Tag Archives: Chic Fabrics

New York City Fabric Shopping~ Sew Mary Mac’s Favorite Spots

Note: This blog post wasn’t planned. Due to a number of requests for NYC Garment District fabric shop recommendations I decided to quickly write up this blog post. As I make trips back into the city in the next few months, I will take better photos and update this blog.

A Little About Me 🙂

HI, I’m Mary Anne~ often known as Sew Mary Mac on Instagram and my blog. You may see me post in various Facebook Groups as Mary Anne MacLean. I’m also an Ambassador for Love Notions Patterns, an avid pattern tester and confirmed Fabricholic. I’m a retired FCS teacher (Home Economics) but began my career as a Technical Writer then Fabric Library Coordinator for Simplicity Pattern Company back in the 80’s. (I still have a collection of fabrics I was gifted by various manufacturers when I worked there!)

I have ALWAYS loved fabric (my BS degree was in Textiles). I will admit to being a Fabric “snob”. I love good quality fabrics. Good quality doesn’t always mean expensive. So many of my favorite fabrics that I have sewn up are from the Garment District in NYC all purchased at great prices!

So many of the stores I visited in the 80’s as I walked through the Garment District to the bus station are gone. During the 90’s and early 2000’s I rarely visited the Garment District. (My children were young) However, back in 2006-2010 when my oldest daughter attended FIT in NYC, we began to visit all the shops again. I’ve been shopping there ever since!

Where Is The Garment District?

The Garment District is located in Midtown Manhattan, primarily between 35th and 40th streets between 6th and 9th Avenues. Within this district you will find:

  • Designer Showrooms
  • Designer Studios
  • Manufacturers Headquarters
  • Fabric Stores
  • Notions and Trims Stores

The area you will find almost all of the fabric stores are 35th-39th Streets between 7th and 8th Avenues. NYC is a big grid. The Avenues run North and South. The Streets run East and West. Addresses in the 200’s are between 7th and 8th Avenues. (100’s between 8th and 9th/300’s between 7th and Broadway/6th)

*Unless noted otherwise, all shops listed below are located between 7th and 8th Avenues.

**On the map below, 7th Avenue is labeled as Fashion Avenue as it also called. Avenue of the Americas is 6th Avenue. Note: Broadway runs diagonal between 6th and 7th Avenues.

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Magical Metra Blazer ~ From Love Notions

NOW AVAILABLE~ LOVE NOTIONS SEWING COURSE FOR THE METRA! (See below for all the details, also make sure to use my discount code 10MARYMAC for an additional 10% off)

UPDATE: To see my newest Metra Blazers, visit this new blog post. HERE

First off, I just need to say that I had so much fun sewing this pattern! I purchased the Metra Blazer pattern when it first released, had it printed at the copy shop and then it just sat in my sewing room. What I love about Feature Fridays, is that as an ambassador I often try to sew one up so I can post about it and I am SO happy I did! WHY oh why did I wait so long to sew this up!?!?!?!

So trust me, if you haven’t sewn one, you need to! I made my wearable muslin~ which I actually LOVE and suddenly I wished I had sewn this so long ago! If you think you aren’t the blazer type of person, I would give this a try. I NEVER wore blazers, even before I retired and I want a closet full of them now!

Details

The Metra is a simple casual blazer with two collar options. You can choose between the classic shawl collar and the modern wide lapel collar. It features in seam welt pockets that are much easier to construct than you might think! What I love most about this pattern are the great construction techniques that help you create an amazing, clean inside finish. I love when the inside of a garment is as pretty as the outside!

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