For anyone who ever walked into JOANN “just for one spool of thread” and left with three yards of fleece, a rotary cutter, seasonal ribbon, and a mysterious pack of buttons, the news feels oddly emotional: JOANN is back. Well, sort of. The beloved fabric and craft retailer is not reopening its old stores, but its name, private-label brands, and some of its maker-friendly spirit have found a new home inside Michaels.
The new destination is called The Knit & Sew Shop at Michaels, a store-within-a-store concept designed for sewing, quilting, knitting, crocheting, fabric crafts, and all the glorious “I can totally make that” projects that begin with optimism and end with thread on the floor. Michaels launched the concept across its North American stores after acquiring JOANN’s intellectual property and private-label brands in 2025. That means shoppers can expect expanded fabric selections, more yarn, sewing supplies, fabric cutting services in many locations, and the return of popular JOANN favorites like Big Twist yarn.
So, is JOANN really back? Is Michaels now a fabric store? Can you still find the supplies you loved? Let’s unroll the bolt and measure twice.
What Happened to JOANN?
JOANN, the fabric and craft chain founded in 1943, became a household name for generations of quilters, sewists, teachers, costume makers, and weekend crafters. But after years of retail pressure, debt, shifting shopping habits, inventory challenges, and a tough post-pandemic business environment, the company filed for bankruptcy for the second time in early 2025.
At first, JOANN planned to close hundreds of stores while trying to keep part of the business alive. But when a buyer did not emerge to preserve the chain as an operating retailer, JOANN moved into full liquidation. Its remaining stores closed in 2025, leaving a big hole in the craft world. For many customers, it was not just the loss of a store. It was the loss of a familiar ritual: wandering fabric aisles, touching every fleece print like a raccoon inspecting treasure, and asking a cutting-table employee whether two yards would be “enough.” Spoiler: it depends, and somehow the answer is usually “get three.”
How Michaels Brought JOANN Back
In June 2025, Michaels announced that it had acquired JOANN’s intellectual property and private-label brands. Importantly, Michaels did not buy JOANN’s old store leases or revive the full JOANN chain. Instead, it purchased brand assets, including popular names that shoppers recognized from JOANN shelves.
That move gave Michaels an opportunity to serve former JOANN customers while strengthening categories where JOANN had long been especially strong: fabric, yarn, sewing notions, quilting supplies, thread, and needlecraft. Later in 2025, Michaels introduced The Knit & Sew Shop at Michaels, a dual-branded in-store concept featuring both Michaels and JOANN signage.
In plain English: JOANN is not returning as a separate store chain, but parts of JOANN are now living inside Michaels. Think of it as a crafty roommate situation, but with yarn instead of dirty dishes.
What Is The Knit & Sew Shop at Michaels?
The Knit & Sew Shop is Michaels’ expanded fabric, yarn, and sewing department. It is designed to make Michaels a stronger destination for people who sew, quilt, knit, crochet, embroider, make costumes, alter clothes, create home decor, or buy craft supplies with absolutely no plan and full confidence.
The shop focuses on several core categories:
Fabric
Michaels has expanded fabric availability in hundreds of stores, with plans to increase fabric departments in more locations. In many stores, shoppers can find cotton prints, licensed fabrics, fleece, seasonal materials, basics for quilting, and fabric suitable for home decor or simple apparel projects. Michaels also offers a much larger fabric selection online, including thousands of options that may not be stocked locally.
Yarn
Yarn is a major part of the new concept. Michaels is expanding its yarn assortment and bringing in JOANN-associated favorites, including Big Twist, a popular private-label yarn brand. For knitters and crocheters, that is the headline with extra pom-poms attached.
Sewing Notions and Tools
The Knit & Sew Shop includes practical sewing items such as needles, pins, zippers, elastic, thread, buttons, rulers, scissors, seam rippers, and other tools that mysteriously vanish the moment you actually need them. Michaels has also expanded sewing machine offerings from well-known brands such as Singer and Brother.
Thread and Specialty Supplies
One of the most useful additions is a broader selection of thread, including respected names like Gütermann. That matters because thread quality is one of those things beginners underestimate until their machine starts making tiny angry nests under the fabric.
Fabric Cutting Services
Michaels has also added fabric cutting tables in many locations. This is especially important for former JOANN shoppers because the cutting counter was central to the JOANN experience. Being able to choose fabric in-store and have it measured and cut makes Michaels more practical for real sewing and quilting projects, not just emergency glue-stick runs.
Can You Find JOANN Products at Michaels?
Yes, but with a realistic expectation: you will not walk into Michaels and find an exact clone of your old JOANN store. Instead, Michaels is integrating selected JOANN private-label brands and product categories into its own retail environment.
The biggest name shoppers are watching is Big Twist yarn, which Michaels announced as part of its JOANN brand acquisition. Other JOANN-related private-label products may also appear as Michaels builds out the category. The goal is not to recreate every aisle from JOANN’s old stores. The goal is to give fabric, yarn, and sewing customers a stronger one-stop shop than Michaels previously offered.
For shoppers who loved JOANN’s fabric walls, seasonal prints, yarn deals, and sewing basics, this is welcome news. It does not erase the loss of JOANN as a full retailer, but it does mean the brand’s most useful pieces are not completely gone.
Is Michaels Now the Best Place to Buy Fabric?
Michaels is clearly making a serious push into fabric. With The Knit & Sew Shop, the company is positioning itself as a major fabric and sewing retailer in North America. That is a big shift, because many shoppers previously thought of Michaels as the place for frames, paint, Cricut supplies, floral stems, kids’ crafts, and holiday decor that arrives roughly three calendar months before the holiday itself.
Whether Michaels becomes your best fabric source depends on what you make. For basic quilting cotton, fleece, seasonal prints, beginner sewing supplies, yarn, craft fabric, and convenient in-store shopping, Michaels is now much more competitive. For specialized apparel fabric, couture materials, upholstery-grade textiles, or highly specific quilting collections, independent fabric shops and online specialty retailers may still offer deeper choices.
The smart approach is to treat Michaels as a strong everyday craft and fabric option. If you need cotton for a tote bag, fleece for a blanket, yarn for a scarf, thread for a repair, or a sewing machine needle because yours snapped mid-project with dramatic timing, Michaels may be the fastest solution.
What This Means for Former JOANN Shoppers
For former JOANN customers, the Michaels expansion is both practical and sentimental. The practical part is obvious: fabric and sewing supplies are easier to find again in a national chain. The sentimental part is harder to measure, but anyone who has ever browsed fabric with a project in mind knows the feeling. Craft stores are not just stores. They are idea factories with fluorescent lighting.
The JOANN name appearing inside Michaels gives longtime customers a familiar signpost. It says, “Yes, we know you miss that place. Here is some thread. Please breathe.” That may sound silly, but retail loyalty in the craft world is deeply personal. People remember where they bought fabric for baby blankets, Halloween costumes, prom alterations, school plays, wedding decor, memory quilts, and handmade gifts. Those projects become part of family history.
Michaels has a chance to win over JOANN customers if it can deliver three things consistently: good fabric selection, fair pricing, and helpful service. The cutting table matters. Clear signage matters. Online inventory accuracy matters. And yes, coupons matter, because crafters love a discount with the intensity of a dragon guarding gold.
What to Expect When You Visit The Knit & Sew Shop
When you visit your local Michaels, expect the experience to vary slightly by store size and location. Larger stores may have broader fabric selections, more yarn, and a more complete cutting-table setup. Smaller stores may focus on core sewing supplies, yarn, notions, and limited fabric options.
Before driving across town for a specific fabric, check online inventory or call the store. Fabric availability can vary, and online selections may be much larger than what is physically in your local aisle. If your project depends on exact yardage, pattern direction, dye lot, or matching thread, a little planning will save you from standing in an aisle muttering, “This was supposed to be relaxing.”
Also look for beginner-friendly kits and tools. Michaels has long served casual makers, so The Knit & Sew Shop may be especially helpful for people who want to learn sewing, crochet, embroidery, or quilting without feeling like they accidentally enrolled in a textile engineering program.
Online Shopping: A Big Part of the New Fabric Strategy
Michaels is not relying only on in-store fabric aisles. Online selection is a major part of the strategy. The company has promoted a large online assortment of fabric and sewing products, including licensed prints and specialty options. That is important because fabric shoppers often need variety, and no physical store can carry every color, print, fiber, and width.
Online shopping is especially useful for comparison. You can browse fabric by color, material, theme, price, brand, and project type. The downside is obvious: you cannot touch the fabric through your screen, no matter how committed you are. For texture-sensitive projects, in-store shopping still has an advantage. For selection and convenience, online shopping wins.
Will Prices Be Like JOANN?
Pricing is one of the biggest questions. JOANN shoppers were used to coupons, sales, rewards, and promotional pricing. Michaels also has coupons, rewards, seasonal sales, and online promotions, but the deal structure may feel different.
The best strategy is to compare before buying large quantities. For a small project, convenience may matter more than saving a few dollars. For a quilt, costume batch, classroom project, or craft fair inventory, price differences can add up quickly. Check Michaels Rewards, weekly offers, bulk options, and online promotions. A good sale can turn “I probably shouldn’t” into “technically this is financially responsible,” which is the official motto of craft shopping.
How The Knit & Sew Shop Helps Beginners
One underrated benefit of Michaels’ new fabric push is accessibility for beginners. Sewing and fiber arts can feel intimidating at first. There are needles with different numbers, yarn weights that sound like secret codes, fabric widths that make math appear without warning, and pattern envelopes that seem to assume you were born knowing what “nap” means.
A national retailer with clear sections, starter kits, basic tools, and approachable project supplies can make the first step easier. Someone who wants to hem pants, sew a pillow, crochet a scarf, or make a simple tote bag may not need a specialty fabric warehouse. They need the right beginner supplies, a forgiving material, and maybe a seam ripper for emotional support.
What Experienced Sewists Should Know
Experienced sewists, quilters, and fiber artists may have more specific expectations. They will notice fabric quality, bolt organization, cutting accuracy, thread selection, machine accessories, and whether staff can answer technical questions. Michaels will need to prove itself to these shoppers over time.
The good news is that the expansion creates another national option for supplies. The cautious news is that serious makers should still inspect fabric carefully, read fiber content, confirm washing instructions, and buy enough yardage from the same bolt or dye lot when needed. In other words, bring your normal fabric-shopping wisdom. Michaels may be changing, but math is still lurking near the cutting table.
Why This Move Makes Sense for Michaels
From a business perspective, Michaels’ move is logical. JOANN’s closure created a major gap in the U.S. craft retail market, especially for fabric and sewing customers. Michaels already had national scale, brand recognition, online infrastructure, and a large base of creative shoppers. By acquiring JOANN’s brand assets and expanding fabric and sewing, Michaels can attract former JOANN customers while encouraging existing Michaels shoppers to explore new categories.
The launch also arrives during a broader maker movement. Sewing, knitting, crochet, quilting, embroidery, and DIY fashion have all benefited from social media tutorials, sustainability trends, personalization, cosplay, home decor projects, and the very human desire to make something real with your hands after staring at screens all day. Fabric and yarn are not just products. They are tiny promises that future-you will finish the project. Eventually. Probably.
Personal Shopping Experience: What It Feels Like to Browse JOANN at Michaels
Walking into The Knit & Sew Shop at Michaels feels a little like seeing an old friend wearing a new jacket. The store is still Michaels: bright aisles, seasonal displays, frames nearby, floral stems standing at attention like decorative soldiers. But the expanded sewing and fabric area changes the mood. Suddenly, the store feels less like a general craft stop and more like a real project headquarters.
The biggest emotional moment for former JOANN shoppers is the signage. Seeing the JOANN name again may feel surprisingly comforting. It is not the same as walking into the old store, where the fabric section could swallow an entire afternoon, but it creates a sense of continuity. For people who learned to sew through JOANN classes, bought yarn there every winter, or visited the cutting counter before every school costume emergency, that little brand recognition matters.
The fabric area is the first place many shoppers will inspect, and rightly so. A good fabric section is judged with the hands before the eyes. You want to feel the cotton, compare fleece thickness, check stretch, examine print scale, and hold two bolts together while pretending you are making a calm decision. Michaels’ expanded fabric selection gives casual makers more room to browse, especially for everyday projects such as blankets, tote bags, pillow covers, seasonal crafts, simple quilts, and kids’ costumes.
The cutting table is another major part of the experience. For many people, fabric shopping does not feel complete until someone measures the yardage, smooths the fabric, and makes that satisfying scissor glide. It turns a bolt into a project. If your local Michaels has a cutting table, the store becomes much more useful for sewing. Without one, shoppers may still rely more heavily on precuts, online ordering, or other fabric stores for yardage-heavy work.
The yarn section may be the easiest win. Michaels already had a strong yarn reputation, and adding JOANN favorites gives knitters and crocheters more reasons to stop by. Seeing Big Twist join the mix is especially appealing for shoppers who used it for blankets, amigurumi, scarves, and everyday crochet projects. Yarn shoppers are loyal, but they are also curious. Give them a new colorway and they will absolutely touch it. This is not a criticism. It is science.
For beginners, the best part of the new shop is convenience. You can pick up fabric, thread, scissors, pins, a pattern, yarn, hooks, and maybe a beginner kit in one trip. That matters when a new hobby already feels complicated. The less time spent hunting for supplies, the more energy remains for actually making something. For experienced makers, the shop is useful for staples, urgent replacements, and project add-ons, though specialty fabrics may still require specialty sources.
The overall experience is promising because it gives craft shoppers another dependable place to browse in person. Online shopping is convenient, but fabric and yarn are tactile. Color, weight, softness, drape, and texture matter. A photo can help, but it cannot tell you whether a fleece feels cozy or whether a cotton print looks too large for doll clothes. The Knit & Sew Shop brings back some of that hands-on discovery.
Is it exactly the same as JOANN? No. And expecting it to be identical would be unfair. But it is a meaningful return of many things JOANN customers cared about: fabric, yarn, sewing tools, recognizable brands, and the pleasure of wandering through supplies until a project idea taps you on the shoulder. Michaels has not resurrected the old JOANN store. It has created a new hybrid, and for many makers, that may be enough to get the sewing machine humming again.
Conclusion
JOANN’s return at Michaels is not a full comeback of the old chain, but it is one of the most important developments in craft retail since JOANN closed its stores. Through The Knit & Sew Shop, Michaels is expanding fabric, yarn, sewing notions, thread, machines, online fabric options, and in-store services such as fabric cutting in many locations. For former JOANN shoppers, it offers a practical new place to find familiar supplies. For Michaels, it is a smart move into a category with loyal, project-driven customers.
The best way to think about it is simple: JOANN as a standalone store is gone, but parts of what shoppers loved are back on the shelf. Bring your measurements, check your local store’s selection, join the rewards program if you shop often, and never underestimate how quickly “one yard” becomes a cart full of possibilities.
