Where to find cheap fabric

This is my own list:

1 Donated items from family and friends
2 Market stalls
3 Charity Shops / Thrift Shops
4 Car Boot Sales
5 Back yard sales
6 Fabric shop sales
7 Online Stores

1 Send the word round to your friends and family that you are keeping a fabric stock for sewing projects and that any donations are welcome. This can be clothing, sheets, curtains etc.

2 Visit outside markets. They normally have stalls that sell end of roll material, which is generally much cheaper than if you bought this from fabric shops. Also some stalls may have clothes or material that you can make use of for your projects.

3 Charity Shops / Thrift Shops are a great place to find some bargains if you are willing to spend time searching. I have written a blog article just about this topic (dated 29 January 2011).

4 Car Boot Sales – You can find a lot of bargains at Car Boot Sales. There will normally be a choice of new and old items here.

5 Back Yard Sales are quite popular over in the US but I have never seen or been to one in the UK! Here you can find some really good bargains if buying sheets or curtains.

6 Fabric Shops normally always have sales occasionally or some stores have a bargain section where they always have some rolls of fabric at reduced rates. The nearest large stores nearest me is Dunelm Mill and Hobbycraft. The other store I like to shop at is a local family run business store that have a great choice, this is Dainty Supplies Ltd this is their website (www.craftonline.co.uk).

7 Online Stores are becoming a lot more popular. I must admit I have never bought any fabric online, but I do know a lot of people do this. Apparently they can be very reasonable.

There may be some others I have missed but these are the main ones that I personally know about.