Michaels

Great experience at Michael’s on Chipman Road in Lee’s Summit today. Mike our sales associate not only was professional and courteous but helped us locate a coupon online to save us a substantial amount on custom framing.

Face it, if you’ve read other reviews of mine… I’m a YARN snob. And a cake lover, and I will drive all the way to Lee’s Summit, if Michael’s has a coupon. Michael’s is a weird sort of store, one I try to almost avoid. But one I need, cause of a type of yarn they carry, and I don’t prefer to knit with the yarn they carry… crazy, huh?.
It’s the coupons that get me here. I had a coupon in my purse, and I was at target, and went to Michael’s in search of this yarn that resembles burnt leaves. Seriously, it really does. I think it’s Michael’s brand, 100% acrylic content.(it’s god awful acryllic, but it’s a weird color, and oddly soft.) I walked in, and I think they moved the yarn to the other side of the store, or maybe they moved everything around. They never have the size of knitting needles I want, but they have every other size, maybe. Every aisle is crammed with something, and it’s like a maze to get through the store.
It seems they are moving things around. Like, the Cricut Cake cutter used to be on one side, but they were moving them to another part of the store, where’s the damn Cricut Fondant sheets? Not with the Cricut Cake cutter, but over there. Why is it not with the Cricut Cake Cutter? Argh!
And the books, I don’t think they alternate the books, but just jam them in there. And the Christmas stuff? Doens’t look anything different than last year’s, infact, it might be last year’s. But when stuff is on sale, it’s worthy of a visit. Which is why I’m giving it 3 stars.
Christyn K’s hot mess is my hot mess as well. I only come here if there’s a coupon and I really really need something in the store.

I like Michael’s stores, I really do. In all honesty, I should really consider investing into Michael’s stock because I could single-​handedly keep the place in business.
However — this particular location isn’t the sharpest tool in the Michael’s shed. For starters, the store always seems to be in a hot-​mess of a state. You can feel upon walking in that things are in transition of sorts, that not everything is in it’s «right» place and that the place could use a good workout régime to get itself back into shape. Yes, the store is always stocked with the usuals: cake decorating supplies, art supplies, a decent amount of floral, beads (with a newly renovated jewelry section, actually), scrapbook and stamping supplies, hobbies, kids crafts, yarn, etc. You won’t find any home décor items or fabric here, though you can find sewing machines and craft lights.
My main gripe with this store is that the staff always seem like they are being forced to interact with you or stand behind the counter. There is no airy-​optimism in this place; a morbid shadow lurks over the aisles and registers. I finally went out of my Michael’s comfort zone a month ago and splurged on a «60% off» framing order, which of course ended up being more pricey than any real «60% off» deal should amount to; the framing itself was of high quality and beautifully executed. Only catch is that I had to put up with a very grumpy sales clerk who was beyond ticked that he had to interact with people at his job. I cringed at the thought of picking up the frame once it was done (about 2 weeks after drop-​off) just at the thought of interacting with him again.
Add that with an often under-​stocked selection, long lines, tired facility and chaotic presentation at times and you have yourselves three stars. Sad, but true.