If you're going to New York, then you have to go to the garment district. It's the law. Well, it should be.
And if you're going to the garment district then you are obviously going to go to Tinsel Trading . Why? Because, it's the law. It is I tell you.
Unfortunately I didn't take any photo's of Tinsel Trading, but I did have a great time and I do highly recommend it.
Whilst we were in there Jim got talking to Marcia, the owner, about trim (he's good like that) and we ended up having a very interesting chat. And it's things like that that make a shopping trip for me. I love meeting interesting people and hearing all about how they got in to the business they're in. And I love that Jim enjoys that too. I particularly enjoy listening to him talk about how hard it is to get hold of decent ribbon and trim in the UK! That's a guy who's more than comfortable with his masculinity!
The shop itself is absolutely beautiful. And although I'm not much of an embellisher, and a lot of the stock isn't aimed at someone like me, it was still an absolute delight to wander around. And I'm pretty sure that we spent almost an hour in there, just looking and chatting.
Oh and listening to other customers. That was another really interesting part. Hearing what people were looking for and how they were going to use it. And all the staff were incredibly helpful. Even when a customer just had an enquiry and said straight out that they weren't going to get anything that day. Great service and a great atmosphere.
And although I didn't buy a lot from Tinsel Trading, I definitely could have!
Around the corner from TT is M & J Trimming, which is equally amazing, but in a totally different way. This place is kind of like a supermarket for trim. It's big and brightly lit and the staff treat you like crap. But the trim? The trim is wonderful. As are the buttons and the lace and the handles and the, well you get the picture. Believe me, it's more than worth a visit. Just be careful though, because it is very easy to spend a small (or large) fortune in there.
There's obviously a lot more to the Garment District, and you could easily spend days wondering around looking in every fabric shop and ribbon shop, but we were limited to an afternoon, so we stuck to the usual suspects of Hyman Hendler (very beautiful but very expensive ribbons), So Good (ribbons again) and of course the wonderful Grayline Linen.
Next time, (oh yes, there will be New York - The Return) I'm going to plan better and perhaps even remember to print out the incredibly helpful Liesl's guide to crafting in New York (duh).
And finally, my little egg is at my Mom's for the next two days, and that always means a photo to keep me going. That's the law too.
