The Shops Most Likely to be Mentioned By People with Breathy Excitement in their Voices:
- Kitschy Coo (that's me!): A large selection of the very best Scandinavian and European knits. Funky prints, bright colours, quirky style and lots and lots of organic fabrics. Beyond prints, there's a growing selection of single colour jerseys and ribbing. I also sell the sewing patterns for many of my designs, and if you don't sew yourself, the finished garments.
- Ditto: nice website with mostly apparel fabric, comes highly recommended but I haven't succumbed yet!
- Croft Mill: great selection of mostly apparel fabrics by people who enjoy fabric (I love the names they give!)
- M is for Make: A great collection of US and Japanese prints from all of your favourite designers and some you haven't heard of yet. Easily navigated with the ability to search by designer, manufacturer, fabric type, theme, colour and more. Also offers apparel patterns, quilting notions and Japanese pattern books.
- Fabric Rehab: The tag line is 'Are you addicted to fabric? Do you have sleepless nights dreaming of your next project?' Yes and yes. My kind of shop with funky and retro prints from the US and Japan in quilters weight, home decor weight and oilcloth, plus kits.
- Ray Stitch: comes highly recommended, they offer designer prints from the US and Japan, a considerable selection of organic fabric, plus Indian silk, lining fabric, plus haberdashery, patterns, trim, and buttons
- Saints and Pinners: another one that was mentioned by many people as a favourite, offering a good selection of designer prints from the US and Japan with a special mention for Cloud 9 flannel and Anne Marie Horner voile. Also offers patterns and fabric packs.
- Seamstar: another favourite, with US and Japanese designer fabric from big name designer plus some lesser known but still exciting ranges. Includes Monaluna organic cotton, voile, flannel, home decor weight cotton, plus patterns, ribbons and even an ideas section.
- Backstitch: growing selection of designer prints (Kaffe Fassett, Valori Wells, Anne Marie Horner, Amy Butler etc) and some patterns to boot
- Buttonberry: variety of desinger prints (Joel Dewberry, Amy Butler, In the Beginning, Lecien & Moda)
- Celtic Fusion Fabrics: eclectic (and lovely!) selection of American and Japanese designer prints, as well as some Westfalenstoffe
- Coast and Country: mostly for the quilters!
- The Cotton Patch: Designer fabrics, quilting fabrics and haberdashery
- Creative Quilting: another one for the quilters
- Crafts and Quilts: another one for the quilters
- Doughty's Online: Could conceivably be in the Superstore section due to it's size / range but differentiated by the large selection of designer prints (Amy Butler, Kaffe Fassett), specialist fabric (batik, character, seasonal) and haberdashery
- Emma Garry Designs: Designer quilting weight and home decor weight fabric from Amy Butler, Joel Dewberry, Heather Bailey, Tanya Wheelan etc plus some patterns and packs
- The Eternal Maker: Something for everyone (if you can find it!), with designer fabric from the US and Japan, plus haberdashery, kits, notions, patterns and non-sewing crafty goodies. Maybe. The site is very hard to navigate :(
- Fabulous Fabrics: designer fabrics (Alexander Henry, Michael Miller, Amy Butler, Robert Kaufman etc) but a bit pricey
- Fabric Loft: small but well chosen selection from designers such as Amy Butler, Denyse Schmidt, Heather Bailey, Michael Michael, Tanya Whelan, plus sewing patterns and and bundles
- Fancy Moon: Designer quilting weight and home decor weight fabric (Amy Butler, Kaffe Fassett, Kokka, Lecien, plus many more) plus patterns and notions
- Fabric Inspirations: Mostly for the quilters but also offers some Michael Miller and Robert Kaufman prints
- Fabrics Plus: Big selection of designer prints (Amy Butler, Heather Bailey, Moda, Makower, Erin McMorris) plus craft basics and dressmaking basics.
- Gaga Fabric: American and Japanese designer fabrics that are 'retro, funky, cute, unusual, unique and hard-to-find cotton fabric prints that are not easily available from other UK retailers'
- Get Knitted: Inside this mainly knitting site, there's quite a bit of Amy Butler.
- Gone to Earth: If I had to buy designer fabric in the UK, this would be my first stop because not only do they have a great selection but the woman who runs it is lovely and helpful
- Lucy Loves Fabric: designer fabric from Amy Butler, Anne Marie Horner, Heather Bailey, Liberty etc but also trimmings and vintage fabric
- Lymington Fabrics: mostly for the quilters but with some designer prints from Makower, Moda and Timeless Treasures
- Millie Moon: big selection of US and Japanese designer prints including Amy Butler, Michael Miller, Joel Dewberry, Alexander Henry
- Nerybeth Crafts: Huge selection of designer prints from Amy Butler, Anne Marie Horner, Moda, Makower, Moda, Heather Bailey plus licensed prints, quilting basics, many sewing patterns, and haberdashery
- Patch Fabrics: good selection of designer prints (Michael Miller, Amy Butler, Kaffe Fassett, Tanya Whelan, Heather Bailey plus the delicious Anne Marie Horner voiles) plus lovely trims / ribbons / notions
- Patchwork Direct: basic quilting fabric and supplies plus some designer prints (Moda was the only one I recognised it their tricky sidebar!)
- Pelenna Patchworks: large selection of quilting fabric including Free Spirit, Michael Miller and Westminster
- Prints to Polkadots: large selection of designer prints by the FQ and yard (Alexander Henry, Amy Butler, Michael Miller, Free Spirit, Moda, plus the first place I've seen Riley Blake!)
- Quilter's Cloth: The online shop is having a refurb but the front page looks promising!
- The Quilt Room: quilting superstore with packs, rolls, and supplies
- River Fabrics: Designer cotton fabric from Amy Butler, Heather Bailey, Joel Dewberry, Kate Spain, Keiki and Momo, by the metre and in bundle packs
- Simply Solids: Specialises in plain coloured Kona cottons from Robert Kaufman, plus Moda cottons, but also home to some of my favourite printed fabrics from emerging designers Laurie Wishbrun, Patti Young and Laura Gunn.
- The Sewing Studio: beyond the sewing machines on offer, there's also a pretty extensive fabric selection for quilting including some designer fabrics from Amy Butler, Makower, Kaffe Fassett and some patterns to boot (and some are free!)
- Tikki London: designer fabrics by the metre and in roll, kit, and pack form, plus some vintage fabrics
Speciality shops-- those with a Unique Selling Point!
- African Fabric Shop: I think you can guess the USP for this one!
- Beyond Fabrics: cotton fabrics with a distinct retro feel
- British Made Eco: huge selection of Eco fabrics including organic cotton, hemp, bamboo, soya, silk and wool
- Cath Kidson: Duck, linen and oilcloth in her own inimitable style. Pricey :(
- Clothaholics: Japanese Kimono fabric and Genshodo Indigo fabric
- Clothkits: Most well- known for their kits, but also sell interesting basics plus fabric from Liberty, MiniModerns, Kokka, and some screenprinted fabric
- Donna Flower: Vintage fabric loveliness
- Dots n Stripes: European imports from Hilco, Stenzo, Bizzkids and Polytex plus Euro patterns and notions.
- Euro Japan Links: basic (as opposed to designer) Japanese cotton fabric, but you have to phone to pay
- Kid's Fabrics: Selection of child-centric fabrics for apparel and soft furnishing
- Liberty: Renowed British designer of beautiful fabric. Pricey but special.
- MacCullogh & Wallis: This should probably be in the Superstore section because of the extensive range but it's not cheap. And for good reason, everything here is super classy and a bit special.
- Oddie's Textiles: Not the best website but a good selection of novelty / seasonal prints and fleece
- Organic Cotton UK: Huge selection of organic knit and woven fabric in various weights, and in nice colours!
- Pennine Outdoors: Sport, performance and outdoor fabrics including fleece, nylon and waterproof
- Sewbox: An exciting mix of interesting and unusual fabrics. Liberty poplin, lawn and silk, organic knits, some American / Japanese designers, sewing patterns and packs / kits. Website is impressive.
- Shaukat: Middle Eastern fabrics and Liberty prints
- Tummetott Fabrics: Scandanavian jersey fabric
- Vend Fabrics: Sports, leisure and fashion fabrics. Great selection of knits in various weights and blends.
- Vida la Frida: lovely Mexican oilcloth
- Well Cultivated: Bamboo knit and woven fabric
The Fabric Supermarkets-- those offering a huge variety of fabric types / good for basics / reasonable prices
- Abakhan: a treasure trove of fabric and haberdashery, but I've heard their bricks and morter shop is even better!
- Chawla's: good source for basic fabrics in different weights
- Calico Laine: vast selection in a pleasant website
- Cheap Fabrics: huge variety, including dress, dancewear, drapery and craft fabrics
- Ebay fabrics: bigger than any single online shop, you can find most fabrics and haberdashery here. Favourite shops are Quality Fabrics 4 U (designer quilters cotton), Favourite Fabrics (different weights of printed cotton and lush trims), Infashionfabrics (great stretch fabric selection), Sewfabrics (Liberty and unique jersey) and Fabric Garden (designer quilters cotton)
- Fabric UK: perhaps one of the biggest selections (incl lots of specialist stuff!) but the site is tricky to browse
- Fabricland: one of the hardest websites ever, but worth it for the gigantic selection of fabrics including lots of things you won't see elsewhere. Good prices too, but you can't order online, you'll need to phone.
- Online Fabrics: One of the biggest shops with a tremendous variety of fabric types
- Totally Fabrics: I've never used them but they come recommended and their tag line is 'We offer a unique range of fabrics specialising in prints and fancies mostly unavailable elsewhere.' Sounds promising!
