Fabric Café: How It All Began

Putting the Fun Back in Quilting!

Fabric Café was founded as a result of mother daughter team, Donna Robertson, and Fran Morgan, having a desire to start a business together. They discussed several ideas before Fran, an avid fiber artist, began designing in stacked fabric chenille. She introduced Donna to this method of making chenille and Donna began experimenting with the process, all the while thinking there had to be an easier way. As they discussed the problems and explored solutions, they created a way to take the work and frustration out of making stacked fabric chenille, often referred to as faux chenille.

Fran, and Donna, obtained the assistance of Robert Scacci, an engineer (and Donna's husband), to work out the problems of production and their first product, Chenille By The Inch® was born.

Fabric Café opened its doors in January 2001. Chenille By The Inch® was introduced at A Nimble Thimble, a sewing and quilting shop in Tyler, Texas on March 16, 2001, and received rave reviews from sewing enthusiasts.

In 2008, in an effort to sell three coordinating fabrics, 3-yard quilts were born. Quilters rapidly embraced this easy to follow pattern and asked for more. Soon, 3-yard quilt patterns and books became the top selling items for Fabric Café. By the spring of 2023, Fabric Café offers over 70, 3-yard quilt patterns and 17 books with 3-yard patterns.

Then in 2020, Fabric Café started their YouTube channel with the first of many videos that help the viewers learn to match fabric and pick out the perfect pattern. Today, we release two shows a week on Tuesday and Thursday where Fran and Donna along with many of the staff joining in to highlight the patterns and books from the Fabric Café product line.

Demand for these easy to follow, quick to complete patterns soon lead to quilt shop demand. Fabric Café 3-yard patterns can now be found in quilt and retail shops around the world.