At the end of last year my husband and I had one of those “numbered” anniversaries. We haven’t done much to celebrate in the past and so we decided it was kind of a good excuse to save up and plan for a short get-away trip. And if you know me in real life you would know that I love a good deal….so while we didn’t have a specific destination planned (I was thinking it would be close but a warm vacation–it was in the winter) I ended up finding a GREAT deal on a 2 person trip to Mexico and booked it on the spot. So, back in February, we escaped our snow-packed mountains for a few days to the sunny beaches of Puerto Vallarta.
And while the beaches were great–one morning I dragged my husband a bit further downtown to do a little fabric shopping. I had done some research beforehand but couldn’t find a lot…so I am writing this post just in case someone wants to take a trip to a Mexican fabric store. The fabric shopping is a little different there and I will include some tips for Fabric Shopping in Puerto Vallarta Mexico
Near Puerto Vallarta there are a couple of smaller fabric stores and a Mexican Fabric Chain called Parisina. We decided to head to Parisina for a couple of hours…mostly because it was the closest. There are quite a few Parisina stores especially in the tourist areas of Mexico, so most likely if you decide to go fabric shopping there will be one close to you.
Here’s what you need to know about fabric shopping there…
This fantastic Mexican fabric greeted me as I walked in….and I knew I was in for a treat. And the price was a little over $2 a yard!!!! SCORE! I think I bought 30 yards total (I was buying for liZ too ;). Please forgive the pictures on my camera phone so but I wanted to give you an idea of what was there for fabric shopping there.
The trim section was to die for in colors I have never even seen before…and I didn’t get a picture of it but there was a whole wall of buttons and lace and zippers behind it!
It was winter so I wasn’t thinking plaid (I was there for warm!) but I should have bought some flannel plaids—the selection was amazing.
And ginghams and seersuckers galore…I did buy quite a few yards of this, so look for it in upcoming sewing projects.
And these polyester knits were fantastic. I kept telling my husband did he know how great these colors were? He wasn’t super impressed but he was a trooper.
Lots of stretch laces…
And these cotton/rayon blends have a great weight to them—I bought a ton! (In fact last Friday’s pants were made from the front blue floral and the drape is divine.)
Tips for Fabric Shopping in Puerto Vallarta Mexico
*You aren’t allowed to pull fabric yourself and take it to the cutting counter. Most of the workers walk around with scissors around their necks and are there to pull and take fabric to the cutting counter or cut it straight off the bolts from the shelves.
*Before you pick up your fabric after it has been cut, you have to go to the “caja” and pay for it. You will receive your fabric bundle after you show your receipt to the cutting counter.
*The fabric quality varies but I was pleasantly surprised with some of the deals that were there. The flannel has a great weight, the rayon blends were my favorite, and the 4 way polyester knit was AMAZING (way better quality than I have seen here!).
*The fabric was VERY reasonable priced. I spent just over $100 and got almost 40 yards of fabric!
*If you are planning on going fabric shopping at all….just take another suitcase. Just trust me on that one.
*It was fun! If you are on the fence….GO! I loved seeing the different types of fabric and the trims and laces.
Maybe a trip for all of us to the beach and fabric shopping is order for all of us….wouldn’t that be so fun?
~Elizabeth
All I can say is “WOW” what a way to spend vacation and lucky you. My kind of fabric store. I checked out their website. I don’t think they sell online. I sense maybe soon. Gorgeous fabrics and great prices! I stumbled across a woman on facebook who has a dressmaking business and she buys fabric by the bolt in Mexico. Now I know why. Happy Sewing!
I am not an english speaker, but I’ll try to make my best.
I live in Mexico and my town has more than 10 Parisina stores. I go there because they sell American Cotton for patchworking (LOL) and you searched mexican fabrics. Your first picture shows “cambaya” that is an acrylic mexican fabric with loose texture, so it’s not too hot…
Parisina has very good prices because they give money to the producer in advance or when they have money trouble, such that Parisina has the best prices for selling.
Plaids are in many many styles because the mexican schools use these for theirs pants and skirts for students. That is why you don’t see mexican women dressed with plaids….
It is very complicate to find cotton gingham…. I find it always with a 50% of polyester…
I have two other favorite stores : Casa Bayon and Nuevo Mundo. They are a little bit less cheap but they have an advantage for me : both have accurate written flags with the real material of the fabrics ( Parisina writes cotton where there are mixed fabrics or 100% synthetic ones and sell as “american” cotton fabrics for patchworking, some other mexican poor cotton fabrics and I have to choose the authentic good ones)
Another store is Modatelas, as cheap as Parisina but with lower quality. I don’t suggest it as a good store.
If you don’t search for 100% natural fibers, Parisina is the best option.
I don’t believe that they sell online, because they have stores everywhere, but I give you the web address of the stores:
https://www.telasgrupoparisina.com
http://www.bayon.com.mx
http://www.elnuevomundo.com/telas.php
I hope that my english was understandable . Thanks for sharing many sewing stuff!
yep my home!!! there are 2 more that are even better down the street, moda telas and the one on the other side farther down!!! the only funky thing is not 100% cotton, but the prints are fun i use them for linings a lot
Thank you so much Annie for all your tips!!!
I ran across this post when I was looking for a fabric store in Puerto Vallarta. I’m staying here for two months and I love spending hours in the fabric stores here. I even found a tiny hole in the wall where a lady sells a small selection of fabric at very good prices. One thing you didn’t mention, but your visitors should know about, is the plethora of gorgeous Christmas fabric that is brought out late in the year and put away in early January. I bought enough poinsettia fabric from a tablecloth bolt to cover my 16-foot Christmas table! My friend bought the same fabric and made a circle skirt and shawl to wear at Christmas.
Keep up the good work!