Not everyone has the time to scour the internet for fabric treasure troves. And depending on what you’d like to do as a designer, home stylist or DIY decorator, not everyone has the need. For those of us who love all things designer fabrics, however, there are numerous resources that can give you the information you crave. With these great sources, you can discover secret fabric stores, project inspirations and how-tos for your newly bought-fabric by the yard.

If you don’t have a clue about choosing designer upholstery fabrics, selecting color, or what style you like, help is here.

If you know just what fabric by the yard you like, but not where to find it or how to bring the look into your home, you’ll also find books, magazines, and secret boutiques and local shops right here.

FABRIC BY THE YARD: SECRET SHOPPING MECCAS
Designer-Favorite Local Fabric Stores Around The World

If you want to share your secret fabric by the yard souk (from any country), tell us about it in the comments below and we may add it to this list!

• Lamara (Suriname)
  Jodenbreestraat 63, Paramaribo, Suriname
  A decorator’s dream with more than 2,000 drapery and upholstery fabric by the yard. Has the most current colors and trends in interior design. Beautiful decorator silks and an extensive collection of trims and tassels.
• Dovecot Studios (Scotland)
  10 Infirmary Street, Edinburgh EH1
  This galleried Edinburgh studio, housed in a renovated Victorian swimming-pool hall, is a great place to watch tapestry-weavers at work. The amazing gallery work can also be purchased – but its not cheap!
• Boho Luxe Home (US, East Coast)
  Online Shop: smithhonig.com | USA
  Global home decor company previously selling only to-the-trade, and paradise for luxe bohemian interior design junkies. Unique wanderlust-inspired fabric patterns for upholstery, home accessories and more.

• I.M.C. (Turkey)
  Istanbul Manifaturacılar Çarşısı, Unkapanı
  Blocks 1 and 2 are home to upholstery fabric stores — the best place for price as well. Most shops ship to your country too. The area is called Unkapani, on the way to Aksaray, the fabric stores complex is a few hundred meters long, difficult to miss, looks like a multistorey car park.
• Villa Maroc (Israel)
  Yehuda HaLevy Street 110 in Tel Aviv’s center.
  Bright, colorful and filled with layer upon layer of visual goodness. Everything – on the floors, the walls, the chairs, the tables, in baskets and boxes and bowls – clamors for attention. Includes lush fabrics imported from Morocco that can be made into cushions, poufs and more.
• Kniphal (Netherlands)
  Albert Cuypstraat 162, 1073 BK Amsterdam
  High end fabric store for fashion and interiors, with lots of curtain and home fabrics as well as silks and other luxury items. At the Albert Cuyp market.
• Liberty London (England)
  Regent Street, London W1B 5AH (main entrance on Great Marlborough)
  Founded in 1875 this venerable British department store is known for its floral and graphic prints, instantly recognizable to those in the know.
• Arthur Bales (South Africa)
  62 4th Avenue, Linden, Johannesburg, South Africa
  Ideal one stop shop, a place to sit back, relax while paging through the many books available or browsing around getting inspiration for your next craft project. Unique quilting fabrics and yarns.
• Fratteli Bassetti Tessuti (Italy)
  Corso Vittorio Emanuele II 73, Rome
  A bit more expensive but this department store has the largest fabric department in Rome, home to some of the finest fabrics.
• Come Thai (Thailand)
  3rd Floor, Amarin Plaza, 500 Ploenchit Road, Pathumwan, Bangkok 10330
  Has exquisite antique textiles along with new local weaves and prints with ethnic feel.
• Martha’s Furnishing Fabrics (New Zealand)
  12 Melrose street (off khyber pass road) Newmarket
  Great Belgian linens to American prints, luxurious velvets and upholstery chenilles.
• Pauli (Belgium)
  Mechelsestraat 14, Leuven
  Fabric by the yard ranging from home decor fabric over printed cotton to designer fabric. Some true treasures in their stash.
• Eurokangas (Finland)
  Yliopistonkatu 5, Helsinki
  This is the biggest fabric store in Helsinki. Both upholstery fabrics and for dressmaking. A big selection of factory remnants.
• Evi Latky (Czech)
  Bořivojova 2433, Žižkov, Prague
  Small boutique fabric store with nice designer textiles from all over the world.
• RMKV silks (India)
  5,7, N-Block Market, Greater Kailash Part – I, New Delhi
  Sheer heaven for fabric by the yard lovers. Beautiful cottons (including plenty of traditional hand blocked prints), linen, ikat, silks.
• Feira dos Tecidos (Portugal)
  R. do Ouro 280, 1100-200 Lisboa
  Fabric by the yard shop in downtown Lisbon. Where you can find large fabric remnants at a very good price.
  
• Gala Fabrics (Canada)
  Victoria, British Columbia
  Beautiful fabric store with fine quality fabrics, patterns, notions and centrally located downtown.
• Designers Guild (England)
  3 Latimer Place, London, W10 6QT
  Varied selection of beautiful upholstery fabric for any furniture or home decor specification.
• Gårda textil (Sweden)
  GÅRDA TEXTIL AB, Kungsgatan 7, 411 19 Göteborg, Sweden
  Designer’s favorite fabric by the yard joint in Gothenburg.
  
• Hickeys Fabric shops (Ireland)
  Henry Street, Dublin,
  This all-things fabric store isn’t just an upholstery depot but also a bridal stop and haven of denim patches in all colours
• Spotlight Ampang Point (Malaysia)
  12, Jalan Tun Mohd Fuad 2, Taman Tun Dr Ismail, 60000 Kuala Lumpur
  Australian fabric stores with a huge range of home furnishing fabrics, haberdashery, craft supplies and home products.
• KreStoffer (Denmark)
  Klokkestøbervej 12, Odense M
  Great selection of fabric by the yard but slightly expensive.
• Mihama Cloth (Japan)
  Nipori Fabric Town, Tokyo, Japan
  Save at least half of day to shop here. A fabric store for DIY projects even buttons , beads , leather can be found here.
• Stofftrucke (Switzerland)
  Löwenstrasse 2, 8001 Zürich, Switzerland
  Probably the most reasonably priced fabric store in Zürich. Large selection of home decorating fabrics. Nice selection of lining fabrics also, smaller selection of notions.
  
• Bolt Fabric Boutique (US, West Coast)
  2136 NE Alberta Street, Portland, OR 97213
  Takes the idea of a simple fabric store and transforms it into a fun and fresh local business.
• Vasileiou fabrics (Greece)
  Katsoulieri, Chalandri
  Located on a little pedestrianised street of fabric stores. Well worth getting the train out to the northern suburbs of Athens
• Bout Tissus (France)
  2, Rue du General Leclerc, Lamballe, 22400, France
  Small but beautiful dress and upholstery fabric by the yard store.

BOOKS FOR FABRIC BY THE YARD LOVERS
Essential books every designer upholstery fabric enthusiast should own.

The Finer Things: Timeless Furniture, Textiles, and Details
Weaves together the insights and guidance of textile fabricators, wallpaper and paint specialists, accessories artisans, and interior designers, this book is a curation of an education in recognizing the hallmarks of timeless, heirloom-quality pieces.

20th Century Pattern Design: Textile and Wallpaper Pioneers
Highlights the work of leading textile and wallpaper designers and manufacturers from Britain, Europe and the US; An invaluable resource for modern design enthusiasts, collectors, designers, students and historians.

Fabrics: A Guide for Interior Designers and Architects
Describes and illustrates fibers and yarns, fabric structures, fabric design, dye and printing processes, finishes and treatments, styles and applications of cloth for furniture, window-, wall-, and floor coverings.

Classic and Modern Fabrics
More than 700 color illustrations show a fabric’s weave, texture, and other defining characteristics at a glance, and helpful diagrams demonstrate the structure of the most important types of textiles.

Art Cloth: A Guide to Surface Design for Fabric
Shows how to layer processes with the latest products for use in a variety of fiber art. With step-by-step photography, you will learn to create art cloth using dyes, color removing agents, paints, and foils combined through processes that include silk-screen printing, stamping, stenciling, and handpainting.

David Hicks on Decoration—with Fabrics
Detailed exploration of interior designer David Hicks’s work with fabrics, mixing traditional and modern to create timeless patterns for carpets, upholstery, draperies, and more.

Interwoven Globe: The Worldwide Textile Trade, 1500-1800
Richly illustrated texts explore the interrelationship of textiles, commerce, and taste from the age of discovery to the 19th century– from the elaborate dyed and painted cotton goods of India to the silks of Japan, China, Turkey, and Iran, the paths of influence are traced westward to Europe and the Americas.

Do-It-Yourself Fabric Decor
It includes a variety of unique designer pillows with lots of ideas for personalizing them. Window treatment projects cover a wide range of styles and forms, from tried-and-true pinch-pleated draperies to fun-and-funky triangle pointed valances; some that require minimal sewing and others that are a bit more elaborate.

Interior Textiles: Fabrics, Application, and Historic Style
This book gives expert guidance to the process of textile specifications, selection, installation and maintenance, as well as an understanding of the properties of fabric types and a historical context of styles.

Woven Textile Design
Starting with the basics of woven textile design, the book looks at how to draw up and interpret records and notation, before explaining how different types of cloth are constructed. From the most basic of plain weaves, through twill, textured weaves to more complicated designs, a wide range of patterns are covered.

Fabric for the Designed Interior
The book begins by placing fabric in a historic context, examining its connection to the growth of civilization. Later chapters take a practical approach to provide readers with the tools they need for successfully specifying fabric, dealing with environmental and safety concerns, understanding fabric and carpet-care issues, working with bids and contracts, and learning strategies for navigating showrooms and fabricating facilities.

World Textiles: A Concise History
This book shows the intricate relationships between different cultures’ textile traditions and demonstrates the significance of the materials we all take for granted in our everyday lives.

House Beautiful Fabrics for Your Home: 340 Designer Favorites
Featuring advice from designers, along with actual swatches, this book will allow novice and experts to select the fabrics that will add style and charm to their home.

MAGAZINES FOR FABRIC BY THE YARD LOVERS
Best textile art magazines you must read in your daily life.

Home and Textiles Today
Home Textiles Today provides broad coverage of the home textiles industries. Offers scoop on hot new products, cutting edge merchandising strategies, business analysis, commentary and more.

Stitch Magazine
Stitch focuses on the act of making embroidery. It offers insights into contemporary, traditional and historical textile art techniques with clear, easy-to-follow instructions. It also provides inspiration and creative ideas.

Threads Magazine
Every issue brings information on topics such as garment construction, fitting, sewing fundamentals, design details, embellishments, embroidery, notions, pattern reviews, expert advice, and more. Threads covers a range of concepts from couture garment-making skills to creative ways to use up your leftover fabric stash.

Surface Design
Produced 4 times a year and subscription is complimentary to members of the Surface Design Association, Surface Design is unique such that each issue is based around an intriguing theme. This might be a medium such as mixed-media, a technique such as screen-printing or machine embroidery, an area of inspiration or a specific part of the world.

Popular Patchwork Magazine
Premier magazine for all quilting and patchwork enthusiasts. Bursting with projects in every issue for all skill levels.

Fiber Art Now
A quarterly print magazine that boasts a thriving and vibrant network of artists, collectors, enthusiasts and experts. Its aim is to inspire and connect the modern-day fiber arts and textiles community. The magazine is available in Barnes and Noble stores, plus several other bookstores across the US.

Selvedge Magazine
Spans the arc of fine textiles, with regular features on interiors. Selvedge is a highly modern competitor within the realm of embroidery and textile art magazines. It certainly looks stylish and contemporary. Some of the main attractions are textile art photography of the highest quality, a sleek design and economic but engaging writing.

Embroidery Magazine
Put together by the Embroiderers’ Guild, this magazine is a high quality publication packed with articles and ideas for everyone from seasoned embroiderers to keen hobbyists with a passion for textile art and fabric. It covers colourful features showcasing work from the contemporary world of textiles right through to more traditional fare.

Bonus: Chek out our post, One Yard Wonders, to learn about fabric by the yard’s 5000 years of history and learn about the different fabric manipulation and other techniques you can use to make a stunning fabric with texture.

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