Q: Where do you buy your fabric?
Here is the next question I get asked quite a bit. I respond and show my latest purchases from the shops below.
Reprodepot Fabrics
I will admit to you all that I check the new arrivals page pretty much weekly and buy as much imported fabric as I can from here since its located in Massachusetts so it saves me on postage. And for all you long-time fans, check out she is now selling the japanese imports in half-yard increments.
Fabric Tales
This shop I go to for more traditional Japanese prints like the top two fabrics shown above. They are located in Japan but the shipping rates are reasonable.
Jo-Ann Fabrics
Locally, this is one of the shops I stop by whenever I’m in the neighborhood to see if they have anything that catches my eye. If you sign-up for their mailing list you get a 40% coupon and they often have them in the front of the store. Generally, I buy fabrics I make clothes with here so I can feel the weight of them in person. The bottom fabric in the photo above was a new linen print they had last week on sale.
Hancock Fabrics
This is the other national fabric store I shop at locally. The top three fabrics I picked up from them in the past few months. They have a collection of retro inspired prints like the Mother Goose fabric I recently picked up.
nuno.plus
This is the place I will go to third if I can’t find the Japanese prints I want at Reprodepot or on Etsy. The bottom fabric is from them and is a Toshiyuki Fukuda print. They are also located in Japan and do sell on Ebay under the same name nuno.plus but they do not sell all their fabrics through Ebay so check out their main site first.
Ebay
Speaking of Ebay, I will occasionally look to Ebay for unique vintage fabrics or for scrap lots. I typically use any combination of the search terms: vintage, feedsack and novelty fabric to see what I come up with. The top fabric in the picture above was a recent Ebay purchase. I usually only bid on fabrics that are less than $5 if they are just for my stash. Prices can get a little high using those search terms so I don’t go crazy or get too attached to a particular auction. I also go to Ebay if I am searching for a fabric from a previous season.
Thrift stores
I haven’t come across too many thrift stores that have a special craft or fabric section but I did find one in Hilton Head, South Carolina that is called The Litter Box Thrift Store. I picked up the bottom three fabrics in the picture with the Ebay fabric and then the other fabrics in the picture above from them. Since most of them don’t seem to sell old fabric yardage, I hit up the linen and curtain sections.
Etsy.com
This is the other spot I go to for Japanese fabrics, after Reprodepot. I regularly check the following shops:
That about does it. Wait! I forgot to add a few more online shops I do sporadically check their selections of and they include:
Remember you can check all the other FAQ under the category of “business” and will continue to do so for another week or two or until I’m tapped out of answers.
20 Comments Add your own
1. cheryl | March 10th, 2008 at 9:08 am
Wow, thanks for all the great info!
2. Kristen Mary | March 10th, 2008 at 9:38 am
I find great stuff through the Minneapolis store Crafty Planet, they also have an online store and are carrying a lot of Japanese fabrics: www.shopcraftyplanet.com
3. Nancy Cook | March 10th, 2008 at 11:34 am
thanks for sharing
esp. the etsy shops
4. Jenny | March 10th, 2008 at 2:06 pm
I love this post!! I’m always looking for cute japanese fabric.
Fantastic links x
5. mushroommeadows | March 10th, 2008 at 2:37 pm
Wow. Thanks the info. Using cute fabric makes all the difference. :)
6. suzanne | March 10th, 2008 at 2:42 pm
you share so much of yourself! thanks so much!
so inspiring…great stuff! peace.
7. dana | March 10th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
awesome awesome awesome! thank you SO MUCH for this list… i love the interwebs for giving me this list AND for the urls to buy ‘em at!
8. Donna | March 10th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
Thanks for posting about Joann’s carrying more linen selections, I picked up some as well in last week’s sale.
I wish we had a local Hancocks–I think we used to but now the nearest is about 5 hours away.
I would also recommend checking out Superbuzzy
http://superbuzzy.com/
9. Amy | March 11th, 2008 at 8:32 am
miss sarah, i saw this cuteness and I thought of you. :D
10. Robyn L. Coburn | March 12th, 2008 at 9:35 am
Thank you so much for this roundup - I think you have saved me hours or internet research. I am lucky to have a little indy fabric store near me that appears to sell discontinued and sample fabrics, including drapery and upholstery samples that make great pillows and bags. My nearest Joann’s seems less about fabrics and more about craft supplies - which I don’t complain about at all!
11. Judy | March 12th, 2008 at 9:42 am
Wow - thank you do much for this round up. I have had great experiences with ReproDepot’s quality and deliveries. Yesterday I ordered from Matatabi and she emailed that it is already in the mail and my request to keep it a whole yard rather than cut into quarters was granted (she prices based on quarters.)
I have had good luck at www.Fatquartershop.com where I ordered A LOT of Moda 5 monkeys for my baby’s nursery.
12. kimberly | March 12th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
You should visit Hartsfabric.com!
13. Robyn | March 12th, 2008 at 6:55 pm
Thanks for compiling this great list of resources! I’ve bookmarked this page for future reference!
14. julia | March 13th, 2008 at 8:41 am
this is a great compilation of wonderful fabric stores! thanks for sharing it. i would suggest checking out crafty planet also.
15. cal | March 13th, 2008 at 8:49 am
great list; can’t wait to check it out more thoroughly!
another one i like is http://www.crybabysboutique.com/ though i haven’t actually ordered from them yet. good knits are hard to find!
and i have found some good stuff at http://www.wazoodle.com/ as well.
16. Elizabeth Toler | March 13th, 2008 at 7:11 pm
great prices for home fabrics: www.buyfabrics.com
17. Molly | March 20th, 2008 at 8:25 am
I am suprised we actually shop at some of the same places–I work in NYC, so I have gone to Purl (definitely worth checking out if you are ever in town), and I like Joanns for a lot of basics and to be able to see and feel what the fabrics are like. Etsy is always great too.
Thanks for the info!
18. Kim | April 30th, 2008 at 7:50 pm
–NunoPlus actually has an Etsy shop as well: nunoplus.etsy.com, though they’re a little pricier than other sellers so I always price-comparison before buying there.
–Leslie of ALittleGoodness is just amazing… if you’re looking for something specific, she’ll keep her eye out in the stores and pick it up just for you if she finds it.
–Also check out kitty-craft.com.
–Superbuzzy rocks. I find that Purl Patchwork is awesome in person, but their shipping rates are so high that I avoid them online :-(
–I was told at The Sewing Machine Shop in Walnut Creek, CA that the big-box fabric stores get the first-run prints of the fabric, which is lesser quality, so always buy from smaller, independent shops who get the higher-quality bolts. Since I prefer to support independent stores anyway, this just gave me added incentive…
19. Begoña | December 23rd, 2008 at 9:13 am
Thank you for your information abaut fabrics.
20. Mei | January 4th, 2009 at 8:05 am
Please check out www.thisandthatfromjapan.etsy.com for Japanese fabric and supplies.
I'm curious about your two cents. You smart cookie!
Some HTML allowed:
<a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <code> <em> <i> <strike> <strong>
Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed