So this morning I went to Walthamstow as recommended by my class instructor last week to buy some fabrics for us to ‘learn and practice on’. I was surprised how many shops there were. There were at least 15 fabric shops and 4-5 Haberdashery shops plus several market stalls as well. They mostly cater for the Asian and African communities so think bold colours and prints. The Haberdashery shops were like nothing I have ever seen before - literally Aladdin caves with ribbons and things hanging from the ceiling in one shop!
Lots of the fabrics were bold lace type fabrics with lots of bling attached - so not for me. I was quite interested in the African wax fabrics as I do like bold prints for dresses and skirts and they are 100% cotton. While some were too bold for me I did find some that I think I will wear if the garments come out well. Wax fabrics come in standard 6 yard cuts (about 5.4m) and they varied in price from £15 for the most expensive to £5 for the cheapest. At £5 for just over 5m it is perfect fabric to learn on and a toile won’t be needed.
They had a lot of viscose and chiffon fabrics as well (in plain colours, more muted prints and bold prints) as well as quite a bit of scuba in plain colours. I think these fabrics are beyond a beginner but it is worth remembering. They also had quite a good shop for home decor fabrics (varied leatherette and thicker curtain fabric etc).
I’m sure I will go again - just to stock up on ‘practice fabric’ if nothing else!
I think I am going to make a simple dress out the green fabric, a half circle skirt from the black and the white/peach one. The pink flower one is a 3 yard cut from one of their remnant bins I spied on [ You are not allowed to view attachments ] top (£3!!) I think it will make a great back for a pink quilt I am making my sister