Sunday, August 16, 2015

Local Fabric Shopping Score

Y'all know that the Canadian dollar is not having its strongest moment. After years of being able to spend online with relative abandon (within my means), I've hit the point that I am VERY discerning about online purchases. The truth is, while I'm certainly willing to go on the adventure of fabric buying sight-unseen, I'm not willing to pay 20-plus bucks a yard, pre-shipping, for the pleasure.

Absolutely, local fabric shopping is available to me - and I avail myself of it (though I did less so during the years of the strong dollar, given that my local big box shop disappeared from downtown and I was routinely disappointed by the offerings at some of the larger fashion district stores). But times change so I've been doing more local recon in the District, and I'm very pleased by what I've been able to find of late.

To clarify, on the knit front, 5 years ago I couldn't source good local bamboo jersey, tencel, modal or terry (I'd never even seen it!). It was cotton, rayon or poly all the way and, really, a girl gets sick of rayon. I'm not big on most cottons (they don't tend to have good recovery and the colour goes chalky) and I will not touch polyester, durability notwithstanding, because it feels hideous to me. I also found the quality of the rayon to be hit and miss, often corrupted with synthetics.

But let's get on with the fun because, these new fabrics, do make dreaming of new garments very enjoyable:

Oooooh - lots of pretties!!
I bought 10 yards over all. Most of what I purchased was at this place I've never paid any attention to before. I mean, I'm sure I've been in, but I don't remember. Alas, I can't recall the name but I can say that it's next door to Moog. OK, I street-view Google-mapped it and it's called Chu-Shing Textiles. BTW, I can't find much about them online but what I have found completely corroborates my experience: likely family run, extremely well-organized (they had me at hello) and expensive. What's not to love? Let's not forget the elephant in the room: Yeah, I've bought 10 yards of fabric in shades of blue and not a pattern to be seen. If we were to catalog every yardage I've ever bought, 80 per cent of it would be in shades of blue/grey/aubergine, 10 per cent would be cerise or fuchsia and the rest would be, well, who the hell knows?

What I really like about this haul is that the SA at Chu-Shing confirmed that she sells all of the fabrics I purchased, in many colours, and that they're continuity stock. So no need to freak out when and if I want more.

Lavender / Grey Modal Jersey


You know I freakin' LOVE the modal. And it's almost impossible to find anywhere (though more available now than ever before). I bought 2 yards at 70" wide (like unicorn width!) which is enough yardage to make a dress and a top, I suspect. This fabric has awesome recovery and lovely drape. It doesn't photograph particularly well, the colour is smokey but it's more on the lavender than grey side of the spectrum. See the bottom fabric of the first photo in this post for a better sense of the colour... It was (don't quote me on this - all the prices started to blend) $20/yard. Chu-Shing does cut yards, not metres, which when you're looking at fabrics of that dollar-value, can start to make a difference if you purchase in volume.

Bamboo French Terry Jersey

Gillian's always talking about the terry and I don't know where she finds it because I've NEVER seen it in a store before. She maintains that it's got lovely hand and drape but all I could envision, before I met this particular fabric, was a short robe from 1976 or a tennis skirt - you know, really bulky, non-stretch and kind of creepy to the touch. Now Gillian knows her fabric, so I've kept an open mind. But I was still shocked when I found this navy bamboo terry. It's very sleek. It has beautiful stretch and recovery (it's not overly firm). The loops on the wrong side are so tiny that they fade into the fabric (see the second photo below).

Navy Bamboo French Terry Jersey
See how TINY those loops are? But they're so cozy soft...
I loved this fabric so much, I bought it in slate blue too.

Bamboo French Terry Jersey
In truth, on purchase, I had no idea of what to make with either yardage (not that I thought it would be that hard) until G suggested another pair of the Hudson pants. That's PERFECT. And a dress is definitely in the cards. And maybe some yoga pants.

Apparently French terry isn't generally made from bamboo. This stuff is definitely of excellent quality and the price supports that. I believe it was $24/yard for 50" width. Keep in mind that tax adds 13% on all prices here (after the fact), so this wasn't a cheap haul. I got 1.25 yd of the navy (that was all they had left) and 2 yds of the slate.

A propos of fabric and pricing, I do want to detour very slightly: For years, and I know I'm not alone here, my sweet spot price for stretch fabrics was 8 - 12 bucks a yard or metre. As I've improved in my craft - and as I've had the chance to wear a lot of self-made garments many, many times - I've come to realize that my sewing may not be perfect, but the finished product warrants the best fabrics I can afford. The reason I spend a lot of money on high-end RTW is because I appreciate not only the design, but the execution (which has everything to do with the hand, weight and drape of the fabric). Good fabrics recover well. They look beautiful from a distance, and up close. They last without pilling. So if you're going to spend 15 hours making that damn dress, use a fabric you won't loathe the look of in 6 months.

Now, having said this, I've had a lot of difficulty finding fabrics of the quality I feel happy to spend $25 bucks a yard on. So I'm really pleased (understatement) to say that I've found a place locally to fit this niche. Online, it's hit or miss. Blackbird Fabrics, in my limited experience, has had the best jersey I've found online, but the cost is prohibitive (and it's in Canada). If I'm going to spend more than 15 bucks a yard, optimally, I need to feel it first. So perhaps the tanked dollar has facilitated a new awareness - not to mention that the improved quality of fabric in the fabric district seems to be playing along nicely.

Navy Cotton Jersey

Navy Cotton Jersey
Like I said, this isn't my go-to fabric. This is the kind that's manufactured in the round, so there are 2 natural folds (and no selvedge). But I have to say, this yardage is substantial (great for T shirts) and the recovery is excellent (must have more spandex than usual). In the photo it looks washed out, but the colour is pretty rich. It would make a great dress, given the fabric heft. I bought it to, perhaps, make another Tiramisu (a dress I made previously using a gorgeous pure-cotton ponte that was gifted to me. That ponte is a joy to wear, years later, and it shows off the lines of the dress beautifully. FYI, finding cotton ponte in TO has yet to happen, for me. Apparently, peeps don't want to spend the 30 bucks a yard it likely costs).

FYI, I bought this at my regular place, the name of which I cannot remember but it's on Queen West, right next to the Wool House and it's in the basement. It's run by the nephew of the King Textiles owner. They sometimes have some good jersey (of all types) and sweater fabrics but it's hit and miss. I believe I spent $12 bucks a yard for this and I got 3 yards... It's 52"wide.

Electric Blue Bamboo Jersey

Finally, back at Chu-Shing, I found a DELICIOUS bamboo jersey. Lord, once you've found bamboo jersey, the regular rayon stuff just seems cheap. This has awesome hand and even better drape than the modal. It's substantial but not bulky. It would make great leggings or yoga pants or a dress or a top or anything, really. The colour is saturated and beautiful.

Bamboo Jersey
This was $24 bucks a yard, I believe and I got 2 yards. It's 50" wide.

What you'll note about all of these fabrics is that they are predominantly natural - bamboo, rayon (modal is made of rayon) and cotton. (Sidebar clarification from Tanit-Isis: "Modal, Tencel, and bamboo are all varieties of rayon/viscose." I didn't know that! I mean, I knew about modal and tencel being part of the rayon family, but I thought that bamboo was fluffy like cotton! Don't ask me why.) Yeah, they've all got spandex in them (that's what gives them awesome recovery and drape), but there's no other synthetic to obstruct the natural properties. And yeah, we can debate the naturalness of rayon, but I'm in the camp that says, extrusion or no, it's more natural, to the feel and with wear, than "synthetics" (as I have known them). Sadly, now I have to come to terms that bamboo isn't a cute fluffy that can be turned into fabric fibre without excessive chemical intervention. Live and learn.

FYI, Chu-Shing sells a synthetic, very substantial and firm stretch fabric (a bit like scuba but more like the stuff they make bandage dresses from) for 45 bucks a yard. It is awesome, though I'm not so much in a bandage dress phase. It would go extremely well with leather, intercut, to make pants or a skirt. It's also sold in many colours.

So that's the latest haul. $200ish bucks and 10 yards later, I have at least 7 garments worth of material. Not bad when you view it through that lens.

Thoughts or feelings?

22 comments:

  1. Well you KNOW I love this! What gorgeous fabrics! I'm sewing up a pair of navy bamboo leggings right now, and the fabric is so lush. (Though in this heat, my brain is struggling with the idea that I'll want cosy leggings, like, ever.) I'd love to go to your store with you sometime! I'm so glad you a) found bamboo terry and b) like it! I really with french terry had a different name, because I agree, it's very confusing and off-putting to associate it with horrible terry towel fabric!
    I'm curious about modal - I don't know if I've ever worked with it! How does it compare to a midweight rayon (say, our red/burgandy floral fabric) and bamboo?
    I think you are totally right to pony up money for good knits - quality really does equal longevity. I don't mind sewing with cheaper fabrics because I churn out lots of stuff and honestly, I don't mind if it doesn't last forever... but you are going to make some beautiful timeless clothing with this stuff! :)

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    1. Thanks! The whole time I was there I was, like, Gillian would be losing her mind... Modal is a bit firmer and denser than mid-weight rayon, but at their outer extremes, I think they could feel almost the same in weight, if not the same in drape and hand.

      If I were teaching kids I would not be wearing the fancy jersey. My workplace is less um, active and full of sticky fingers.

      But I do think you're moving into a phase where fabric quality is starting to take on a new meaning. I think that's the subtextual origin of your fabric review series.

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  2. I love these purchases. This quality of knit fabric is hard for me to find locally. I do have to rely on the internet or a trip to London (oh the hardship). The electric blue is a stunning colour. And the terry is divine. Can't wait to see what you make of them!

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    1. It's hard to feel bad for you. Even though I am trying. :-) If you want me to post some terry to you, email me and we can sort it out. I warn you, it won't be an inexpensive experience - but you're working in the pound. So I take it back - it might not be too pricey for you at all.

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    2. Oh that's tempting! I may come back to you on that. At the moment I'm sitting by the phone awaiting news on a house offer. If it's accepted then I won't be sewing at all for a couple of months at least!

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    3. This is no time to be thinking about fabric! Can't wait to hear the news...

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  3. Ok, I'm so excited you found such gorgeous fabrics locally! Although if you guys can't find nice fabric in Toronto I don't know what hope there is for the rest of us. ;)

    If you'll allow me a brief pedantic moment, I feel the need to point out that Modal, Tencel, and bamboo are all varieties (albeit, particularly nice ones ;) ) of rayon/viscose, which are basically generic terms for any processed cellulose fibre---but I absolutely know what you mean about the variations in quality (not that I'm likely to run into anything actually labeled Tencel or Modal out here... >_<)

    I would love to feel that bamboo terry! I am actually currently wearing my french terry yoga pants (the heavy cotton version), which are my favourite bumming-around-the-house pants ever, and I've found some much finer ones now and then, including some merino terry a friend sent me from Australia that I've been too chicken to cut into.

    Which is a long way of saying---good job! And good for you for being willing to pay for quality when you find it---that's the only way, alas, that it will continue to be available.

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    1. I did not know that rayon and bamboo are the same?! I know that modal and tencel are derivatives of rayon, but I thought that bamboo was its own thing - like cotton. FWIW, constituent parts notwithstanding, in my experience, the bamboo jersey is the fullest and has the best drape. Modal has better hand but can be a bit shiny, if not well-produced. Tencel, I've only found with other fibres or in RTW exercise wear. Rayon jersey has lovely drape but tends not to recover optimally because there's too much elasticity in the fabric. It also tends to be on the thin side - ok for tops or scarves but not great for much else.

      I can completely understand your reticence to cut into the merino. That stuff is stupidly precious.

      I am willing to pay for quality. Lord knows, I pay for it when I buy RTW, why wouldn't I want to sew that way? It implies that I don't think I'm worth it when I sew with a fabric that isn't up to snuff. I value what I've learned and I want to celebrate my hard-won abilities (such as they are) with beautiful materials.

      And you're so right. If we don't pay, it won't be there for us...

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    2. OK maybe I don't feel quite so bad... I've felt guilty about this pedantic little comment since I hit "post" :P I wish fabric terms were a bit more clear and rigorously applied... Rayon/viscose are basically generic terms for any digested cellulose fibre, which is the process (or rather group of processes) that takes bamboo from hard, fast-growing plant to soft squishy jersey. As opposed to cotton, which comes fluffy right off the plant, or linen fibres that come from the stems of the plant (with a bit of decomposition and fermentation to help things along...)

      I love reading your local fabric find posts. :D I do wish I had your budget... ;)

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    3. Don't feel bad! You improved my accuracy. Presumably I should have done the research - but you know how it is when you are sure that you know something! The stupidity is that I know what bamboo looks like. I somehow thought that the stuff they use for the jersey is a type with cotton-esque balls on it. My brain is very convinced of what it knows. :-) And on the topic of budgets, I'm convincing myself that all I spend on raw materials will be saved by not buying RTW. I don't know if that's a legit perspective, but let's go with it because it results fun posts with fabric.

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  4. "...I spend a lot of money on high-end RTW...because I appreciate not only the design, but the execution...Good fabrics recover well. They look beautiful from a distance, and up close. They last without pilling."

    Amen to that! I just spent $130 on a T-shirt whose original price was $325 because its fabric will do all that. It was also cut close to the body and with a narrow, high V that shows no cleavage and yet flatters my inverted triangle body.

    I'm looking forward to seeing what you make with these fabrics.

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    1. Not to mention that you're likely to wear it at least once a week until it falls apart (which will be much farther in the future than with a 30 dollar T shirt). I don't think that just because something is expensive, that makes it quality. But if it's quality, I'm not surprised when it's expensive...

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    2. "I don't think that just because something is expensive, that makes it quality. But if it's quality, I'm not surprised when it's expensive..."

      Well said! I have a feeling I will be quoting you the next time I'm out shopping with friends.

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  5. Ah, Kristen, you break my heart. I live in the desert (near Phoenix, AZ) and the desert continues on the fabric store scene - like you're OK if you quilt, but otherwise - none! It is quite a sad phenomenon. So online it is, no touchy-feely at all!

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    1. Why is it like that in so many places? I agree that quilting is great (if you're into it), but there are so many other kinds of sewists who need the local loot to improve and to enjoy their craft. I know how it is to buy online - it's more fun in person (though you don't get a parcel in the mail).

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  6. I'm so behind in reading blogs, but I had to comment because oh my goodness, modal! I've been looking for a good modal for years! I have a RTW cotton/modal/spandex dress that I want to copy, but the rayon jerseys don't have enough body to really replicate the dress. I'm now plotting my next vacation around Toronto.

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    1. It's summer! I can't believe that anyone's reading anything online :-) Just make sure that you call before you make your way all the way to TO. I've only gone there once (and have only the shop assistant's word for how they restock). I believe her. I think she's one of the owners. But if I'm wrong, at least I'm only out a 40 minute walk! Email me if you want more recon before you come.

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  7. I'm also behind on reading blogs, and I'm really, REALLY happy you posted this. Chu-Shing is where I got that fabulous polka-dotted silk, but I keep forgetting to go back and I didn't know about the bamboo jersey, which is on my list. I really need someone to take me in hand and go into all the Queen St. shops and say "this is good, this is this kind of fabric, this looks nice but you will hate it." But then, I have all this free time coming up, so perhaps that is what I shall do with it.

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  8. Well, I'm always learning about the fabrics that'll work and those I should have used differently (or not at all) :-) I don't think you can go too wrong in that shop. Pretty well of the knit fabrics are of good quality.

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  9. So glad I found this post. I love how organized Chu-Shing looks because it will be easier to browse. I also love natural fibres too and I was starting to give up hope!

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