As a bag maker and designer, fabric stores are my home away from home. Although I do a significant amount of shopping online, there’s nothing like being able to walk into a store and see and feel the fabrics yourself. Have questions about Boston fabric stores? I’ve got some answers for you!
Best selection
Fabric Place Basement :: Natick
When you walk down the stairs, you enter a warehouse-sized room that looks a lot like my idea of heaven. Fabric Place Basement has IT ALL! Seriously, nylon rainwear, denim, flannel fleece, quilting cotton, silk, vinyl, upholstery fabric, whole leather hides — they’ve got it! In addition to all the fabrics, they sell yarn, zippers, trim and ribbons, fabric hardware, buttons, fabric dye, and more.
Also, as the “basement” in the name implies, their prices are marked down. Peter, the owner, goes to New York to get deals and is always bringing back something new and interesting. One of my most recent steals? Japanese denim for $2.99/yard.
Secret tip: If you sign up for their newsletter, you get coupons that aren’t available on the website!
Most luxurious selection
Franklin Mill Store :: Franklin
When I walk into Franklin Mill Store, I always stop and take a breath to soak in the atmosphere. It’s the perfect combination of modern and mill store. And while the vibe might have a hint of retro, the selection is all modern. They have fabrics from the hottest designers: Tula Pink, Alexander Henry, Kaffe Fassett, Michael Miller, etc. Additionally, they have high-end silk, wool, and a small selection of leather.
If you need a little help, the staff here is knowledgeable and helpful. If they don’t know the answer, they will find it for you. The back end of the store is all home dec fabric, and they have people who can help you with that, too.
Walking around the store is a delight of little finds — you’ll see a locally made item for sale, an example of what a pattern looks like made up, a prettily packaged remnant, and more. My latest finds here are beautiful red linen woven through with metallic gold threads and a metallic leather.
Secret tip: They offer a bunch of classes! From teaching your child to sew to learning how to make the new, trendy scarf, I’ve seen them offer a class for it!
Best discount fabric store
Sewfisticated :: Dorchester, Somerville, Framingham
Sewfisicated is jam packed with fabulous deals. It takes some poking around to find what you’re looking for, but if you find it, you can be sure it’s a good deal. This is a great store to shop at if you have some flexibility in your selection. For example, if you know you need some two-way stretch knit or some tulle and you’re open to the color, this is a great place to find a great price. And you can tell this is the real deal by all the professional sewists who are shopping here.
This is one of these places where you might have to step over a bolt of fabric to get to that back corner, but once you get there, you’re sure to find a delightful hidden bargain. When I was last there, they had a huge selection of Ankara (African waxed) fabric!
Secret tip: Their prices on Coats and Clark thread! This is the most basic type of thread. You usually find it priced around $3 at the big box store. At Sewfisticated it’s $1. You can bet I stock up!
Most ubiquitous fabric store
Joann :: Everywhere
You’ve undoubtedly seen a Joann fabric and craft store — there are hundreds of locations nationwide. Joann has a little bit of everything and is the perfect store if you need to pick up a little bit of fabric, some markers for your kid’s art project, and a little seasonal decoration all in one stop.
The things Joann sells that you won’t find at the other listed stores include baking and cake decorating supplies, wood decorating project supplies, and heat transfer vinyl. They’re a general craft store in addition to a fabric store. On my most recent trip there, I picked up some cardstock (50% off) so I could print out some patterns on thick paper.
Secret tip: You can sign up for coupons in three ways from Joann — email, their app, and snail mail. If there’s a “50% off one item” coupon available, you can use it once from each of these methods, effectively getting yourself three of these coupons. Bonus tip: You can order things online to be picked up in the store! This is a huge time saver if you don’t want to run around the store trailing a toddler who is gleefully grabbing everything she can. Ask me how I know.
Hi – Thanks for this article, I have been hunting down fabric stores lately specifically for cotton/lycra, jersey knit, and french terry for making clothing. I live in Belmont, so the fabric stores you mentioned would require some planning to get to. Locally I love Fabric Place in Arlington which has a small selection of quality knits like Riley Blake and Art Gallery Fabric. I have been to Gather Here in Cambridge which also has a small upscale collection (Cotton and Steel, Cloud 9). The BEST selection of apparel fabric that I have seen is a little shop in Melrose called Crosscut Sewing Co.. All of the shops have great selections of quilting cotton. Fair warning about buying knits at Joannes, the line is called Doodlebug, and I hear often through online sewing groups that it tends to shrink more than other cotton/lycra blends.