I'm disappointed to see how many bulk, sub-par art materials that Hobby Lobby merchandisers in…read moretheir assortments. (Chinese 130lb watercolor paper? Seriously? FYI for non-watercolors t's out there - there Re standards... 90lb, 120lb, 140lb, 300lb etc.) They run regular sales of 30-40% off, but that just makes their pricing right on average with where it should be to complete with real art supply stores like Dick Blick. Be careful at checkout, too. Even though the price is marked at X, the checker may ring you up at X + 10% because "that's what the computer charged." Here's an example of pricing: individual student quality (Staedtler) watercolor pencil marked at $1.79, I was charged $1.99. I later was at Art Coop and they carried PRO quality watercolor pencils (Derwent) for $1.60 ea. I've visited Hobby Lobby for the last time. I won't be back.

I feel a little too much like my own mother spending an hour in a store like this; a store that…read moresells "fashion bandanas," fake flowers, foam stencils, and any number of other items that could easily be called "chotckes." However! Why did I spend an hour there? First I needed a frame. They had a bunch in the right size (Target had zero in the right size.) Then I needed some markers, brushes, and paints to reclaim the tiny drop of creativity I had in my life before I went to MIT. I was SHOCKED at how good the selection was, and how cheap. Then I thought maybe I would start making a scrapbook! This store made me want to start making a scrapbook! I barely made it out without a scrapbook! AH! Still doesn't meet muster for stationery (no premium papers or notebooks), but I'll be back. I know I'll be back. **Shudder**

Klose Knit has a wonderful selection of yarns. So many fibers, colors and textures! Brigitte is so…read morehelpful, kind and encouraging. The Friday afternoon open knitting group is fun and welcoming. This has been my knitting home while my husband has been on sabbatical at the U of I and I have really enjoyed my time. Thanks Brigitte!

This is the best wool shop in the region. It was a wide selection of yarns, gorgeous stuff both…read morelocal and imported, lots of amazing stuff. Great classes and it's in a cozy house environment. I know some people have thought the owner was a bit abrupt, but she really isn't. She's German and though her English is fantastic (she's lived in the US for years and years), she sounds very direct and to the point. Don't confuse cultural expression with rudeness. She's kind, incredibly helpful, and this place is a labor of love for her. I travel a lot, including internationally, and I still think this is one of the best local wool shops I go to. I go back every time I'm in town.

Ornaments are a big money-maker for Hallmark, but every year I have a problem with this store…read more Typically it is an ornament I put on my "wish list" that I didn't get, either through a clerical error or the store didn't receive that ornament. If that happens, it would be nice to be notified of that rather than returning home to find one of the ornaments you wanted is not there. This year, there was a major problem with pricing. I didn't catch this during the purchase, but the store charged me $66 more than the price listed in the catalog for the 10 or so ornaments I purchased. No one from the store alerted me to the fact during my purchase. I had to find out when I returned home. I asked the store a question through their Contact Us feature on their website two weeks ago, no reply yet. Online I am seeing the price increase was due to tariffs. I don't know if that is true, but whatever the reason, it seems to be very poor customer service to sell something for higher than the advertised price.

Visiting Kirlin's Shop in December is like a wonderful visit to Santa's village! Besides cards and…read moregift wrap there is a great array of ornaments, decorations and gifts perfect for the holidays. Friendly and helpful staff.

I visited this location for the first time on a Saturday afternoon…read more The store was packed with people. When we first arrived, the check-out line wrapped around the checkout area and all the way down one of the main aisles of the store. Even with 4 cashiers busting their tails. Should I have visited on a Saturday? No. But ya gotta do what ya gotta do. I thought this HG had a great selection. I didn't visit all of the departments, though, because I came in for very specific items. Plus, it's hard to maneuver around carts and large groups of people throughout a store that has a lot of inventory. Our cashier was super friendly and I'll definitely come back.

I absolutely LOVE this store. It is such a pleasure to browse through. I am extremely impressed…read morewith the staging. Every isle is in near perfect shape and there isn't anything laying on the floor or stuffed into random holes. It's clean, organized, plenty of options and some great deals to be had... the staff seems invested in their jobs. Everyone seems bright faced and happy to serve. I was in this store multiple times over the holidays and this store hands down had the best staff along with best presentation of product and cleanliness. I try to compliment every worker I see there to tell them what a great job they are doing. Goodman's & Michaels are sloppy messes with very tired merchandise. Been the same old thing for years. Even Hobby Lobby seems to be a disappointment with their dates product along with broken, dented or scratched merchandise. Their customer service is great so I keep going there. Their picture, flower arrangements seem dated too. My first go to store is now Home Goods. Check it out you won't be disappointed. The Home Goods in Chicago and Normal were the pits and I swore I'd never go back but I am glad I did.

Great B&N! It's huge and has a great selection of new books. Store was very tidy and checkout was…read morevery quick.

Overpriced book. The rudest employees you'll ever meet. Non accurate website. There needs to be…read moresome major changes to Barnes and Nobles policies and pricing before I ever consider buying from them again. The member system barely saves you any money. If you use Barnes and Nobles to find new books to read, don't buy them from the store, buy them from amazon or other cheaper online sellers. Some people may not care about paying extra to buy from Barnes and Noble, but I'm not one of those people. I once asked about price matching and the employee looked at me like I was dumb. I mean the sales people and cashiers here are the absolute WORST I've ever been around at any business! Seriously, take your business elsewhere, it's not worth it.

I so badly wanted to like this place. My husband and I are huge fans of game/puzzle shops. However,…read morethe staff is really rude. My husband was interested in purchasing a chess set, and lifted up the top of the box to see the size of the chess pieces. The worker yanked it out of his hands and yelled at him. It's fine to tell him not to open a box (although he was in no way damaging it), but this should have been handled differently, particularly as one of the reasons people go to these stores rather than shopping online is to see what they are buying. The games and puzzles are also way over-priced. You can find them for half the price on Amazon. Apparently they also have a horrible return policy. You can return only an unopened item and only for store credit and only within a short period of time. I will never buy anything from this store again.

I went to the store in Champaign the evening of 10/3 and my friend and I were in there for almost…read morean hour. The two women who worked there were genuinely excited about various games and thus very good at selling them. There were open games all over the store so we tried a bunch out and the women recommended games based on other games we liked. It was an awesome experience and much better than buying games online! I would love it if this store had events :)

I came in with gold and silver items, and I was shocked at the low ball offer from the shop owner…read more For the whole lot, the proprietress, offered 40% off the melt value of the items. One item, a ten ounce silver bar was bought for $240.00 in 2022. She offered only $200.00 for it! I would have made a loss on the item even though silver per ounce sells for nigh $39.00/ounce. I had in total 50 francs and 1 ducat in gold. Using a quote of $3450/ounce of gold and having about .57675 of an ounce would have yielded about $1990.00 in a fair market value outside of listing fees and so on. The whole lot in mkt value was somewhere near $2500.00. The lady offered about $1580.00 for the whole lot. Please avoid this shop at all costs. This person does not want to make a fair profit; she wants to make a killing by taking you for a sucker. I was very angry, but I left w/o making a scene.

I recently discovered this local outlet and am very impressed with their selection, pricing,…read morefriendliness and professionalism. A welcome bonus is there are usually other like-minded collectors in the shop which adds a sense of fraternity and comradery. I will definitely be giving them my business in the future!

What's with the " Lack" of Shopping Carts?? Went there on Friday,and No Carts!??? Literally I only…read moresaw two customers using the carts! Management hello? Where are you?? You need to multitask in order to keep your business running well so you can satisfy "We" the Customers,we that bring in money $$$ to your store!Talk to Corporate Office,or whatever,just get "More Carts! Otherwise your store will always have a " One Star" rating!

I just love walking into this store. It's so fun! Everyone is so nice and helpful. Highly recommend.read more