I’m often asked where to find good fabrics in Manila, and usually tell people to go where there are the most fabrics stores in one place so you have the most choice in one trip. This is either the basement of Megamall or the top floor of Glorietta 5. However, if you are in the Greenhills area (buying pearls or fake handbags!), do stop by a small fabric store in Virra Mall called Designer Prints.
They are opposite McDonalds (which is now being either demolished or rebuilt – I wasn’t sure which one when I was there last week!) and Krispy Kreme. They have a small window facing the street with a few bolts of fabrics in them so you can find them quite easily. The shop is in the same alley as Fabric Warehouse but about 5 or 6 stores further down. Designer Prints carry a very nice range of fabrics all imported from the US. It’s an excellent place for cotton piques as well as cotton twills. Not necessarily the cheapest place in town, but a slightly different collection makes them well worth the visit! Like most fabric stores in Manila, they have much more stock in their shop than they really have room for, but the staff and owners are very friendly and are happy to dig out rolls from the back of the pile for you! This time, I saw a beautiful cotton border print pique, some very nice printed cotton jerseys (have to go back for the aqua striped one which was still on the boat from the US!), even some solid real silk chiffon ( and real silk is not that easy to find in Manila!) as well as solid linen and some beautiful evening dress fabrics. I restrained myself once again and only came home with a yard of this printed cotton stretch twill 60" wide for P390 / US$9.20 / Euro 6.39 for a skirt.
Thanks for this tip Karen! I was at Greenhills a few weeks ago and my mom is asking me to go with her again in a couple of weeks. I'll check this out.
ReplyDeleteBy the way... I've been to Ylaya Street! You're right, I didn't find any nice cotton fabric. I went because my mom asked me to go with her looking for this shop that makes costumes. But maybe when I'm finally up for making big curtains for my living room, I'll go back there (hopefully not soon... it was raining last weekend so it was muddy and smelly everywhere when we were there and I don't want a repeat experience anytime soon, haha).
hi your blogs are very educating. You might want to check out Cotton Depot stores in SM mall of asia, Festival mall in alabang and Glorietta 5. They have wide range of cotton print designs.
ReplyDelete@cryansy I know the one in Mall of Asia and Glorietta, but didn't know there was one in Alabang too. Thanks! They are actually all owned by brothers and sisters so have very similar lines.
ReplyDeletehi,
ReplyDeleteim looking for a fabric that i can use to make underwear. please let me know if you have here is my email ad zmdcruz2009@hotmail.com.
salamat po!
A good question! It really depends on what you want to make and if you want natural fibres (i.e. cotton) or not.
ReplyDeleteUnderpants:
Stretch lace: Carolina’s carries lace in small widths which you could use. Otherwise Divisoria but I couldn’t think of a store off hand.
Cotton jersey: Taytay market but you have to by by the kilo and that would make a lot of underpants. I’ve seen printed cotton jersey at Bloomingdale’s in Shangri La and Megamall as well. You could also buy some cheap cotton T-shirts and turn those into underpants! You should be able to get at lest 2 or 3 pairs out of an XL men’s size!
Underwear elastic: Tabora Street in Divisoria. I don’t know the name of the store but I have bought some there. It’s on the left side if you are facing CM Recto and quite near the intersection. It’s quite a big store with no doors. They have a counter in the centre with buttons and shelves on the left and right side with lace.
Bras:
You can probably find fabric to make the cups, as they can be made out of all sorts of woven or knitted fabrics, but I’ve never seen stretchy stuff the back of bras are made with here in Manila. You also need different types of elastic for straps as well as around the edge,and under wires (if that’s the type of bra you want to make) as well as channelling. I’ve never seen any of that here, but to be honest I haven’t really looked. I am actually ordering a kit from the US to try making a bra for the first time, so will have a better idea what to look for once I’ve made that up!
Slips:
I’ve bought a thin nylon jersey from Fabric warehouse to use as a slip. They had black white as well as beige in the Megamall store about 6 months ago.
Please do let me know if you find anything! I am always interested to learn about new sources for sewing supplies!
Hello!
ReplyDeleteI need to make a cover for my dog's cage that is water-proof in the outside, and heat insulating in the inside. Can you suggest type/s of fabric to use and where to buy them reasonably priced? Also, they need to be washable :) Thank you very much and Merry Christmas!
hello, do you guys have leather or faux leather? if not, where can i buy that fabric?
ReplyDeletein manila*
ReplyDeleteHi Saigone. That's an interesting project. I would take a look at stores in Divisoria along Juan Luna between the bridge and CM Recto. There are stores selling fabrics for bags and backpacks, which are probably daily waterproof. Your problem though will be the joints as these would need to be sealed to be completely waterproof and I have never sean anything you could use for that. as a remedy you could try sewing a strip of your waterproof fabrics along the seam, just to give an extra layer of protection. Otherwise you could have a tarp made a bit bigger that your dog cage. You could span it well above your dog cage, like an extra roof and that might do a better job of keeping the cage dry. Now I am curious why you need insulation on the inside of the cage? Is it to keep the heat in (which we probably don't need to do in the Philippines), or the heat out? If you want to keep the heat out, you will probably be better off with the tarp/roof idea, as it provides shade for the cage but keeps everything open so that you have enough ventilation to stop things getting too hot.
ReplyDeleteHI Marc. We don't actually sell any materials. You should be able to buy faux leather at upholstery supply shops. Try Shell Canvas ( Buendia near Roxas Boulevard, Cubao as well as Alabang and some malls). I've also seen some in Divisoria, along Juan Luna, the end near CM Recto. I know that you can find real leather in Bulacaan but have no idea where or whom to contact. I would ask at some car upholstery shops as I've seen real leather used for car seats here.
ReplyDeleteHi i would like to ask where to buy cotton or any fabric for pouches and bags? Thank you.
ReplyDeleteHI Nicole. It depends what kind of fabric and what your budget is? Is it just for a bag for yourself or for a business? Send me an email to weloveseing@gmail.com with some more details and I'll try and point you in the right direction.
ReplyDeleteHi
ReplyDeleteI know it might look odd that a guy is asking in your blog, but I was wondering if you have seen shops selling high quality suiting and shirting naterials.
I love bespoke clothes and always choose my fabrics. If you can point ne to an area where the prices are reasonable and materials are of european or american construction, i would be very grateful.
Thanks.
Actually it’s not really unusual in a country where tailors still make most men’s suits! Unfortunately I don’t spend a lot of time looking at fabrics for men’s suits as I don’t make the myself! That said, I have recently started making casual shirts for my husband and am now trying a pair of pants for him.
DeleteFor shirts, the best quality I have seen are Fanbi in Greenbelt 1 and a small store in the new Glorietta opposite Fabric Warehouse and Carolinas but I’ve forgotten the name. Just remember, 100% cotton shirts, although lovely to wear, are a pain to iron! A little polyester in the mix goes a long way to making your life, or who ever does your ironing a lot easier! Many stores carry some suiting materials but I doubt if they could give you accurate information on where it comes from, or what the fibre content is. Good suiting material should contain a decent amount of wool, and abroad you can find beautiful thin tropical wools suitable for hot and humid places like the Philippines. I’ve seen them in Bergamo (Shangri-La mall) but am not sure what they cost and I doubt if they would sell you just the yardage. I’ve never seen them at regular fabric stores, but then again I haven’t really looked! I know Fanbi in Greenbelt caries a big range of men’s suiting's and their other fabrics are very nice, so it would be worth having a good look there. You could also try King Philip ( they used to be on the top floor of Glorietta 5, but it’s all being renovated so I am not sure if they are still there.) They have a huge collection of men’s fabric on display and may be willing to sell you just the yardage if you have a good tailor yourself. I once saw a good cotton twill there for P1000 per yard ( P200 up at other stores) but the quality was nicer too!
You could also send an email to of iamdeerhunter.blogspot.com. He makes bespoke shirts and pants in White Plains. The details on his shirts are beautiful. I am not sure where he gets his fabric from but he may be able to help you!
bespokemanblog.com also had a series of posts on buying fabrics down in Divisoria and and having suits made in Kamuning. I am really not sure of the quality but the prices were really good!
I’ll keep my eye open now and let you know if I come across a good source of men’s suiting. Could you also let me know if you can recommend a good tailor? I often get asked and would like to build up a data base of craftsmen people have personally tried out!
I'd like to seek for your expertise as to where we can find a good collection and ideally cheap sofa fabrics such as microfiber and cotton twill? Looking forward to your informative response. Thanks very much in advance. :)
ReplyDelete