For the past 10 days or so, we’ve been vacationing in Bishop, California. This was supposed to be a rock climbing (bouldering) trip, but my husband has an injured finger tendon, so the climbing days were limited. So the other night, I booked a cheap hotel (Vagabond Inn – which actually turned out to be pretty nice for the price), and we headed to the city the next morning.
The drive was a little over four hours, and holy hell, the traffic near L.A. is scary (at best). But WE MADE IT. And IT WAS WORTH IT. And THERE WAS FABRIC.
Oh…all the fabric.
The solid-colored fabrics in the photo above are all lightweight, stretch denim. I’ll be making jeans for Harper and Ezra with these for the Titchy Threads Small Fry Jeans pattern tour. And there’s enough of the pink to try a pair for myself! The prints at the top of the stack are mostly rayon challis with a little navy anchor sateen and chiffon thrown in, too. All those ranged from $1.99/yard to $2.99/yard or $2.50/pound.
The first afternoon, Scott dropped me off at 9th & Maple while he took the kids to a science museum. I started at the Michael Levine Loft and worked my way around the several blocks of fabric stores galore. It was a bit overwhelming AND underwhelming at the same time (lots and lots of crappy polyester to weed through), but I had such a great time. The fabrics above are all sweater knits purchased from the Michael Levine Loft and a smaller store on 9th St. The two tribals and the darker gray were $7/yard at the 9th St. store. The stripes and the bottom gray piece were $2.50/pound at Michael Levine Loft.
All the knits above (except for the very top one – $3.50/yard) were purchased at the Michael Levine Loft for $2.50/pound. I can’t wait to whip up some comfy stuff for Harper and me with these!
Ahhhh…it’s hard to tell from the photo above, but these are sweatshirt fleece, French terry and thermal knit. I’m picturing lots of comfy sweatshirts, hoodies and tees for Ezra. I absolutely adore boy sewing, and these are just perfect. Most of these were $2.50/pound at Michael Levine Loft. A couple were $2.99/yard.
So many gorgeous laces… I am thinking about making some soft pajamas using the pieces above as trim ($.99/yard). And the white lace background was something I grabbed at the Michael Levine Loft. Maybe the back of a bodice for a shirt for Harper? At $2.50/pound, who cares!
This elastic eyelet will be perfect for making undies or delicate little tanks and tees for Harper. At $.50/yard, yeah, I’ll take 20.
So yeah, if you add in the cost of gas and hotel, the fabrics aren’t exactly a steal. But if you’re going to L.A. anyway, or if you just want to have a fun trip, DO IT!
Oh – we also visited Mood Fabrics. And. OMG. It was amazing. But I decided to focus on cheap fabric I couldn’t get online for this trip. Stuff I can use to make things for the kids and practice my skills.
Have you ever been to the L.A. Fashion District? Is it a dream of yours to go?
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