Shopping for Leather and Suede in the Garment District

An aisle of skins at Global Leathers on W. 35th Street.

Updated post - originally posted in September of 2011, but the district's offerings have expanded since then!

Updated again (2/27/15) - Here's a link to some great information on leather preparation processes that bring great leather to you...

Updated again (10/17/16) - Some stores have closed, moved, changed their offerings, and new ones have arrived.  You can view the leather map for an updated view of what's available.

Note: Check out a fairly recent post on a new place (NAT leather) to find leather in the garment district.

Come along on "The Hard Stuff" Tour on June 21, 2013 (past) - there will be more tours in the future!  Click the link to see what tours are happening soon!

Good news: Leather and suede skins and trims are still plentiful in the Garment District.
Bad news: They aren't cheap and you need to know what you are doing before you sit down to sew with leather or suede.

To the best of my knowledge, there are three stores in NYC's Garment District that deal primarily in leather and suede skins: Global Leathers; Leather Impact; and Leather, Suede, Skins. A few other stores in the area sell some leather and suede in addition to their regular offerings, such as Mood Fabrics and Botani Trims. Prices for skins appear to be similar among all the stores: approximately $35 to $55 and up per skin, depending on size and type of skin. At any of these stores you will have no problem finding beautiful skins of all types: cattle, pig and hog, deer, sheep and lamb, goat and kid, and exotic and fancy leathers.

The best advice I can give budding leather sewists is to know before you go. Don't expect the leather stores' staff to have the time or inclination to teach you how to sew animal skins or to advise you on which type of skin to use, and none of them sell books or tools for sewing with leather. I read the out-of-print book Sewing with Leather and Suede by Sandy Scrivano (Lark Books, 1998) before I bought my first skin two weeks ago, and found it very helpful. A fellow shopper at one of the stores told me FIT offers classes on leather sewing. If you don't know what type of skin to buy for your project you'll walk into one of these stores and be overwhelmed by all the choices, or you'll buy the wrong type of skin and won't be happy with your garment's outcome. You also buy leather by the whole skin, so I strongly recommend you have your pattern with you so you can determine exactly how many skins you're going to need.

Here are my quick impressions of the three leather and suede stores:

Global Leathers (253 W. 35th St., 9th Fl, 212-244-5190, M-F 9 am - 5pm): The largest of the three stores in terms of retail square footage. Helpful signage identifying the types of skins. I bought a roughly 10-inch square of uber-soft black lambskin for $2 from the scrap bin in the back of the store. Annoyed by two Parsons students who were cutting huge swatches from skins when the staff wasn't looking.

Leather Impact (256 W. 38th St., 212-302-2332, M-F 9 am - 5pm): The best selection of leather and suede trims and bindings. Thought it would be the busiest of the three stores since it's on the street level and can attract walk-by traffic, but it's quieter than the others. With prices at parity with the other leather dealers, this is a good thing if you want fast service.

Leather, Suede, Skins, Inc. 261 W. 35th St., 11th Fl, 212-967-6616, M-F 9 am - 5pm): By far the busiest and liveliest of the three leather stores. Run by a knowledgeable family--mother, father, adult daughter--who are helpful if they think you are serious about buying from them. The mother is not above a little friendly sales pressure, but if you ask she'll also tell you if she thinks you'd look better in the buff leather than you would in the dark tan. No photos allowed.

Other stores that sell a limited selection of leather and suede skins: Botani Trims on W. 36th (they actually just opened a leather department to court the handbag market), Mood Fabrics on W. 37th (decent selection in a small corner on their lower floor), Prime Fabrics on W. 35th (just a handful of real skins but a good selection of fakes too), G&R Fabrics on W. 39th (there's a pile of seconds and damaged skins at reduced prices near the store's front window), and M&J Trims on Sixth Ave. (for leather and suede trims).

Right now (1/30/15) - Metro Textiles, Fabrics & Fabrics, B&J Fabrics, Day to Day (closing soon) and Paron Fabrics have some exciting offerings, too!

Let me know if I'm missing any stores, ok?

I loved the leather trims at Leather Impact. Five dollars a yard per trim seemed to be about the average price.

Another view of Leather Impact

A scrap bin at Global Leathers. Suggestion: Buy some leather or suede scraps and practice sewing on these before you commit to buying an entire skin.

The skins corner at Mood Fabrics.

NYC Notions/Fabric/Unique Service store: Botani Trimmings Inc.

Note: Botani Trimmings has been reviewed here in the past, but I am seeing this place in a new light after last week's visit.  Read on for why...

Botani Trimming, Inc.
263 West 36th Street
New York, NY 10018
www.botanitrim.com
(212) 244-3222
Mon-Fri 9AM-6PM

Ever feel like you're missing something?  I certainly felt like I was, when I heard the occasional chatter about Lampo zippers.  Quite pricey by comparison to your standard YKK and other garment district offerings, I believed that their appeal was that they are fancier, indulgent, and sleek-looking, almost like jewelry on a bag or garment, which explains the higher prices (be prepared to spend at least $13 or more for one, depending on the type).

But... no.  I was wrong. That's mot really it. And now I get it.  And realizing that now, there are garments I made in the past that I wish I could reach back to retrieve and improve with these fabulous zippers.

How did I come to this revelation?  On a whim, I walked into Botani Trimmings, Inc, which I never pass on my usual routes in the garment district, and asked the question I had been sorta embarrassed to ask. I mean, when someone says "Chanel" to you, you normally just shut up, assuming it is out of your league, right?  Note: Visit the site to see better pictures of the place and products than I am capable of.

The lovely salesperson who greeted me, enthusiastically ushered me over to a wall of zippers, inviting me to test and experience the smooth flow of the zippers, check the teeth, appreciate the weight and durability of the tape.  Yes, it is obvious.  These are quality zippers.  The pull is definitely there to stay.  The open end, closed end, and double slider zips and vast variety of tape colors can certainly satisfy your quality zipper needs.

While standing there in the store, my mind jumped to a client for whom I made a 60's style Steve McQueen-like racing jacket.  He wanted his original duplicated, which had been made in Italy, and was now just impossible to find.  One of the first things my client mentioned, was that the right zipper was key to the project.  I found a quality zipper, which he vetoed, so we used the one from his original jacket... but THESE zippers... oh THESE zippers, were clearly what he meant, had I known.

Original racing jacket, made in Italy

Original racing jacket, well-worn, but perfect.

Duplicate I made with modern materials.

So, who uses Lampo Zippers?

Referred to as the "Ferrari" of zippers, Lampo has been used by designers like Balenciaga, Chanel, Prada, and more.  High-end designer bags often use Lampo zippers.  Check the pull, and you may find the engraved "Lampo" name.

When would it make sense to use a Lampo zipper?  

When you expect the item to last a long  time, and you don't want to ever replace the zipper.
When it needs to be durable, and of quality.
When you want the quality of the zipper to match the quality of the materials used to make the item.
When you want to replace the zipper in an item that used this type/quality of zipper.

The company clearly has a long, rich history.  Enough so that you feel like you've attended a lecture after visiting their website. An odd little Fellini-esque video can be found on the Italian site, too, with some Italian poetry included... but really, you don't need a Rosetta Stone course to appreciate it.

Since their expansion, in addition to their fashion hardware (aptly named) selection, Botani has a leather department, and will now, not only provide the supplies, or even perform the repair on handbags, but they will actually create a custom handbag based on your design.  I can feel a collective push from you readers as you scream "Get outta here!", but no, I'm serious! The particularly elegant layout may feel a bit intimidating to the uninitiated, but you can totally go in and ask any silly question you want, and get treated with complete respect.

So, now you know.

Homegrown in the Garment District: My Leather Tote

I normally keep my personal sewing adventures off this site, because it's really about the stores and the services here in the Garment District, but I couldn't resist sharing my first attempt at sewing a leather tote. Introducing my "NYC Garment District Magazine Tote." It's soft, pliable, and just the right size for carrying home all the international fashion magazines I pick up at Around the World Magazines on W. 37th Street. I deliberately kept it very simple so I could throw it in my office file drawer without it clinking and clanging from a lot of hardware.

This bag was completely homegrown here in the Garment District. The black lambskin and British tan leather trim came from Leather, Suede, Skins on W. 35th. The paisley silk lining is Milly and came from Elliott Berman Textiles on W. 35th. This was so much fun to make I think I see more leather totes in my future….

Interested in breaking into the handbag business? Check out Handbag Designer 101, founded by local success story Emily Blumenthal.

Attention, Aspiring Handbag Designers

Rebecca Minkoff MAC Clutch

If you're in the NYC area next Tuesday night you can meet designer Rebecca Minkoff and learn how she got her start and built a successful brand. All the event information is here. I covet a Rebecca Minkoff bag, especially one of her nifty crossbody bags…. (Thank you, Fashion Center, for posting the heads-up about this event on Facebook.)