Hello Pincushion Fans!
If you read thru Part One, you know the good conventional spots to shop your garment fabric. Well, let me blow your mind by telling you some unconventional places to shop fabric. (insert villain laugh here)
These are what I would consider the secret gems for fabric shopping in Las Vegas.
Enjoy!
*Myself and Pincushion are in no way sponsored by any of these stores*
Savers
Several Locations, www.stores.savers.com
Monday thru Saturday 10am to 8pm, Sunday 10am to 7pm
I can already see your eyes widening. Savers?? Really?? Yes indeed, I'm telling you, Savers. This kind of goes for all Thrift Shops, but I prefer Savers because they tend to have a bigger selection. You have three different options for fabrics:
Upcycled clothes (think maxi dresses or skirts)
Home Goods (think curtains and bed sheets)
Fabric (No joke, Savers has a fabric section! It's usually by the Home Goods.)
Let me give you an example of thrift store fabric shopping and what a steal of a deal it is... I've started making mock-ups* for any new pattern I find. For my mock-ups, I don't want to use my super expensive, super nice fabric because what if it doesn't fit or just doesn't look good on me? Enter, thrift store fabric. I have a lounge pant pattern I'm wanting to try so I found a king-sized bed sheet for $5.99 that has a cute enough print that if the pants do fit, I can still wear it. For size reference, a king size flat sheet is at least 105"x100", which equals just under 6 yards of fabric. 6 yards of fabric for $6?!?!? Just the other day I went on the fabric hunt and I found the above mentioned bed sheet as well as some great fabric pieces in the actual Fabric section, totaling almost 30 yards of fabric for $38. (see picture below, the pink island print was 12 yards by itself!). A couple of pro-tips for you: bring your own bags for carryout, shop on Mondays for an additional 50% off, and always always wash your finds when you get home!
* The purpose of a mock-up is to do a test run of the pattern for sewing errors and also to fine-tune the fit to the body.
IKEA
6500 IKEA Way
Monday thru Saturday 10am to 9pm, Sunday 10am to 8pm
Who doesn't love IKEA? I consider the hours I spend wandering the store to be my cardio. But, did you know that they have an actual Fabric section?? I know! Crazy, right?
Yup, that's the IKEA Fabric section. You will have to cut your own yardage (though, I'm not sure how that's working in the current Covid times). There is a great selection of prints, however most fabrics are a cotton or a canvas. Nonetheless, still a great option. Along with their fabric section, there is an option similar to thrift shop sourcing. You can also use curtains and sheets, but the brand new ones will be quite expensive, pretty much the same price as buying from a regular fabric store. There is a more wallet-friendly option. Have you seen the As-Is section at the end of the store? It's a great place to look for floor models of almost everything at a discounted price. In my recent trip to IKEA, I was wandering the As-Is section and found "Scrap Bags" for $29. It said that it could contain any combination of remnant fabric, sheets, curtains, or pillowcases. When I got home and opened my bag, I had 6 curtains and 1 duvet cover with coordinating pillow covers. Lets do the math on how much fabric that is... Duvet Cover was 95" wide and 5.5 yards long, Curtains are 58" wide and 2.75 yards long = about 22 yards of fabric for $29! Granted, there's a couple of the curtains that I won't be using for garments, but I now have new linens and a gorgeous navy velvet.
Garage Sales, Estate Sales, and Antique Stores
I've added this as an option because sometimes you can find a great score of fabric for a fairly good price. Most of the time it's folks who are moving or had a relative that sews and they are trying to clear out all of the old sewing stuff. As for Antique Stores, if the owner has some sewing knowledge, they will be able to find great antique fabrics and will re-sell them. Just recently I picked up a beautiful satin and a 1980's flannel from Main Street Mercantile. These places also have great options for the unconventional fabrics like sheets and curtains.
There you have it! Abby's Guide to Unconventional Fabric Shopping in Las Vegas!
These are just a few of my tried and true sources of fabric options that you won't really find in any traditional fabric store. Have you tried any of these?? What was your experience? What are your thoughts? Feel free to comment with your favorite unconventional place to shop fabric!
Stay tuned for future posts regarding Upholstery/Home Goods Fabric, Online Resources, and more.
Okie Dokie!
-Abby