raystitch
I love visiting Raystitch – my wallet however, does not.
It’s well stocked with an excellent selection of beautiful cloth from all over the world. They have some of the best quality fabrics you can buy, so you wanna be sure your sewing is up to scratch so you don’t waste your time and money.
They have started to create their own fabrics and host excellent guest teacher workshops too!
Big range of haberdashery and patterns too!
Selection – A+
Quality – A+
Service – B
Shop – B
Price – ££££
New Craft House
These babes are joyful!
Selling deadstock designer fabric and notions, so you wanna make sure you purchase enough cause it may sell out never to be restocked!
Massive variety of all sorts of cloth.
They are only open on Saturdays 10:30 – 4:30 but its just alongside Broadway Market so make a day of it!
Selection – A
Quality – B
Service – B
Shop – B
Price – £££
Woolcrest
A warehouse filled to the brim with absolute shit. It’s not my fave, but its cheap, and an occasional golden nugget can be found
Many synthetic fabrics and blends good for costumes and toiles.
They label their fabrics as ‘deadstock’ but I’m dubious as they have the same stuff every time I go in…
Take cash and their ‘fibre content’ labelling with a pinch of salt too.
They do however cut extremely generous lengths. So if you need 2.3 mts buying 2 is probably enough.
Selection – C
Quality – C
Service – C
Shop – F
Price – £
Dalston Mill Fabrics
Tucked away on Ridley Road Market a gauntlet of erratic stimulation.
It’s a bit rough and run down and crammed to the rafters with little info about the fabrics or the price, so be prepared to walk around the store with the dudes asking questions.
A bargain can be found, but its not a pleasant shopping experience as they often shout with and over customers.
A very large selection of buttons though.
Selection – C
Quality – C
Service – D
Shop – F
Price – £
Merchant & Mills
Take a train to RYE and check out Merchant and Mills. The nicest shopping experience hands down.
All of the cloth is excellent quality, they know their stock inside out, and have a catalogue of matching threads for every fabric!
They have many samples made up that you can try on, to see the fit and style! Extra cool!
Selection – B
Quality – A+
Service – A+
Shop – A
Price – ££££
William Gee
Located on Kingsland Road, its a real workhorse of haberdashery.
Stocking an extensive range of interfacings, threads, zips, and equipment for technical work including pattern blocks and drafting accessories.
Looking a little worse for wear, and majority of the stock is in the warehouse ( which you can’t access) but if you know exactly what you need, its easy!
Its an uninspiring shopping experience, but that means you wont get distracted and buy things you don’t need…
Selection – B
Quality – B
Service – B
Shop – C
Price – ££
Walthamstow High Street
Not one, but a whole bloody street of insanely discounted fabrics!
Lots of shops stock similar cheap fabrics, and it can be overwhelming but it’s a great day out for some serious bargains and haberdashery shops too!
Selection – A
Quality – F – C
Service – ?
Shops – D – B
Price – £-££
Mermaid Fabrics
The little fabric shop that wish it could.
Was situated down manic Mare street narrow way, now nestled on Lower Clapton Road. Cheap and cheerful weird selection of fabrics, upholstery and curtaining notions, some yarn and other bits and bobs.
Not a go to, but if you are passing by, why not?
Selection – D
Quality – D
Service – ?
Shops – D
Price – ££
Goldhawke Road
Again, you wanna take your packed lunch and head here for the day!
A long street of (mostly) in store only fabric shops – this means that it really is cheap cause they don’t have to pay for website overheads (trust me this shit adds up)
Some really high end shops of silks and evening wear fabrics and then lots of basics and classic fabrics too.
Selection – B
Quality – C – A
Service – ?
Shops – C
Price – £-£££
Z Butt Textiles
With a name like that how could you not?
This one is rammed with an assortment of cheap fabrics. You’ll need good eye to spot the golden nuggets in the mass, but if you are in Brick lane its worth a shot.
Selection – B
Quality – C
Service – ?
Shop – C
Price – ££
Cloth House
What a gem of a place in Camden.
A huge variety of natural fabrics, from handwoven and handprinted cotton, washed linen, workwear denim and vintage haberdashery to organic and naturally dyed textiles.
They go to great lengths to find interesting fabrics, natural fibres and vintage textiles, working closely with local textile traders and artisans and upholding traditional skills.
Only open 1 Saturday a month! So check their website before you go!
Selection – A
Quality – A+
Service – B
Shop – A
Price – ££££
Joel and Sons Fabrics
These dudes have the Royal Mark for supplying cloth to the Queen no less, so you know its quality!
Labelling themselves ‘London’s Haute Couture Fabric Store’ you know you will find something nice and fancy for your next special occasion.
Be prepared to spend a few hours here, cause they reckon they have “possibly the world’s finest fabric emporium”
Open Weekdays 9am – 5:30pm
Selection – A
Quality – A+
Service – B
Shop – A
Price – £££
Borovick Fabrics Ltd
Borovick Fabrics is the oldest fabric shop in Soho – established in 1932.
Over the years Borovick have built up an extensive, diverse, comprehensive and exciting range of bridal, theatrical, fashion, silks, technical, dancewear and suiting fabrics.
Some seriously special stuff to be found in their Aladdin’s Cave of splendour.
Selection – A
Quality – A+
Service – B
Shop – A
Price – £££
Fabrics Galore
Although I’m a regular online purchaser, I’m yet to place foot in store in Battersea.
I’m always stoked with the quality of the selection and their excellent sale bargains, so will have to make the journey sometime soon!
All the cult classics. Printed cottons, furnishing fabrics, couple of branded collections and huge selection of well priced corduroys.
One of my regular go to’s x
Open Mon – Sat 10am – 5pm
Selection – B
Quality – B
Service – A
Shop – B
Price – ££
Macculloch & Wallis
The place were the professionals shop.
Not only a lovely selection of high end fabrics, but also notions, pattern drafting equipment, interesting yarns, haberdashery and trims tidily arranged over 2 large floors!
A one stop shop for people in the business of making full time and well worth a visit.
Located in the centre of London and Open 6 days a week.
Selection – B
Quality – B
Service – A
Shop – B
Price – ££££
Simply Fabrics
Not been in here, but based on the selection online, I really should!
Offering competitive prices for high quality end of season designer and deadstock fabric, sourced from famous design houses and studios.
They work with other small businesses to design and produce some of their own prints and lace fabrics, some of which are locally made!
Selection – C
Quality – C
Service – B
Shop – C
Price – ££
Misan
You can’t help but touch everything they have on the shelves here!
You’ll find Misan accross two stores in Berwick Street and another outlet type joint on Goldhawke Road.
You’ll want to be sure you know just how much fabric you’ll need because the cost reflects the quality here, and you do not want to have leftovers you cant use.
Fancy fabrics for fancy occasions for seasoned sewers, making patterns they already know work. You do not want to be making mistakes with these interesting and costly fabrics!
Selection – A
Quality – A
Service – B
Shop – B
Price – ££££
Feel the love
Jules TierneyCrafting with Brooke was brilliant. I was a complete beginner and felt totally safe and unjudged in her pro hands! Biggest thing she taught me is that any and all (crafting) mistakes can be mended or made into something more beautiful. Her patience, kindness and craic seeps into the work, I loved every minute!
B_SuperorganismWhen I approached Brooke to sew a stage outfit for me, I was confident she would deliver a perfect product by the looming deadline. She was great at following my brief while also advising me on what design and fabric would work best. The result exceeded expectations; I have had endless compliments on my silver sequinned cape!
Lewis of ArabiaBrooke is one of those magical people you meet for a second and feel you've known all your life. She's so insanely talented and shares it with such grace you also feel like you can accomplish such technical skills with her around. As a teacher she is knowledgeable, interesting and engaging and most importantly FUN!
Therese LaneHad a whale of a time!! We loved every minute of our weaving workshop at Make Town. Brooke was super friendly, approachable and made the whole experience easy and lots of fun.
Sara LEveryone should try floor loom weaving as it's absolutely brilliant and not too tricky. I've been to these sessions a number of times now and I love them.
Claudia ZanonThis is great for beginners to learn weaving basics but very satisfying as I managed to experiment with colours and have a little project completed, I highly recommend it!
Jo HIllI absolutely LOVED my freestyle loom weaving session at Make Town. A perfect combination of being helped to learn and being left to experiment! It was my first try and in just one session I came home with a beautiful tapestry that I felt so proud of! It was great fun, and is a beautiful and relaxed space to be creative in.
Therese LaneHad a whale of a time!! We loved every minute of our weaving workshop at Make Town. Brooke was super friendly, approachable and made the whole experience easy and lots of fun. We learnt to weave on the floor looms, and were surprised by how big our finished pieces were at the end of the 2 hours.
Chloe S-LHad a fantastic time at Make Town for Knitters Anonymous!! I’ve been looking for a new knitting group ever since I graduated and had to leave my university knitting society 5 years ago, and this one was amazing. Really cool to have a complete mix of abilities in the room, and it’s reassuring to know I could come back with any knitting quandary and have help!
Tyler RoseMake Town, Make Town, MAKE TOWN!
What an incredible place to learn so many craft bits, I have been there a couple of times now and honestly learnt so much.Brooke is an absolute delight and really takes the time to get around to everyone and show/explain how everything works. It also is super colourful (which I love)! Anyways, go check it out, you won't regret it!
Maddy EmbletonI recently took a weaving class with Brooke - cannot think of a better way to spend a Sunday afternoon! Brooke's a great instructor, very calm, relaxed and knowledgeable. I would happily spend many more Sundays depleting her instagram-worthy yarn wall! Also weaving is easier than it looks and very therapeutic and absorbing. Do it!
Emily ZachryWhat a gem of a place! Beautiful, bright, and easy to book online. They are so helpful and encourage you to be creative in your work. We went as newbies and left feeling more confident. I would recommend this place to anyone who is looking for some creative fun or wants to build on their skills.
RochelleMake Town is fantastic. I'm in London for a few months and needed to use a sewing machine to finish a project, and it was exactly what I needed. The atmosphere was informal, relaxed and friendly, and Brooke let me get on with things but was available if I had questions. I highly recommend checking it out if you have any interest in fabric crafts: I'm going back for a mending evening!
Maia KennedyI love this shop and the knitting course I did at Make Town was fabulous. Brooke brings so much joy to knitting and was on hand with loads of tips and tricks about knitting, craft and lots more! Highly recommend a visit to Make Town!
I did a second course at Make town, tufting! As expected, it was amazing!! Well organised, great teaching, great facilities. Can't recommend enough!
Filipa do CarmoWould highly recommend the beginners workshop if you want to have a go at machine sewing. I ended up with a super cool bag, no fear of sewing machines and a burning desire to start making my own clothes. Brooke totally rocks and is awesome at empowering people!
Dylan PriceI had a fantastic time at the beginners learn to sew workshop recently, Brooke is the most wonderful teacher who really knows her stuff, the techniques were demonstrated clearly from start to finish and the logic behind them thoroughly explained. I arrived unsure if I could sew a straight line and left with a project bag that I love!. I feel confident with the basics of sewing now and I'm inspired to see what else I can create. I can't recommend Make Town enough. Thank you Brooke!.
Susan RBrooke took us from ground zero to sewing a useful and tasteful bag. She’s kind, quirky and patient. She has so much creative experience. Next she is guiding me on a recycled jumper project.
Joshua HillDid both the beginner knitting and sew workshops. Loved them both and even as a very heavy handed clueless starter it was easily manageable! The time flew by on both occasions.
The groups I worked with were all very sweet and we got plenty of individual attention.
Brooke is an excellent teacher - as well just being an all round awesome human being. 10/10 would recommend and I definitely hope to attend some more classes in the future.
Giana SoiniLoved this place! Highly recommend! The owner Brooke really takes care of you, and takes the time for you to learn everything in the proper way, she is so lovely 😊
Sarah CotterillThe weaving class was the best thing we did during a weekend in London with my daughter. The tuition by Becky was excellent and the place is very comfortable. Within minutes we were able to get the hang of it and we each brought home a piece of weaving.
Tanya BorisovaFantastic place to learn sewing! I went to a beginner course with no prior experience and made this cute bag! Brooke is such a lovely person, was always there to help, explain and fix any problems. And the venue itself just invites you to think creatively. Will definitely be back :)
Elodie ToulemonI went to a Craft Cult event, it was super friendly and nice, great to meet and discuss with other crafty people surrounded by beautiful thread and textile. Very inspiring!
I've already booked another workshop and can't wait for next month Craft Cult
Christopher KramaricI feel so lucky to have visited Make Town. It was the highlight of my trip to London for sure. Brooke, the shop owner, was incredibly welcoming and helpful. She handled all of the loom setup for me and gave me free range to select materials from more yarns and felts than you can imagine.
Jonathan DayI went to Make Town to do the Beginners Sewing class and I couldn't have had a better time. It was great fun and I feel totally empowered to do more sewing. Can't recommend Brooke and this gem of crafty goodness more, whether you're starting out or old hat there's something to be found and take part in at Make Town.
Charlotte HeathcoteCan't recommend this highly enough - I went to Weave Club where I could take my pick from a wall of colourful yarns to make a hanging, with Brooke on hand to share expert advice and offer new tips and techniques. The atmosphere is relaxed and the people friendly. I will definitely be back.
Rebecca BlainI went for the absolute beginners knitting workshop. Brooke couldn't be more helpful and demonstrated things in a super straightforward way.
Thoroughly enjoyed the class, met some great people and I will be going back.
Recommend Make Town and Brooke's workshops to anyone who's looking to learn how to kraft, wants to improve their kraft or just wants to hang out with some like minded folk!
Nell CameronThe BEST! Brooke is such an amazing teacher: knowledgeable, calm, patient, super-super-super skilled and generally brilliant. From never having been in the same room as a sewing machine to making trousers and dungarees, couldn’t have done it without Brooke (and wouldn’t have wanted to!). Can’t recommend Make Town strongly enough.
Oh! And you’ll laugh. So much!
Lynda MacInnesSuch a fab space to get crafty in. The weaving was great ... Brooke was a great teacher - really clear and encouraging but gives you space to have a play too. 100% recommend.