local fabric stores

[blyssfulchaos.livejournal.com]

hello everyone,

i'm looking for a local fabric store that has a decent variety of cotton, wool, and, ideally, also carries cordura (though this isn't essential yet). any suggestions?

thanks!

ETA: anyone have any experience with fabric corner in arlington? this appears to be one of the closest to my apartment.

Comments

[ron_newman]

I added the "crafts" tag, where you will find some earlier discussions of fabric stores (though possibly not relevant to your specific needs). You'll need to "go earlier" at the bottom of the first page to see all of the posts.

[blyssfulchaos.livejournal.com]

thanks!

[opn.livejournal.com]

Sewfisticated (Twin Cities Plaza) and Sew-Lo (Cambridge St.) are both easy bus rides away from Davis Square.

[blyssfulchaos.livejournal.com]

excellent, thank you!

[schpahky.livejournal.com]

Sew-fisticated has a good, if random, selection.

[blyssfulchaos.livejournal.com]

random in what way? as in, changes regularly so that if i find a fabric i like i should buy a lot of it at once? or just no rhyme or reason to the selection?

[schpahky.livejournal.com]

They are a discounter, and they supply some theater costumers. So while there is a good array of stuff, yes, I recommend snapping up what you love. On the plus side, it's your one-stop place for flashy prints. They do have a good cotton/wool selection.

[blyssfulchaos.livejournal.com]

great! thanks!

[rufinia.livejournal.com]

There's reason- it just fluxuates a lot.

Sew-Lo, however, can be all over the place and while all the wool is usually in the same place, everything else is....scattered.

[talonvaki.livejournal.com]

There is also Win-Mil on Chauncy Street in Boston, a couple of blocks from Downtown Crossing T (Chauncy exit). They're open 7 days a week and the people there are great. Plus, they have a store cat (Winnie)!

[blyssfulchaos.livejournal.com]

aw, yay for store kitties! that may be a bit out of my range (i don't particularly love riding my bike in downtown boston), but i'll definitely check it out the next time i'm up for an adventure.

[whaler.livejournal.com]

There is a Joann's fabric a 10 minute walk from innman square.

[opn.livejournal.com]

Where is that located? Google isn't showing me anything that close to Inman. :(

[whaler.livejournal.com]

I'm a dummy, it's a sewfisticated.

14 McGrath Hwy, Somerville, MA 02143

[ron_newman]

That's the Twin City Plaza, a short walk from Lechmere but a bit longer from Inman. The #80 and #87 and #88 buses all stop at the plaza.

[whaler.livejournal.com]

I live in Inman (YAH SORRY SHOULDN'T BE IN THE DAVIS COMMUNITY) it's really not that bad of a walk.

[ron_newman]

No, it's fine to recommend stores that are not in Davis Square, especially when there are no equivalent stores in Davis Square. I've noticed that "where is a fabric store" is a recurring request here.

[ifotismeni]

the fabric corner in arlington carries quilting cottons, cotton solids, batiks and upholstery fabrics pretty much exclusively.

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

This, I've been there for quilting materials, but they didn't have much else. Which is great if you're a quilter.

[tfarrell.livejournal.com]

Fabric Corner in Arlington is an excellent store that carries high quality merchandise at normal retail prices, with friendly, helpful, knowledgeable staff. The selection is focused strongly on quilting and on home decor. If you don't see what you want there, ask politely and they have big books of swatches and can order stuff for you if you want more than a few yards of it. (I think it's a 10 yard minimum to order.) If you're looking for excellent quality, that may be worth it, because they can get stuff that's better quality than most other fabric stores will carry. Please tell them Tom Farrell sent you.

Winmil, in downtown Boston, has an excellent selection of fabrics at discount prices. They have a very broad selection... I particularly shop there for basic fabrics in solid colors, which they have a good selection at good prices, but they have a lot of other stuff too. If you don't see what you want, Howie, the owner, has an encyclopedic knowledge of fabric availability in the Boston area and will cheerfully send you to the store he thinks will have what you want. Again, please tell him I sent you.

Sew-Low Discount Fabrics, on Cambridge Street in Cambridge (about 10 minutes walk from the Lechmere T stop), has a cavernous selection of discount fabrics, a complete range of quality, all at amazing discount prices. The selection is very eclectic, so they may or may not have what you want, but if they have it it'll be cheap as heck. I have found top quality fabrics there selling for $3 to $5 per yard. The store is absolutely CRAMMED with truly improbable amounts of fabric, so plan to spend a little time looking through everything when you go there.

For additional fabric store listings, try my web site at http://www.SewingWithTom.com .

[nomacmac.livejournal.com]

I love SewFisticated, but they sell alot of mill-end fabrics...check everything carefully for flaws, rips, stains, etc. Pattern supply is pretty dismal. They have some lovely silks and quilting fabric. If they don't have what you ar looking for, ask for it. They have a second store in Dorchester and will bring stuff to the Somerville store if they think you'll buy it.

For chain stores, there is a Jo-Ann Fabric in Burlington