On the surface I feel butterfly's is very good - It has a large stock of fabric, haberdashery, patterns and other general things that are great for dressmaking. The staff are experienced, and there always many people working at any given time.
However they are generally more expensive than other stores in the area (which unfortunatly are going out of business). They do have a price guarantee and they do check their prices against other stores as you can see on their responses to previous comments, however it is important to note that these prices are often only on full metres of fabric not halves, quite often the fabrics which other stores in the area don't stock are more expensive than they would be in stores outside of city road, and also they do tend to lower prices if you tell them "I saw X fabric at Y store and it's this much", however a lot of the time these prices are not whats on the tag, so without research you won't get the saving.
Also the cheap prices quoted on the silks etc are often on precut small sections, rather than allowing to purchase the amount you like. There tend to be lots of terms and conditions attached to these prices as well, so be careful.
However their fabrics are quality, so in a way you get what you pay for, if this doesn't bother you then this may be the store for you.
The thing that always gets me however, every time I go into Butterfly's that makes me wish I had gone somewhere else (like Terry's!! Which unfortunatly is officially closing today), is the atmosphere. I know it sounds silly but I always feel so nervous in there, I've seen staff practically yelling at customer's about how they are cheaper, it always takes me ages to get someone to help even when they aren't with a customer, they never smile or say hello. This may not bother experienced seamster's, but as a novice at the craft, whenever I ask questions I feel like an idiot, and often I get the impression that the staff look down on me for purchasing fabric when i'm just learning. By comparison at Terry's, not only have the staff there taught me so much, they OFFER help, like if I buy a pattern then some fabric that doesn't fit it, they'll tell me and make an alternative suggestion, heck they've even measured me before when I left my measurements at home!
All in all I am looking in earnest to see if there is ANYWHERE other than butterfly's than I get to without a car, because I really just don't like it there.
All in all they seem to have all the pieces of being a convenient fabric store, but the customer service and the atmosphere really are what kill it for me. I'd much prefer to go somewhere like Terry's, even if the prices were more expensive, and receive friendly, great customer service. read more