Wednesday, March 3, 2010

I Heart JoMar

I used to be such a snob. I've lived in the Philadelphia area for over 30 years and I never went to JoMar. At one point, there was a JoMar location about a mile and a half away from me and I was too much of a snob to ever go there. But lately, it seemed every sewist I know raved about JoMar. I felt left out because I'd never been there. Actually, I did go once. In the Summer of 2008 I think, I was early for a lunch date so I ran in and out in about 15 minutes – hardly enough time to form an impression.

At the PR Weekend Planning meeting, my colleagues talked about the JoMar in Norristown and I decided to make that location my first "real" visit. I was very pleasantly surprised. I found two really nice pieces for 20% off the regular price. That was 20% off $2.00! $1.60 a yard!!! Even the fabric buyer/department manager complimented my selections. I left with 10 yards and I felt great!



I couldn't wait to try the South Philadelphia location. It was closer to me and I hoped the fabrics and selection were just as good. When I finally I went to the South Philly location I found two more pieces to make a nice summer outfit.


Five yards of fabric and a zipper came to about $11.00! I was so happy I could have cried. There is a down side to JoMar, however. Every roll of fabric is not a gem. As is the case in every fabric store, there are rolls of cheap, ugly fabric, but they can be avoided with careful shopping.

Discovering and loving JoMar is really about changing the way I shop for fabric. I used to believe JoAnn, with it's one-stop shopping, was the only place to buy fabric. When I wanted to sew something, I went to JoAnn, chose a pattern and bought the fabric and notions all in one trip. JoMar is not conducive to that type of shopping because you never know what you will find there. I still buy an occasional piece of fabric from JoAnn, but it's become the exception rather than the rule. Now that I've finally found JoMar, I'm going to take my newly evolved attitude there as much as possible.







15 comments:

  1. Well, better late than never! Nice haul. I was surprised at the non matching of the first two pieces. Of course you are planning a suit out of the first piece. I am of course, teasing. The greens are very pretty too. Do they label fabric content?

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  2. Wow, a familiar place. I've been to JoMar several times but not recently. After seeing your green fabric and the striped fabric, I think that I might have to take a little trip to the one on "I" Street. That one should be the closest one to me from South Jersey.

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  3. You've picked out some great fabrics there and at terrific prices! I particularly love that purple coloured one and at $1.60 a yard that's amazing.

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  4. Hey there is nothing wrong about feeling great when finding great finds. I love the purple fabric and the green fabric is just reminding me that spring is coming soon. Continue going to Jomar even if you have to wear a big hat and sunglasses as a disguise. I won't tell anyone.

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  5. You know your second piece from Norristown looks an awful lot like one of those VW pieces from fabric.com! Gawd, how much fabric did that line scrap? But I digress...I love JoMars! Its one of the reasons that I'm going to PR weekend because I haven't been in quite some time! You got some really nice pieces.

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  6. Isn't it fun to find a new treasure chest! Now I want a JoMar.

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  7. So we're going there for PR Weekend? Sounds good to me!

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  8. I always love an enthusiastic review of Jomar - a store I have enjoyed for thirty years! Yours certainly did not disappoint as you really covered all the bases. I am on their email list and the "I" Street location , closed for a fire for many months, has reopened with half price sales on fabric. Definitely worth a trip.
    Hope your post offers incentive to attend our May PR weekend in Philly as Jomar is on the tour.
    Mimi

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  9. How cool that you found my favorite place to purchase tons of great fabric. I'm impressed by your impulse control and by the great finds. Isn't the check-out person in Norristown great?

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  10. Oooh! Nice pieces. I can definitely see you in those two coordinating pieces. It suits the matching outfit OCD so well!

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  11. I've been a Jomar shopper for quite some time, you really can find some great bargains. One thing you have to be careful of, many of their fabrics require quite a bit of shrinking. Make sure if you have any wool, hit it with a bit of steam and let it cool before cutting. This will save you some heartache latter.

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  12. Hey your blog is good. Please post some more.

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