With the internet, that's no longer true. You have the world at your fingertips... and often with free shipping. :)

I have purchased from Keepsake and their kits are wonderful. Ample fabric and great color choices. You do need to measure twice and cut once because you do not have extra yardage for too many miss cuts. Try it for sure with one that you love.

Check out Connecting Threads. Their fabric is not priced as high as LQS and the quality seems to be pretty good. Maybe the kits are a little less expensive. When I see something in a store that I really like I like to buy the kit for it but I agree they are usually more money than buying the pattern and picking out your fabric.

I've never bought a quilt kit. I prefer to choose my own fabric for a quilt.
I think the cost would be higher because you pay for someone to put the kit together.
Buying yardage for a quilt allows you to choose the fabrics, and have leftover fabric for your stash.

I have bought several kits and you kind of have to figure out the math. Sometimes I want exactly the way it is printed in the picture so I got to buy that fabric. When I figure out a yard here a yard there and the kit works out about the same, I just buy it. I have never had a problem with quantity of fabric and quality is just what it would have been with the same fabric. If I just like the pattern and don't care quite as much about the actual fabric, I buy the pattern and do my own thing. Also watch those Connecting Thread and other clearance sales - great deals on kits.

The only thing I want to say is that if you do buy a kit, as soon as you get it, check it and measure each piece you get to make sure it is all there and in the correct yardage. It seems they cut it EXACTLY (unlike quilt stores that usually ad an inch or two to each cut) or even short. I put together a quilt top for someone because she had bought it a long time ago and never had time to get it done. The fabric was short and, because she had bought it so long ago, was discontinued. There were two borders I couldn't do and had to replace some other fabric with something 'close'. Be careful. I'm not saying Keepsake Quilting does that, just be careful.

I've never bought a kit, one, because I refuse to pay the amount of money they cost, and two, I want to pick out my own colors and fabrics, not have them picked out for me.

I bought a table runner kit from Connecting Threads. The fabric is excellent quality, and there was more than enough fabric to make two, with some additions from my stash.

I would only order if the whole kit was pre cut. I like choosing the fabric/colors. also you can get free patterns on line so that's where I get most of mine.

Except for BOM's, I have only bought kits from Connecting Threads. You are only paying for the pattern and the yardage in their kits - about $6/yd - there is no charge for cutting the fabrics.

I ran out of a couple of their prints from the "Riviera" line a couple of years ago and the only way to find them was to buy a couple of crib kits. They were on clearance and a huge value - I think they cost about $3/yd.

You might want to take a look at what they have periodically - when you buy $50 at a time, they don't even charge for shipping. And their thread is lovely and very economical, too - you might find everything you need at one place at a price that you can afford. :)