Where the good fabric actually is, once the big chain shops stop having anything you want

The gap between what is easy to buy and what is worth sewing is wide. Sources, roughly by how likely they are to have something interesting.

• Deadstock and remnant sellers. Leftover yardage from clothing production. This is where the unusual, good-quality material is, at a fraction of retail. The catch is baked in: what you see is all there is, so buy enough for the whole project immediately or accept you cannot go back.
• Independent sellers with a specialism. Someone who only does wool, or only does jersey, will have better stock and much better advice than a general shop. The advice is worth as much as the fabric.
• Estate sales, charity shops and destashes. Older fabric is often better than modern equivalents, especially wool and linen. Check for moth damage along folds and for the fade line where it sat in light.
• Curtains, tablecloths and bed linen. Wide, cheap, and frequently good natural fibre. The obvious source for anything needing a lot of yardage.
• Local markets, if you have one. Nothing beats touching it.

Before buying anything you cannot return

• Order a swatch. Colour on a screen is unreliable and drape is impossible to photograph. A swatch costs almost nothing next to a wasted three metres.
• Do the burn test on unlabelled fabric if you need to know the fibre, on a small corner and carefully. Natural fibres and synthetics behave completely differently.
• Check the width before comparing prices. A cheaper metre of narrow fabric is often more expensive per garment.
• Prewash a sample. Shrinkage is where good fabric ruins a good project.