PSA: That cheap fabric I bought online turned out to be a total scam

I needed some olive green cotton for a spring jacket project last month. Found a site selling it for $4 a yard, which seemed too good to be true. I went ahead and ordered 5 yards anyway because the photos looked fine. When it arrived, the color was completely off, more like swamp brown than olive. Worse than that, the fabric felt like plastic, not cotton at all. I washed a test swatch and it shrunk nearly 3 inches and the dye bled everywhere. Now I'm out $20 plus shipping and I got nothing usable from it. Has anyone else had luck with those discount fabric sites or should I just stick to my local shop?

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3 Comments

hannahk193mo ago

Cheaper fabric sites work fine if you avoid the too good to be true prices.

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jana1194mo ago

That happened to me with some supposed linen last year. Paid $5 a yard for what they called "French linen blend." It came in and felt like plastic tablecloth material. I washed it once and the whole thing turned into a wrinkled mess that wouldn't iron flat. Ended up donating it to a school art program because nobody could sew with it. Now I only buy fabric I can touch first. Local shops are more expensive but at least you know what you're getting.

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christopher_wells44mo ago

Oh man, that is such a bummer! I really feel for you on this one because I've been burned the exact same way before. There's nothing worse than getting all excited for some nice fabric and then it shows up and it's basically glorified plastic wrap. You did the right thing donating it though, that's actually a smart way to not feel like you totally wasted your money. I've learned that lesson the hard way too, now I'm super picky about where I order from online.

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