Places To Buy Fabric Outside of Joann

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The closure of Joann sucks because it leaves most folks with no in-person places to buy fabric. While the closure of Joann is depressing, the best we can do is stay positive and try to make the best of the situation. Since small business owners and regular consumers alike used Joann for sourcing fabric, I have tried my best to outline real fabric sourcing solutions for both audiences.

Fabric sourcing solutions for the general public.

Buying online requires one extra step.

Unless you live in a metropolitan area with a garment fabric store, the only way to buy garment fabric is online. Since we cannot feel fabric online, owning a fabric swatch book is essential. You can either buy a fabric swatch book or make one yourself. I like this fabric swatch book from Amazon. However, I opted to make a fabric swatch book for my own personal usage. To learn more about how to make your own fabric swatch book, click here.

Here are some places to shop fabric online.

Options outside of the internet.

Quilting cotton is much more readily available than garment making materials. Having said this, it is still important to mention a few places to buy fabric in-person.

Facebook marketplace, estate sales, and thrift shops are the most obvious places to find quilting cotton. But, there are often local shops that carry quilting cotton too. Just look for a sewing center in your local area. Most times, the sewing centers cost a bit more than buying for a big box store. In a pinch, its still an option though.

In addition to the options mentioned above, you can visit the linen or bedding isle of any store to find materials that you can use for sewing. You would be surprised at how may curtains and bed sheets have been made into bags, cloths, or even quilts.

Places to buy fabric as a small business owner.

As a small business owner, nothing beats cutting out the middleman. So, I have included a full list of places where you can find fabric wholesale. You can get a wholesale license by applying for a sales tax permit in your local state. In order to apply, you just need an EIN number and a business permit.

While it is easy to get a sales and use permit, small business owners often don’t take advantage of the opportunity. Small businesses are often don’t take advantage of the discounts because they have low capitol, which makes it hard to meet minimum purchase requirements. However, I have tried my best to list places with low or no minimum purchase requirements so small businesses can still take advantage of the deals.

Lumin Fabrics
Midwest Textiles & Supplies
Kinderel organic fabrics (8 yard minimum)
Checker Distributors (You must purchase at least 3 bolts from a single collection to place an order)
Brewer Sewing ($250 minimum on first purchase $100 afterwards)
Needlecraft (Must own a store or be a manufacturer. Many of us are manufactures of goods 🙂)
Fabric wholesale direct (doesn’t require a license or minimums)

Find a manufacturer

You can use Alibaba to order fabric direct from the manufacturer. To get started, search for fabrics you like on Alibaba. Then, request samples. It will take a few tries before you find a sample that you like. But once you do, you can place an order with the manufacturer directly.

Make your own

For businesses that make small items like dog collars or wallets, sublimation is a great option. You can purchase a specialty sublimation printer. But, I just took an old printer and filled it with sublimation ink. For those of you who do decide to use a regular printer, proceed at your own risks! Polyester is the easiest material to print with sublimation. But, you can print on cotton too so long as the correct supplies are used. For sublimation you need:

A printer
Sublimation ink
Sublimation Paper
Heat Press (Bed Bath Beyond) | Heat Press (Amazon)

Are you looking to find Joann exclusive brands after their closure?

At the time of writing this article, nobody knows whether Joann exclusive yarn or fabrics will be picked up by another company or not. We can only assume that none of the brands will get picked up. For a time, you may be able to find Joann fabric on reseller markets like eBay. Afterwards, these fabrics will be gone forever.

Another way to buy fabric is…

…to search for leftover materials from the fashion industry. These fabrics are called deadstock. And, there are a number of companies that only sell these sorts of materials. Below, I have listed a few popular deadstock companies.

Fabric wholesale direct

Core Fabrics

Fab Scrap

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