Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft

Unfortunately I am giving this Jo-​Ann only three stars because the cutting counter experience is always a cluster. It takes forever and I always have the weirdest exchanges with some of the people here. But most of the employees are nice. This Jo-​Ann is also smaller than the Jo-​Ann in Frederick, so the selection isn’t good, but in a pinch I can almost always get what I need here… just with a little frustration.

hire new people with a better work ethic.
stop chit chatting with customers when others are waiting in line at the cashier.
either the employees need to be changed or the owner– wake up or you will lose more customers.

I am a frequent and loyal Jo-​Ann Fabric customer. I cannot say that I am usually happy with the service, but I have to report a particularly awful experience with an employee at this store. Cecilia is in her 50s/​60s, and treated me with extreme rudeness. I approached her for help at checkout with some fabrics I had found on the discount rack (part of the Memorial Day sale), and immediately she began publicly accusing me of trying to get markdowns on full priced items. Understanding that it was a busy and stressful time, I calmly offered to show her where I pulled the fabrics from so as not to cause any further problems or confusion. When she saw the same 50% off sign on the rack where I found the fabrics I wanted to purchase, she yelled at me and said that none of those markings were correct – and very loudly refused to serve me – as if I was at fault for it! While employees at Jo-​Ann Fabrics are not exactly known for their kindness, I couldn’t believe the level of unprofessionalism and bad manners this woman had. It is simply inappropriate and inexcusable for an employee to verbally attack a customer who comes to them for help. Future shoppers: if you want to avoid a terrible experience at this store, steer clear of Cecilia!

I came here today for some baking supplies, found everything I need, stuff that I could not find at other craft stores or even a baking supplies store. There was only one isle of baking supplies, but it was packed had so much variety… now I think I have everything I need for my cake decorating! I am happy, didn’t ask for any help but the woman at the cash register was friendly and started a conversation with me, and smiled (smiling goes a long way). I will definitely add this to my list of cake supplies shops for the future.

I went into Joanns yesterday and the customer service I got was awful the ladies in the store are very rude. They speak to any kind of way and they was no where to be found when I need to check out. Once the lady came to check me out she told another lady in line u need to move back I’ll get to u. She was rude and another lady came to get me some spray paint and she was like” wait color u want?” I said pink?, she then was like what kind of pink. They was just plan rude. Won’t be back.

This store was very messy. I went early on a week day so it was not busy but it still took a long time for someone to come to the cutting table. But the most annoying part was the cutting lady who cut SO slow all the while telling me my baby was crying because she was hungry and not tired (I told her she was tired). I think I know my baby better then you. I very much dislike this store but it’s the only place around that I know of…

I love the selection of fabric, crafty items and sales here, but the customer service is a nightmare.
Went today and let my daughter pick out some fabric so I could make her a special teddy bear. When my number was FINALLY called and I lay the bolt on the counter, the cutter yelled out «YOU REALIZE THIS IS 16.99 $ A YARD DON’T YOU???»
Yes, I can read and yes I can do basic math and yes I can afford ¹⁄₃ yard of 16.99 $ a yard fabric! Geez! She made me feel like she thought I was either dirt poor or really dense. It was half price too so it came to 2.83 $. She really needed to embarrass me over 2.83 $ worth of brown fabric?
When I got in line to pay, just like last week, there were about a dozen customers in line with one red haired cashier who had a full out conversation that lasted several minutes with that customer AFTER she paid. Don’t mind all the rest of us in line. All of us want to hear all about said customers recent trip too because we just love standing in line. NOT!
They move like turtles here. Make that rude, grumpy and nasty turtles with bad attitudes.
Every time I go here, it’s the same nasty employees. If they hate their job and or the public so badly they should work elsewhere.

The staff are not very helpful. Mainly the self proclaimed «sewing lady».

As a general rule, the women who work at this location are angry and old. They’re Rude with a capital «R.» I’m not sure who is holding them hostage and forcing them to cut fabric, but for the love of all that is good in the world: PLEASE LET THEM GO. I dread coming here because they’re so unpleasant and the line is almost always long and extraordinarily slow-​moving.
There are two exceptions to the nasty employee rule. 1. The guy from Philly who may be the manager is by far the friendliest person in the place. He’s funny and helpful to boot. 2. There was a young girl working the register the other day who was nice, too.
I think their stock is decent. I’ve made several skirts from their selection of stretchy fabrics. If I was in to quilting, this place would be like heaven from an inventory standpoint. They have sewing equipment and supplies. Patterns. Floral arranging things. They have more candy melts than seem feasible.
Plus, I fee like 50% off the store stock is on sale at all times. If it’s not on sale, it’s really easy to find coupons using the phone app.
I do not come here often. In fact I wish there was somewhere else to go that could match their inventory, prices and location, but I haven’t found it.

I personally like this Jo-Anne’s although I have only been here twice. They have been pretty nice and eager to help me. I would go again

Like other reviewers, I have a love-​hate relationship with this Joann’s. I do a lot of quilting, and sometimes I just don’t want/​need the designer fabrics from the quilt shops. I buy all of my batting by the yard here (40% off coupons!), and thread. There’s a Viking shop too, so if you’ve got one of their machines you can pick up fabrics and any machine accessories you need in one go.
The customer service is definitely lacking, though some of the staff really do try. It’s just too bad you have to «know» who is worth dealing with. The man who seems to be the manager is always rude, and often complains to customers about all of his own «issues»…the younger ladies tend to be much nicer, though not always particularly knowledgeable or helpful.
Make sure to take a number at the cutting counter (then go back to browsing fabrics, it could be a while, especially if any of the customers are chatty). Definitely allow for a little extra fabric… most of their cutters are especially sloppy, and you could lose up to two inches just straightening fabric (assuming they didn’t just cut it too short to begin with).
It’s worth it to get the app for your 40% off coupon and to check up on sales. There’s no such thing as «not on sale» at a craft store, but items that are «marked down» 25% or 30%, just wait for the sale to end so you can use the 40% coupon.
If you can, go to the Frederick Joann’s instead. Much friendlier, and it’s a much bigger store so they have better selections and better organization.

I am in line right now. I’ve been standing in line for over 10 minutes now by myself because the cashier lady and a customer are having a long ass conversation, totally disregarding the fact that I am right here. Customer service is terrible. Same with Hancock Fabrics. These fabric store employees are terrible.

Horrible customer service. Products are not shelved properly. If u find something, be sure it was misprint and when u get to the rude moron at the counter, it’ll actually be twice as much. And they won’t match the price they had on the shelf because that would actually be good customer service. Great bait and switch! I refuse to shop here ever again and I urge you to find somewhere else to go. Try g st fabrics in Rockville.

Went for the last time today. I didn’t even need any kind of special assistance or fabric cutting, just found what I wanted and got in line. And waited. And waited. And waited. While the cashier spent a ridiculous amount of time ignoring us because she was helping a customer whose brand new bank account made it impossible for her to pay. She even rang up the customer’s purchase for a SECOND TIME on a different register. (LIke that was going to make a difference, the register still didn’t take her check.)
Not once did the cashier acknowledge that she was making the rest of us wait. Just a word from her, like, «Thank you for your patience, sorry for the delay» would have made all the difference. I KNEW it wasn’t her fault (except for the fact that she didn’t know when to let it go and get the customer to go back to her bank and fix the problem.)
Finally, after the customer left, the cashier still didn’t say a word to us, she just stared at the receipt for a few seconds like she was trying to crack the DaVinci code. Then, after a cursory glance at us, she WALKED OUT OF THE STORE to share with the customer a word of advice about the account. NOT HER JOB. Her job is to help the next customer (me) with my purchase. Which I left on the counter before I walked out the door. I walked right past the cashier and her «project» customer and still, not a word from her.
The thing that pissed me off the most was her attitude. I ran out of patience when I realized that she honestly did not care. Her attitude was basically, «Oh, they’ll wait.»
I think the staff is just so used to annoying their clientele that they don’t even notice anymore.

Absolutely the worst customer service! The past couple of times I’ve visited, I swore I would never go back. Last night was the last time! Hancock Fabrics is a mile away and much better customer service. Yet again, I stood in line while one staff member cut fabric for a customer who kept shopping and adding bolts to her pile. I wanted to take a number so I could shop and still hold my place in line. The staff member said she wasn’t doing that. I finally got frustrated and went to Hancock Fabrics, where I got what I wanted. The quality of the merchandise at Joanne’s is crappy. There’s a lot, but crap is crap no matter what the quantity.

Step 1: Download JoAn fabric apps to receive 40%+ coupons & always use when visiting this store.
Step 2: Grab a ticket (number) while you shop for your fabric, otherwise, they wil ask you to grab a number and you will wait longer.
Step 3: Ignore the curtness or rudeness of some of the employees. They tend to always be short-​staffed and super busy. It’s much easier to ask the cashier for help than employees putting stuff back.

I have shopped in other Jo-​Ann and know that it’s nothing compare to G Street Fabric or Calico Corner in terms of selection and service. At the same time, the prices at Jo-​Ann stores are usually better. I know their fabric cutting table and register is usually under staffed with just one or two people working.
When I visited this store, there was one person at the cutting table (10+ people waiting) and one person at the register (8 people in front of me and the line got longer as I was waiting). And there was no one working on the floor. It was a mess.

I’m so sorry to disappoint Fenny, who was excited to see the bad review I intended to write after my first trip here. :-) While some of the negative experiences of that trip still stand (he-​llo staff that knows nothing about sewing), my 2^nd trip was miles better, so I have had to settle on a solid 3-​star rating.
I have to give them a small amount of a break on the first trip, because they had just moved everything in the store and noone knew where anything was. They didn’t seem to have what I needed, but I found it easily on the 2^nd trip. (That being said, the staff member helping me found the right section the first time, and if she had any desire to help me, which she clearly didn’t from her attitude, we would’ve been able to find the right item in that section in the first place, without need for my making a 2^nd trip.)
As useless as the customer service/​info staff is, the thing that bumps them up to 3-​stars is really the guy at the checkout. He was so friendly that it is impossible for him not to gain them an extra star. It also helps that he accidentally gave me half-​off one of my ($ 1.69) purchases, and when I said «Oh I didn’t realize those were on sale too, I should go get more» he said «Oh, they weren’t supposed to be, I messed up, but now they are for you, go get more anyways.» !!! Ok, so it was less than $ 2 I saved by going to get 2 more, but it was just cool of him.
Also, so many thing really were on sale! I got a number of items for 50% off, which is great, and the guy said they have sales frequently so… perhaps now that I have some sense of what I need I’ll be back. Do NOT go if you’re expecting to get help! :-)

Today was the first day I went into a Jo-​Ann Fabrics. I’m going to have to beg for forgiveness from Michael’s, where my love of arts and crafts first began. But Jo-​Ann Fabrics was a bit closer and I needed to buy some embroidery floss since I promised one of my students free time to make friendship bracelets. I scored a set of 27 colors on sale for under $ 3!
Although this store doesn’t look like much from the outside, and is unfortunately not very inviting on the inside, it served its purpose and I wouldn’t hesitate to return for other craft items. They had a decent selection of scrapbooking products. This store, like Michael’s and Target, has a dollar aisle, although it’s very limited. I found a few little books for school. St. Patrick’s Day décor was 50% off, so I was lured into buying a cute porcelain decoration to hang in the house. It subsequently fell on my floor and broke due to the poor quality of the faux-​suede material it hung on. The fabrics in the store really didn’t do much for me since I’ve never been into quilting or costume-​making, but I imagine that’s why a lot of people come here.
The girl working the cash register was very friendly and helpful. She offered up a coupon to use, although I had some that were sent in the mail.
**Teachers: Ask for a rewards card and receive 15% off for each purchase. You’ll also receive an additional 20% off coupon for a one time use.**

I’m a one woman sweatshop. Back in the day, when my friends and I would dress up (cosplay) for animé and comic-​book conventions, I would whip out costume after costume as if the fate of the universe resided in our ability to look *exactly* like our characters. One time, I hand stitched together a cheerleader costume (from Buffy) in the back seat of a cramped Ford Focus driven by a drunk crazy girl on a 10 hour ride down to Atlanta.
However, to afford all of these costumes, I had to shop for the cheapest most rock-​bottom prices for fabrics that I could. And thus my love-​hate relationship with Jo-Ann’s…and more specifically, with *THIS* Jo-Ann’s was born.
I suppose that I can’t really fault Jo-Ann’s for the lack in selection in some of the fabrics, as Jo-Ann’s caters to the quilting crowd. However, I can definitely fault them on staff that don’t understand sewing or crafts, and the lack of organization in the store.
The majority of Jo-Ann’s fabrics is cotton. Specifically, quilting cotton. Quilting cottons in all sorts of weird, tacky, bizarre patterns and designs. If you’re a quilter, I’m totally sorry for raggin’ on the quilting cottons, but let’s be honest, they really are pretty crazy. There is a decent selection of fleece, however, again, in crazy, tacky, bizarre patterns (finding solid colored fleece can be a trial), and a selection of cheap polyester and satins.
To make a costume, it’s not just about finding fabrics in the right color, but also of the right weight and type of fabric so that when you move, the fabric moves in a way to resemble the character the costume is supposed to represent. On top of this, because my friends and I were (are) lushes, I also had to find fabric that wouldn’t spot or show stains when we spilled our drinks (as we were wont to do, after 8 or 14 hours of drinking).
As I said, the selection at this Jo-Ann’s is slim for my needs, however, they undoubtedly had the cheapest prices of the three fabric stores around me. In addition, they often had coupons and mailers, that allowed my meager costuming budget stretch far. However, as I was buying fabric on a meager budget, I would often try to «skimp» out on the number of yards I needed of a specific fabric. Most of the time, it was fine, but a few times, I ran out of the fabric, and had to come back to Jo-Ann’s for more. And inevitably, they would be out. I always kept my receipts, so I had the SKU numbers, and although Jo-Ann’s *SAY* that they can special order more fabric for you, as long as you had the SKU number, I have yet to have a single yard of special ordered fabric come in.
Then there is the staff. I’m not sure what are Jo-Ann’s hiring practices, but at this one location, it seems that they have hired the absolute most UNhelpful staff possible. Sure, all of the staffers have sewn before… but it was back in junior high HomeEc class! They can’t help with helping you decide on interfacing weights, or if there are any more 9″ zippers in bright red, or the best needle to use with a specific type of fabric. I’m usually lucky if I can get them to cut my fabric instead of tearing it (which works fine for cotton, but will create runs in some types of fabric). I won’t get into the attitude. Although I’ve run into a few staffers who have been nice and helpful, the majority act like they will stab you with their scissors if you turn your back on them.
Despite all this, I still come here. Although I have since stopped costuming, I still sew, and Jo-Ann’s is a great place to get cheap fabric to use as a «test» or for a throw-​away project. However, if unless you know what you’re doing, visit at your own risk.