Hobby Lobby — Local services in Cary

I'm mostly interested in fabric related crafts. The store has vast arrays of nicknacks and mid-quality furniture which is very decorative, but mostly I can talk about fabrics, yarns and such.

You get a different selection than you would at Joann's or Walmart and I feel that it falls somewhere in between the two both in price and selection. I'm not comparing them to Michael's or A.C. Moore. Those are good options for general crafting supplies and so is Hobby Lobby but I don't feel that I've spent enough time in those sections of HL to comment.

You will always be able to find, online or in your phone app, a 40% off one regular price coupon. Regular price is the sticker for me since all fabrics are 30% off all the time. They carry a selection of Kona cottons and at 30% off all the time I would feel that makes going there worth it (it's not centrally located but there's are great restaurants in the area).

For sewing notions they mostly have a brand I'm not familiar with, Sewology. I've bought a few things from the line and again would call them mid-quality. I buy their flat-head needles all the time because I like the price and the storage containers. I haven't tried ironing them but I expect they are not heat tolerant. Some of the heads come off and I toss the pins but I still think they're a good value.

On to yarns and knitting/crocheting/tatting supplies. Especially the tatting. You will find a better selection here than at Joann's or most stores that don't specialize in needlework. Most of the yarn is a brand name I don't know and don't remember but there is a good selection if you can buy yarns by weight, materials used and texture. Certainly not yarn shop quality but not yarn shop prices. If you're making something that will take months to complete and that you hope to use for years your probably better off buying "the good stuff". If you're making stuffed animals and scarves or an easy sweater you should find something here you'll enjoy working with. I'm using a bulky chenille right now to make a sweater which will have cost me about $15. I'd rather use a silk & cashmere blend but I don't have those resources and this is warm and soft and will knit up quickly. I bought a set of interchangeable knitting needles there a couple of weeks ago. I have a Clover set (bamboo) and a Denise set (some sort of space age plastic) I used to have a Boye set (metal). This is just plain acrylic plastic but it lists at $25 and I used my 40% of coupon. They work well (though I prefer the Clover for many reasons). I will take this set with me on vacations or other trips and not worry about losing them.

More than you wanted to know but since it's a new store for the area and since I've shopped at Hobby Lobbys a lot in of other states I wanted to make sure that other impoverished fiber oriented people give...

Did you know that Hobby Lobby doesn't scan items? They manually enter each price. That item you love that had a 50% sale sign in the aisle, it's going to be rung up at full price if the cashier doesn't see it on the one sided 8x10 sale flyer at the register. Be sure to pay attention when they ring you up.

I thought maybe it was just this Cary store that didn't use a scanner (there's a scanner at the register) None of them do. How many times a day do you think people don't pay attention and overpay? If we realized we paid too much later I bet most of us would shrug it off like we should've been paying attention and not go back for our $. I'd be willing to bet Hobby Lobby has thought this thru and they like it that way.

Tonight I carefully picked out a canvas because there was a sign in the aisle that clearly said they were 50% off. I promise, I read it like 4 times to be sure. I didn't plan to get it but at 50% off it was a deal. At the register it wasn't listed on her tiny little flyer as on sale so she rang it up full price. I had her take it off and didn't get it. The woman in front of me was buying a craft kit for the tween girl that was with her. Cashier rang it up full price. The woman told her it was 50% off so the cashier looked at the flyer and said no and showed the woman. That woman hesitantly bought that $30 kit anyway. Kinda feels like a setup.

Lastly, their websites FAQs say scanners aren't right for them at this time. whispers there's a scanner at...

I (Gwenn) have been to this Hobby Lobby twice now and both experiences have been lacking.

My first complaint is that their sale system is ridiculous. People are expected to know what’s on sale and then the cashier spends several minutes verifying it in the flyer. Why can’t they just put the codes for the sales in their system like every other store. It almost seem like they don’t want you to notice if you’re not charged the sale price.

But then today I went in to get some ideas for an upcoming wedding as I am a floral designer. I noticed that there was a sale on all the floral stems. I saw some succulent stems and I found a sales associate and asked, “are these stems included in the sale?” She asked me where I got them and we walked over together and I showed her. She said they were, in fact, a part of the 50% off sale.

When I went up to check out, the cashier told me that they were not on sale and I would pay full price. I explained that I had already talked to a sales associate who told me they were. She called the manager and he told me that they were not considered a stem but a floral pick, and therefore NOT on sale. I explained that the person working in the department said they were a part of the sale. And he was like “Nope, she’s wrong.” And so I just left.

They need to get their mess together. I am headed back to AC Moore....