist' story, but it's all I've got.

I still go into Joann's from time to time, but the 'granny florals' depress me. Maybe because I'm granny-aged.

Yes, those granny florals! My daughter calls them "old Florida lady" prints.

I have a couple of lenghts of pretty granny florals in my stash from when they were the thing. I am going to use them for pj bottoms. They are such good quality cotton! back from when cotton was good.

I wont use them in clothing, because I feel like I am wearing a shabby chic pillowcase.

I also love making pillowcases with them. The good cotton makes for a good quality pillowcase and I love the mis match of color and design. But, I dont want to wear it.

Pretty prints have all but ceased to exist. I would welcome some absract and modern prints, but Joanns has none of that. It would have to online and I have not seen a lot of abstract prints online that did not have a high price to them. I dont need them enough to spend that much on them.