let's talk about buying cosplay materials.
>where do you gulls like to buy items like fabrics and embellishments?
>are there any uncommon places you like to frequent?
common sources (for US gulls, at least):
fabric.com
joann's
michaels
hobby lobby
Joann's
/end thread
I feel like Joann's is good for people who are still beginners and aren't accustomed to different types of fabric yet. If I can avoid it I do, shit is a lot more cheaper online but it's always a gamble.
I get a majority of stuff from Spandex House, Dharma Trading, and fabric.com. But I do like Joann's because I don't need to order swatches and wait.
An uncommon place I visit is 5 Below for eva foam. The have these kid yoga mats for $5 that are around 8cm thick.
Walmart has spray paint and other hardware basics for cheap. Dollar tree has foam core but it's really only good for structural stuff to them cover and fill with expanding foam, spackle or bondo. Goodwill and thrift stores can have super random stuff like rolls of foam and tools. Also my preferred place for shoes and boots since I can't justify buying new shoes for cosplay unless they're super versatile. Randomly a lot of smoke shops carry basic colored lenses
Joanns 5 for $5 Simplicity and other pattern sales are the only good cheap way to get patterns. If you need it sooner and you know what you need most are ebay and etsy for $4-6.
I'm considering switching to an online supplier, CharaNuno, for bulk of my staple cosplay fabrics since I'm moving to somewhere that doesn't have easy access to fabric stores. They have a color selection of up to 132 for their most popular cosplay fabrics (polyester twill), so it'll be a lot easier to open their swatch book and ($2/ea) and order exact amounts and perfect colors I want online.
Joann for patterns, glues, craft supplies, notions and last minute fabrics, either fabric.com, fashion fabrics club or dharma for most fabrics, Mood occasionally for more specialized fabrics, same as Sy and Spandex House and World. Dharma for dye and silk painting supplies. MJ trimmings if I need special adornments or rhinestones, Home Depot for a lot of my foam needs as well as plasti-dip and paints. eBay for iron on vinyl and weird odds and ends like that.
Man if anyone ever needs an oversized buckle, just go to goodwill and buy a belt to harvest from. I don't know why it's so impossible to find a variety of large buckles online but the first time I went out to thrift one I found just the buckle I needed.
>>9031084
>USA is only land in all of the world no others exist
tfw live in shitty province of Canada
>NOTHING IS HERE
I need for the love of good, either online or in person, where to get sheep like fabric.
>>9031397
You mean wool?
>>9031397
Generally people seem satisfied when I point them to the "sherpa" or "ewe" faux fur at JoAnn. If you wait until fall/winter, non-specialty fabric stores will get in a lot more faux fur varieties for the season, including decent (not gross craft fur) stuff.
>>9031397
Are you the canadian who was asking this same question like months ago or is this a weird coincidence
>>9031290
How do you order from CharaNuno? By shopping service, I'd assume? Or do they offer direct shipping for foreigners? I tried having a look around the site but moonrunes, man...
>>9031303
Yes exactly
JoAnn's for most of my basics, some local places for weirder stuff (for people in MA, Sewfisticated is fantastic), Dharma Trading for dyes, paints, and silks, SilkBaron for fancy dupionis, Fire Mountain Gems for beads, assorted internet places for other stuff
>>9031397
I know this feel, anon. All we have here is Fabricland and man is their selection shit.
LA Alex on 9th Street. It's a great fabric store and has a great assortment of notions. I drive into LA proper from the north county line just for this store... year round because apparently I'm into heat torture.
I buy beads through Amazon in bulk and lace in the fabric district, but don't have a favorite store specifically.
Not american but I pick up make up sponges, moisturizers, brushes for loose powder and babywipes (all for body paint) at the dollar store.
I recently heard someone suggest buying second hand kimonos and repurposing the fabric.
>>9032991
Another MA anon here seconding Sewfisticated! Very good prices, though be warned the old Russian lady that owns the Somerville location is straight up evil. The people that work at the Framingham branch are infinitely nicer, and last I checked they also had a bunch of 10-yard bolts of fabric for $10.
If you're in San Jose, Fabrics R Us is great. Its poorly organized, and the people who work there aren't super helpful if you don't know what you're looking for, but the selection is amazing and the fabric is dirt cheap.
>>9031049
for UK gulls, abakhan has branches all over the place and online too. their flagship store in prestatyn is heaven, huge warehouses stocked with everything you could want/need.
I have a couple sites I can share for smaller things.
Bead on Beads:
http://www.beadonbeads.com/
Has every kind of bead you could imagine and has size search options. Really good if you're looking for oversized baubles and large round beads for cartoony cosplays.
Rosebeading:
http://www.rosebeading.com/wholesale-cabochon-setting-bezels-pendant-charm/
Cabochons and cabochon bases. Also has tiny bottles and vials and epoxy resin sticker domes. It's a varied site.
MJtrim:
http://www.mjtrim.com/trims/
Trims and fringes. They also have a pretty interesting button selection, though that might be a personal preference because I like their metal buttons.
>>9035243
Seconded abakhan's, I practically live in the Chester store lol. Never been to the prestatyn store! They've got jobs going there for cafe staff though.
Oh, samefagging but also, UK gulls; cheap fabrics.co.uk
Totally legit (I was sceptical but they're fab), great for buying stiff net, plain polycottons and pure cotton fabrics in bulk. Shipping is a bit pricey but the customer service is fantastic. If you live near a fabricland store, I'd suggest that too. I was at the store in Bristol last month, got about 2 metres of pure cotton herringbone coutil (I make corsets) for £2.
Hobbycraft's site it worth checkin out for the sales, there's a coupon for 15% off your first order and 10% for students.
Will spam with some eBay shops later too, gonna finish succumbing to hayfever rn.
>>9033099
Not a good place for fabric, but PlayTime in Arlington, MA has lots of cute lace and ribbons!
>>9033021
huh i've always had bad luck with LA Alex even though everyone swears by it. bought notions there once and every zipper broke before it even got on a body. also they're like 60% tablecloths now.
does anyone have any other LA garment district stores they swear by? personally I like big bargain trims on 9th for cotton lace for lolita, but have yet to find a fabric store there I'm absolutely in love with.
>>9033074
That woman is the worst. I've never had her be rude to me personally, but I've seen her dish it out to other customers. No customer service skills. :(
It's a bit of a haul if you're in the Boston area, but there's also "That $1.99 Fabric Store" in Auburn, MA. The name is now a lie because they increased their prices to $2.99 a yard, and it's hit or miss depending on what you're looking for, but I've had decent luck. And, I mean... $3 a yard.
>>9035884
You're a lifesaver anon, thank you.
>>9033074
Oooh, thanks for the warning - I've never gone to the Somerville location, because the Framingham and Dorchester ones are more convenient for where I live/go to school. The Dorchester one is smaller but it seems like it tends to have more suitings and silks.
>>9033099
There's also the Fabric Place Basement by the Natick Mall. Nowhere near as awesome as the original Fabric Place was, and they're a little pricey, but they have a lot of nice high-end fabrics and sometimes you can get good deals in their remnants bins.
>>9038293
This is the first I've heard of this, I'll have to check it out!
I realized I forgot my online go-to for zippers, which is thezipperlady.com - the heavy-duty invisible zippers are fantastic for anything under tension (bodysuits, tight-fittiing boned bodices, etc) and the prices are really reasonable. I found it hunting around after having not one but two of the standard-size invisible zippers JoAnn's sells break in a costume.
I'm in the Bay Area, I love Fabrics R Us. People say the customer service is bad but I love the employees and I feel like it's actually better than Joann (my other option), but a lot of my cosplays lately don't work with their stock since they aren't too fancy or ornate. Is there anything else good in the area? Especially for trims?
>>9039654
The ribonnerie in SF is great for various ribbons. If you're willing to dish out the dough, Britex has some pretty unique stuff too but it's all like $7 or more / yd.
There's also a fabric store on 17th and Mission but I forgot the name. I think it was something generic like Fabric Outlet or Discount Fabric.
>>9038392
Maybe you're right with the bad luck. I'm usually at la Alex for fabric. Usually the more sturdy fabric for jackets.
I did fall in love with Michael Levine's upholstery store that sells fabric by the pound.
I don't know if I am blind but I can't find the resin thread. Where can I buy good quality UV resin in Canada? What do y'all use/what is the least likely to yellow/should I just suck it up and order expensive Japanese resin and deal with horrible import/shipping fees?
