Saturday 20 November 2010

Shepherds Bush Market

Shepherds Bush Market entrance
sells everything from food to zips!
multi patterned and textured fabrics from toile to tweed
wonderful detail
funky polka dots - in fabric shop in the market
silk flowers 
more variety
Aladdin's cave of accessories

The best sewing accessories/ equipment stall - 

Hats galore!
more from above stall
 A Mad Men copy - not bad!
Ethnic prints....
jewels fit for Kate Middleton!
Walk from one end to the next of Shepherds Bush Market from the tube station end and you will come to the mecca of fabric shops 12 in total all on Goldawk road.

one of many excellent fabric shops....
see the Goldhawk Road shop fronts reflected in the window, old London history under threat....
these shops under threat from developers....
Cotton prints above
wonderful Wools and Tweeds
plain cottons, jerseys and Xmas print cottons
pretty cottons
Corduroys
sheer fabrics in a variety of patterns
all that glitters for ball gowns and party frocks
window display showing selection of seasonal sparklies for party frocks


Shepherds Bush Market has all the magic of Londons' multicultural consumable diversity and character  you could possibly wish for. We were following the 'sew your own' fabric trail from North to West London in search of beautiful and reasonably priced varieties. Our travels lead us along Shepherds bush Market to Goldhawk Rd which is we discovered the mecca for gorgeous fabrics of all types from Harris Tweed, fake fur, pattered corduroy, toile, jersey, Viyella, Swiss Cotton, cotton prints, Tartan, bejewelled silks to simple felt. The shops may not be Liberty of London but we found them far more exciting and satisfying because the choice was so vast and diverse the prices so economically viable and the service totally wonderful.
A- ONE -FABRICS was our first port of call on Goldhawk road, tardis like the shop was jam packed with fabric and customers. One could literally make anything from a ball gown to a Harris tweed coat with the fabric quality available. 
100% wool Hounds Tooth check and tweeds from £8.00 to £25 a metre were our quest. There were lining fabrics of a variety of colours to go with your outer fabric choices. Classic Textiles next door sells gentlemen's suiting and shirt fabrics, silks, tweeds, jerseys and much more. The manager manning the till did a fabric content test on my woven fabric choice and yes it was 100% wool.
This area is right next to the new vast West Field Shopping centre. The Goldhawk Rd fabric shops like much of Victorian London has been there for hundreds of years, infact the first fabric shop opened there 300 years ago apparently. We found to our horror that they are all under threat of extinction due to the fact that the council is backing a huge new development of flats to be built behind them, in order to do so the shops are being threatened with compulsory purchase. I think the developers Orion will have a fight on their hands though as the local support against this project is fierce and determined with enough financial backing they hope to hire a top lawyer to fight their corner, see their facebook campaign called 'save 30 - 52 Goldhawk road'.