Monday, January 12, 2015

What happened to Woolworth's, Greenberg & Hammer, La Button Boutique, A&G, K Trimming, Art Max, So-Good Ribbons... and.... and

Once upon a time, in the garment district, there was:

Greenberg & Hammer





This place can't be duplicated.  An old Shop the Garment District post acknowledges the loss. Old fashioned business, knowledgeable staff, wonderful, and peerless products.  Winning product, sadly now unfindable - is great tailoring-weight interfacing.  Best current substitute vendor?  Try Steinlauf & Stoller

La Button Boutique

Wonderful button store, FULL of an amazing array of wonderful buttons.  Floor to ceiling, beautifully curated selection.  Best current substitutes?  Buttonology (for beautiful and eclectic), Pacific Trimming (great prices and variety), M&J (quality and uniqueness, if you don't mind the prices), and Daytona Trimming (if you simply enjoy the ride, and are open to whatever you find)

A&G Trimming and K Trimming:
 


The jam-packed aisles of K Trimming won't be forgotten...

These places were unique in their offerings, much like Daytona Trimming is now. I assume it eventually just becomes a story of "when it's gone, it's gone"...

Woolworth's: 

The huge, multi-level Woolworth store location (on 34th Street) was once a great place to buy sewing notions.  Of course I was a child then, but I still have tools my mother bought there waaaay back when... A seam ripper, a tomato pin-cushion.... From a time when things were absolutely made to last!  Best modern alternative for similar products? Fashion Design Books near Fashion Institute of Technology.

Art Max Fabrics: 


One of my favorite early places to shop as a teen, I found the fabrics for my early Issey Miyake pattern experiments there! Loved every bit of shopping there...  Thinking back, I probably should have just had my allowance and early paychecks wired to them directly. Best modern alternative?  Rosen & Chadick

US Liberty Fabric: 


No pics, no links... just... nothin'. Poof! Washed silks and soft cottons with such beautiful prints, I just couldn't bear the beauty.  They moved upstairs to a less retail-friendly location, and seem to have faded away in the years since.  Best modern alternative?  Fabrics & Fabrics has some really awesome stuff...

So-Good Ribbons:  


Looks like this store has bid us adieu as well.  Best modern alternatives?  Mokuba (if you can ignore the price LEAP!) and Daytona Trimming.

Do you miss the district stores of yesteryear?  Come along on the Stroll Down Memory Lane Speakeasy!  Click the link for details!

1 comment:

  1. Loved the old memories. Visiting Woolworth's after pay day used to be a regular ritual for me.

    ReplyDelete

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