As a kid, my family was pretty intentional about how we used things.  I can recall my parents sorting through the trash and washing out our recyclables and taking them to our local recycling facilities every week, finding new uses to jars and bottles after they were empty (shout out to everyone’s grandma who stored sewing supplies in a cookie tin!), and lots and lots of hand-me-downs.  At the time, I was a little embarrassed that my mom would never buy water bottles at the store and I always had to remember my thermos every time we left the house, but it’s something that I appreciate deeply now as an adult as I raise my own family in a sustainable way.

My appreciation for sustainability only grew into love as a sewist, and I’m always scouring thrift store linen sections or looking for pieces with patterns and colors that may be useful for upcycling.  While we may not have any stores adorned with walls of headstock fabrics, we’ve got some great secondhand spots that have been huge sparks of inspiration for me. I don’t want to toot my own horn, but I do consider myself somewhat of an expert for this kind of stuff!  So without further ado, here’s my top 3 favorite places to find secondhand fabric options in Tampa Bay!

First up is a gem that is for upcycling and repurposing sewists alike: Sunshine Thrift!  This store has multiple locations across the Bay Area, but my favorite for finding great fabrics is the location on South Dale Mabry in South Tampa.  There’s certainly no shortage of thrift stores here, but this one makes the list because I don’t think there’s been a single time I’ve gone in and haven’t scored something great for upcycling.  It tends to yield a lot of better quality products in my opinion, perhaps because its in proximity to some affluent areas.  The last time I was in, I scored this beautiful vintage floral bedsheet that will soon turn into a flowy dress for spring!

Next up is one that I’ve gate kept since I found it; Life’s Treasures Thrift.  The hard thing when you’re looking for fabrics in thrift stores is that the vast majority of them do not explicitly accept craft donations, making it harder to source cuts large enough to be repurposed into full garments.  This one, however, DOES accept them, and the two locations within reasonable distance to me (North Tampa and South Tampa locations) have never left me empty handed!  I find that the South Tampa location has the best selection of notions (a whole cubby style wall of all different sewing, knitting, and crocheting supplies), and the North Tampa location always has great cuts of fabrics for garment making.  It was from these stores that I picked up a load of quilting scraps that inspired all the bunting, play capes, fairy wings, and crowns I made for my daughters’ room!

Last but definitely not least is Creative Clay in St. Pete.  I heard about this location in a local sewing group online when asking for local spots for secondhand fabrics a few years ago, and it’s without a doubt my favorite place to hunt for supplies and fabric cuts.  It’s a 501c3 non-profit that aims to serve adult individuals with disabilities through art programs 5 days a week.  Their mission is really beautiful, and every time I bring my girls to hunt for new supplies, we’re greeted by some really sweet (and now familiar) faces.  Their space has a creative reuse thrift store which is an absolute treasure trove of fabric cuts, sewing books, buttons of every shape and color you could dream of, bins of yarns and knitting needles, and much much more.  This Christmas, I made an advent calendar for my girls, largely from scraps and canvas from there! The coolest part is that they are donation based, so you get to choose whatever fits your budget and you feel is fair for the supplies you’re taking home.  This is a great place to visit if you have interest in dabbling in adjacent textile arts like crocheting or knitting – they’ve got bins full of yarns and needles of all colors and sizes! They also have magnets, greeting cards, original art, and more from their students that are for sale.  You can guarantee to always be met with a smile and a kind face when you go here, and will likely get a chance to meet some of their talented artists!

Tampa Bay has come a long way in textile resources, and I’m so glad to have these shops to be able to find creative ways to use fabrics in my life.  I hope these can be a resource for you, too, whether you live here or are just passing through!

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