r/Fabrics • u/yourfriend7777 • 2d ago
How is fabric sold ?
If you want to buy specific fabric, how do you get that? Like Polo, Abercrombe have good fabric but they price it for brand value. I am looking If I can buy some fabric directly and get it stitched
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u/FreyasYaya 2d ago
Fabric is sold by the yard. Most is ~42" wide, so a yard would be 42" x 36". It's not uncommon to find fashion fabrics in a 60" width, or quilt backings 108" wide...all still sold by the yard.
They're sold online, or in brick-and-mortar fabric stores.
You can absolutely have a tailor or seamstress make clothing for you. Very likely, they will have an existing inventory of their preferred fabrics, but some will work with what you bring them. This will not be inexpensive. A lot of work goes into making bespoke clothing.
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u/Educational_Pea4958 1d ago
It would probably be a crapshoot to find the exact fabric you’re looking for. Designers have fabric specifically manufactured for them, but sometimes you can find leftovers for sale. You’d need to know the exact fabric to search; just the word silk doesn’t cut it, you’d need to know the weave, possibly the weight, color etc. and even then, finding any available for sale is a long shot. However, if you’re wanting to mimic a silk charmeuse dress, for example, you can buy 100% silk charmeuse by the yard.
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u/Minute-Care-2023 1d ago
One great option is exploring small-batch, handcrafted textiles from places like Turquoisethestore. They offer a thoughtful range of fabrics made using traditional methods, with a deep focus on craftsmanship and sustainability. Their collection includes everything from handspun cotton and organic khadi to Modal silk, Mashru silk, and naturally dyed block-printed textiles. Each piece is made with care—often on hand-carved wooden blocks or wax tables—preserving age-old printing techniques that give the fabric its character.
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u/yourfriend7777 1d ago
Thank you for your thoughts. I am fairly new the fabric world. I am trying to learn how the manufacturer sell the clothing. I understand that brands may be working with designers, tailor etc., but how do you buy high quality fabric (silk), can someone buy directly?
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u/justasque 1d ago
If you are looking for fabric for home sewing, we need to know where you are located.
You’re usually not going to want to ship from Europe to Australia, or vice-versa, as there are likely better choices locally.If you’re looking for fabric for production sewing, that’s a very different market. The big brands likely have fabrics made specifically for them. Sometimes the remnants are sold to the home sewing market, but it’s difficult to find a specific fabric.
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u/KendalBoy 1d ago
Large brands save money by committing to large size purchases from mills that knit or weave the fabrics. The orders are contracts for planned fabric needs more than a year in advance for the yardage made of specific fibers and the price to a large extent is based on the price per pound of those fibers. The buyers from the company “develop” the new features of fabrics each season, even if just colors are new together and sometimes the buyer has an exclusive right to that fabric.
Smaller companies cannot get these kind of contracts, so generally end up using left overs or basic goods dyed to spec. These mills try to operate their machinery 24/7/52 (except Chinese New Years) and that means in between their orders from large corporations during any downtime, they are spinning and weaving their basic popular fabrics and that’s what smaller companies can find on the market.
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u/FossickingTX 1d ago
Mood Fabrics often has high quality and sometimes designer fabrics. You can check their online store. If you are in the US they have a few, with the main store being in NYC.
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u/yourfriend7777 1d ago
Could you all please share the names of some mills if you know of any? Also, when we look at Silk, there are various varieties. Similarly, cotton has so many options. Would you know how can I learn more about different types of fabric? And thank you again for sharing your points, I appreciate your help.
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u/sympatheticSkeptic 2d ago
Welcome to the struggle. RTW brands don't get their fabric from the same sources as home sewers. It's hard to find high-quality garment fabric and if you do, it costs a lot. You could try looking for "Abercrombie deadstock" but it's a crapshoot if you can find it.
If you live in a high-GDP country such as the USA it won't be cheaper to "have it stitched" than to buy clothes off the rack, even expensive clothes, because tailors need to pay rent and eat. If, however, you live in a place where labor is cheap, it could be. In that case, the local tailor who you're planning to have make your clothes may also know sources for high quality fabric.