I've been furiously hoarding fabric in the past year in case the great fabric drought arrives so here are my favourites haunts and what I got from them.
494 Botany Road, Alexandria NSW
(02) 9698 7855
My absolute favourite place to buy fabric. They have large tubs at the front of their shop which contain various 2-3 metre remnantswhich are sold for around $3-4 per metre. On the right day you can get some stunning silks and soft jerseys.
In the store itself they also sell a great range of silks, cotton, jersey by the metre. Where they really shine is quilting fabric which fills up a whole wall and there are some really cute prints you certainly wouldn't find at Spotlight.
They do a small range of haberdashery and hold classes there (I've never been but have always been meaning to enrol). Every few months they have awesome sales where they have 25% normal fabric and 50% remnants but when you find a good remnant it's best just to snap it up right away. Currently they're also doing 'buy one remnant roll and get one free' on Tuesdays.
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| Remnant silks for $3 per metre. |
The Fabric Cave
78 Belmore St, Ryde NSW (enter via Porter St).
02 8878 3353
I only stumbled upon this place by accident on the tessuti blog but got really excited about it. This place is like Vinnies in concept but only sell fabric and haberdashery. People donate their fabric and bits and bobs and they resell them for $3 per metre with all funds going to charity.
It's a great little shop and it makes you feel good for shopping there! Being as random as it is you really have to spend a good few hours sifting through a wall of fabric to find something you like but the place is run by some very tidy and nice elderly women (and one gentleman from what I saw) so at least that makes it easier.
They also have patterns for 50c a piece which again requires some sifting but they have some cool retro pieces (refer to my blouse post which I got from this place). The only negatives is that this place only opens on Mondays and Fridays from 9.30-2pm and as usual, with any second hand place there's a musty smell to everything in the shop.
A surprise every time with fabric selections. To the right is a lovely silk vintage piece that is amazing!
Cabramatta
This is not actually a store but a suburb in Southwest Sydney with a large Asian based community. In the centre Cabramatta on John St and Park Rd you will found a cluster of six or seven fabric stores that sell a great range of fabrics for around $2-$10 per metre.
The best thing is that there is so much to choose from and you can find some really pretty and up-to-date prints. But you're going to have to do a bit of work for it because all of the fabrics are all squished together in vertical piles with little aisle room to move about so it's not the most comfortable of experiences. Everyone speaks English and shopkeepers will offer you a pretty good price anyway so I really only haggle if I intend on buying in bulk.
This website is the answer to that inner longing for fabric covered in whimsical woodland creatures that you can never actually find in fabric stores. It's an online American based store that allows you to design your own print or select one from hundreds of already uploaded prints from other designers, choose what material you want it printed on and then have it posted to you.
It's risky because it may not turn out exactly that way you want but you can pay a minimal fee to have them send you fabric swatches so you can get a feel of the fabric. I couldn't be bothered to do this and just bought a variety of fabrics in different prints to see which I'd like best.
My favourite is the Silk Crepe de Chine (centre) but at $38 per yard (a bit less than a metre) it is a bit pricey. My least favourite was the Organic Cotton Sateen (furthest right) which I found too glossy and a bit cheap looking. It's not the cheapest way to get fabric (don't forget about postage costs as well!) but it's perfect for when you want to make a really special piece with something very specific in mind.
The middle print is my favourite and I'm building up my confidence to finally make it into a pretty blouse.
A place to go if you're a bit more advanced than what I am at the moment so I've always been too intimidated to actually buy anything from here. Both the Sydney and Chatswood stores have an OK range with really good quality fabrics but you're certainly paying for it with an average of $30-$50 per metre. The blog is pretty good though for tips and inspiration.
I've only been in this store twice and have never bought anything from it. Even during one of their 'sales', fabric still averaged around $20 per metre and the range wasn't really that great.
A general all rounder for fabric and haberdashery. These places average around $10-$20 per metre though do not really have good choice of quality fabric. But they are convenient and do cover all your basics like zips, threads and buttons. I bought my first Toyota sewing machine for $150 from Lincraft during a sale.
Ebay
Ok so everyone knows about ebay but there's a lot junk on ebay you have sift through to find good fabric and more often than not, the nice pieces are just as expensive as buying it in a store. You can get lucky though. I found this super gorgeous dress on Modcloth which had little songbirds on it. After much googling I eventually found a lovely ebayer who had one precious yard which she sold to me for $5! I've only got enough material to have one shot at making this dress so I've been to apprehensive thus far to try. One day...
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| Future project. |
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| Current state. |
Vietnam
OK so this one is a bit unrealistic but I'll share with you my experience anyway in case you are heading that way any time soon. I found some really prints in Ho Chi Minh city for $2.50 per metre. There are specific areas that only sell one type of product so its great when you're looking for fabric that all the stalls are in the one province. I did get a bit of 'variety anxiety' at first just looking at walls and walls of fabrics but eventually just got down to business - picked a stall which had some cute prints and just bought three metres of everything. Buying similar printed fabric in Australia would have been ten times as expensive so I really tried to make the most of it. I also bought some unbelievably cheap zips and thread while I was there. I will never pay $4 for a zip again.
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| Cats and stripes and spots...oh my! |
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