How to Get Your Hands on Cheap Fabric

All the places I shop in order to make my own clothes.

EXCITING NEWS: I am teaching a monster mask making class in Portland, OR. Just in time for Halloween! All the info can be found at sincerestudiopdx.org :)

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FABRIC IS SO EXPENSIVE! This is often a comment on my videos and I get it. New fabric from Joann or Hobby Lobby can break the bank. If I was using exclusively new fabric for all of the clothes that I make, I probably would not be making clothes. In this post, I break down my own thought process behind how and why I buy my fabric.

Buying Fabric At All Times

I honestly believe that one is always buying fabric. Rather, one is always “sourcing” new materials. I am on the lookout constantly and that has the pay off of catching great deals. I also have lots of fabric that is YeT To bE UsEd.

My Favorite Places to Shop

Creative Reuse Store

There is a local store in Portland called SCAP PDX and it is heaven. Essentially, it is like a craft thrift store. There are tons of supplies at really affordable prices. I buy a lot of fabric from this store. Offcuts and scraps from other people’s failed attempts at garment making become my most prized find. They also sell (almost) brand new cuts of yardage in various prints and types. This is my favorite place to shop at by far. See if there is one in your area!

Goodwill Bins

If you aren’t familiar with the Bins, you are not gonna believe it! Basically, all the items that do not sell at Goodwill spend the last part of their life at the Bins begging for someone to rescue them. Clothing is sold in literal bins and by weight. You can find some gems amongst the trash.

I love a transformation. I love patchwork. This means that I take a lot of already existing clothing and I hack it into something for my own wardrobe. Using second-hand materials has its drawbacks. There is cleaning involved and the possibility of stained or torn pieces, but I see these as opportunities to reuse and recycle and actually enjoy taking the extra effort.

Processing Facilities

Have you heard of Fabscrap? This dream of a nonprofit diverts pre-consumer fabric waste from the landfill by selling Fashion District offcuts directly to makers. They sell yardage, scraps, and bundles of fabric that are leftovers from the garment production process. You can shop online here. Pro tip: Sign up for their rewards program. The points really add up!

Small Businesses

I love supporting fabric small businesses, especially on Tiktok. One great option is Swanson’s Fabrics. They take donated fabric stashes and re-distribute them to makers. Check them out here.

Thrift Store

I love altering clothes and to me “fabric” is all I see when I go to the thrift store. I like to buy button ups mostly. Possibly a hoodie to alter. Great option but sometimes the prices are too expensive.

What does it all mean?

Make clothes for your body and then make more of them. Dare to challenge yourself and to grow into the person that you are. Allow color and pattern and texture to be your guiding principles as you hack together little pieces of things. Trust your instinct and then lie to yourself when instinct betrays you. Be confident in your choices and learn to love the process. You are capable of so much and so many, all you have to do is begin and grow. Maybe you are afraid to begin and that is okay. Just know that you will make mistakes along the way, beautiful mistakes. You will fall short and feel inept. You will also defy your own expectations and you will make better garments every time you show up for yourself. Stitch your dreams into the clothes that you make. Believe in the possibility of the clothes that you wear. Extend their life and reuse them. Create new pieces from forgotten ones. Repair and re-value each item in your closet. The most sustainable option is to make do with what you what you have, so make do with what you have, but take it to the moon. Expand the beauty of what is in front of you in little ways, little hacks. You have access to anything your mind can think of and you do not have to go about it in the correct way, you only have to go about it in your own way. So what if you do not achieve perfection. Perfection is boring, did you not know that? The exposed and the unsymmetrical and the clashing and the little rips you make along the way. They tell a much more interesting and valuable story than, OH that garment is perfect. Be proud of your interest and your desire to make clothes for yourself. You are learning through stitching and is that not wonderful? Go and make and be astounded.