An Italian girl in London: fabric shopping and more!

I’ve just flown down back to Milan from London. I’ve been in this city for about two weeks to attend a course at London College of Fashion/UAL and for a brief holiday, just few days. I’m never tired of London! It’s my fourth time in this city and I’ve come across new places that I love even this time. I’ve taken advantage of this trip to visit some fabric shops of course. I’ve come across some of them looking up online (google “fabric shopping London” and you can find tons of suggestions), others walking along the street, others still have been recommended on Instagram (thanks! 🙂 ).
If you are going to go to London soon, here are some suggestions on the basis of what I have seen (at the end you can find a map):

ZONE 1
CITY CENTRE (Oxford Circus/Regent’s street & Soho)

If you are going to stay in the city one, two or three days and you haven’t got so much time, I suggest go around this area. It’s full of fabric shops and here you can find the famous Liberty London department store. Fabrics in all of these shops are high-quality and very beautiful (many of them made in Italy), but they are very expensive obviously. In any case it’s worth a visit to feast your eyes (shops are beautiful and well-kept).
I suggest this tour:

LIBERTY LONDON
From Oxford Circus Tube Station walk down Regent’s Street towards Piccadilly and you’ll find Liberty London department store on the left (Great Marlborough Street). You can find fabrics on the third floor. If you love Liberty fabrics, this is your heaven. Haberdashery’s is very beautiful also. Of course everything is very expensive.
£££/€€€

MACCULLOCH & WALLIS
Go straight on Great Marlborough Street and you’ll find MacCulloch & Wallis on a side street on the left (Poland St.). This shop is amazing and has two floors. Fabrics are on the ground, Haberdashery’s at -1…a real paradise! Many fabrics are affordable, above all cottons and jerseys.
£££/€€€

BERWICK STREET
Go straight on Great Marlborough Street again and you’ll get to Berwick Street. This street is full of fabric shops, you’ll spoilt for choice. My favourites are:

• CLOTH HOUSE
  Very nice and well-kept shop, a little bit shabby-chic.
  £££/€€€

• MISAN
  You can find three Misan’s shops on Berwick Street. My favourite is the last one, Misan Fabrics (4, Berwick Street). There’s a stall that sells Misan remnants at discount prices in front of this shop. I have found lots of bargains here. I understand that this stall will be there till September, so if you’re going to go to London this month I suggest drop by!
  SHOPS £££/€€€
  STALL £/€

Soho is a very nice area in London, you can go on with shops tour (you can find every kind of shop here) or stop off for lunch/dinner. Squares and gardens are very crowded over summer, so you can stop off for an aperitif/picnic in the small but very nice Soho Square Garden.

ZONE 2 – WEST LONDON
GOLDHAWK ROAD

If you stay in London a few more days, I suggest a tour in this street, entirely full of fabric shops. You’ll spoilt for choice.

I suggest drop by every shop and then chose what you want to buy, because selection is huge. If you love Wax prints, here you can find lots of different patterns.

My favourite shop here is:

• GOLDBRICK FABRICS
  Here you’ll find a big selection of fabrics. I bought some beautiful jerseys at affordable prices. Fabrics put on display are by Missoni.
  ££/€€

ZONE 2 – WEST LONDON
PORTOBELLO ROAD 

I suggest go to Portobello Market on Saturday. You’ll find street food, fashion/handmade and vintage stalls, food stalls, shops, street performers and so on. There is a stall that sells cotton and polyester fabrics at very low prices (polyester fabrics at £ 2 per mt).

THE CLOTH SHOP

If you go straight on Portobello Road to the north, after the railway bridge and the street food area, you’ll find The Cloth Shop.
This shop is very nice and sells cotton fabrics similar to Liberty’s at affordable prices (here I bought these two fabrics two years ago: Anna Dress e Mathilde Blouse).
££/€€

These other shops have been recommended, but I haven’t got enough time to drop by. I keep them in mind for the next trip:

JOEL & SON FABRICS (ZONE 1 – Edgware Road Tube station)

SIMPLY FABRICS (ZONE 2 – Brixton Tube station)

RAY-STITCH (ZONE 2 – Highbury & Islington Tube station)

WALTHAMSTOW MARKET (ZONE 3 – Walthamstow Central Tube station)

If you have the occasion to visit them, let me know how they are! 🙂

Here is a map of all these shops:

In the end I suggest visit the Undressed: A Brief History of Underwear exhibition, at Victoria & Albert Museum till the 12th March, 2017. On Tuesday I paid a ticket cost of £ 5 instead of £ 12.

Speaking of discounts, I found out that if you buy a ‘paper’ Travelcard (one day or weekly) from a train station in London you can get 2 for the price of 1 discounts on London tourist attraction and exhbition entrance fees. More info here and here.

And here is a mix of pictures of London I took with my phone…