FabMo is a wonderful community resource that I wish more people knew about. Run by a cadre of mostly women volunteers, this organization rescues discontinued samples from upscale design showrooms in San Francisco. Housed in a small Sunnyvale warehouse, the organization says that each year, they keep about 70 tons (!) of material from going to the landfill. FabMo hosts regular sales open to the public as well as biannual "free giveaway" events. Customers can find tile, carpet, textile fabrics, wallpaper and more. Many materials are provided for free to teachers and there are also donations from the local community. Quilting fabrics, silk fabrics, jewelry making items, sewing notions, leather, decorations and much, much more are offered for sale in person or online through the FabMo eBay store. The only thing I wish that FabMo would do is to develop a partnership with WomenSV - a non-profit group based in the neighboring town of Los Altos. WomenSV helps women get out of abusive relationships. A little known fact about California family law is that, while the legal process is ongoing, individuals are prohibited from selling or using community property to make money. This allows for a continuation of financial abuse by the more powerful partner as they can delay the legal process indefinitely. In my own case, the divorce has been going on for three years as my ex has blocked me from accessing funds that are legally mine. Thanks to the low and no-cost materials I got from FabMo, I have been able to make and sell small craft items in order to buy groceries and obtain veterinary care for my service dog. As FabMo already hosts regular crafting lessons, I wonder if FabMo could somehow do community outreach to provide materials and teach skills to women trying to leave their abusers. Even people who have already managed to escape could benefit from the amazing work that the FabMo volunteers do. They're so successful at saving materials - - wouldn't it be great they could be a part of saving lives. Thanks, FabMo! read more

best of all craft supplies...keeping treasures out of the landfill and enriching the community with the art made from castaways! read more

Before penning this review I circled back to see what categories yelp had listed for FabMo: "Fabric Stores" and "Carpeting" don't begin to explain this place. "Labor of Love", "Landfill Extractor", and "Crafter's Delight" might be more accurate. Each week, Fabmo volunteers visit San Francisco's Design Center to load up on all the things that would otherwise go into landfill. Fabric, tiles, carpet squares, trim... the list goes on. For any creative type it's a win-win, with less in the landfills and a bevy of materials to use in your creations, much of it free of charge. One must have an appointment to visit (book online) and though the appointments allot you a time slot, if it's not busy you're welcome to stay as long as your heart desires. I'd come specifically because their email announcement indicated they'd have a lot of upholstery swatch books but the fun started before I even checked in. Outside the shop, racks of free items were nicely organized, much of it the fabric samples I'd come for. Inside, a volunteer gives you the lay of the land before letting you loose. On this visit, one whole room was filled with designer fabric swatch books and loose but organized designer swatches, all free of charge. Other rooms have other things, including lots more (larger) fabric pieces, tile, yarn... the list goes on. What's not free is very reasonably priced. If you have any idea of what you might like to create from fabric swatches, fabric in general, yarn, or tile Fabmo is worth visit. If you're an educator, a quilter, or just a random creator, same. Obviously, this sort of thing isn't everyone's jam but if it's yours Fabmo is the place. read more

First time here in June and I wasn't sure what it would be like. I brought a friend to check it out. As a nonprofit, the building is barebones and has several small rooms. We had fun picking through the designer fabric samples, books, and accessories. I bought some quilt fabrics and embroidery floss, my friend got 4 pieces of upholstery fabric to make into pillows. Our combined purchases totaled under $7! Score! We'll be back. read more

Great place for a WYSIWYG fabric shopping experience. They put out new things daily. The staff is very helpful.

I'm so greatful for FabMo!!! Needed fabric for curtains as a classroom teacher and this place had just what I needed. I'm so thankful for the fabric and other items. FabMo is fantastic. Students at the school used the extra pieces for a project and instructional tool for the yeah. We will reuse these items. The 6th grade students and staff of 2021-2022 school year kindly thank you! See pictures. read more

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THIS STORE IS NOT CLOSED it just has weird hours. Go to their website to find things to buy online. Pick up of your purchase is reserved for Fridays and Tuesdays (check the site before you go). This shop and site is certainly a TJMaxx-type of place. You never know what they will have and how much of it they will have of any one item. For me it was worth it because I needed to make a cover for a bag and didn't need that much material. I will come back for more when I think of another project. Setting expectations: when you pick up you'll see a check in desk, an empty room with a few tables on it, and then a warehouse filled with stuff that you're not allowed to go into. Someone nice will come and grab your purchase out of the warehouse & give it to you. They also have events every so often where they allow the public to look at the products before buying - check out their calendar. read more

This place is not closed! They are open by appointment only a few days a month, and due to covid only allow a few people at a time. I have been living in Sunnyvale for over 30 years and recently found out about it. So charming, a crafters paradise! Bargain prices with all kinds of items: fabric, yarn, needlepoint, tiles etc. The best part is all items are collected from sources which otherwise would have gone into landfills. read more

Great selection of samples and fabric remnants to choose from. My issue, however, is with the staff. Two staff members in particular. Every five minutes, in a school-teacher fashion, a woman with short grey hair and a patchwork jacket would yell "EVERYBODY CALM DOWN AND ORGANIZE THE PILES. WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH STAFF TO DO IT FOR YOU." Um...I'm sorry, did I just get sent back to elementary school? Maybe if she had politely asked people to keep things organized rather than yelling, they would have gotten 5 stars from me. Also, the woman who sat near the tip jar got super friendly with my mom trying to push wallpaper upon us, but when we didn't buy any, I got her pursing her lips in response to me dropping a $20 into the jar after saying, "Thank you!" Sorry love, if I need wallpaper, I'll come back. I needed oilcloth or canvas upon my most recent trip. The carpet samples intrigued me, as some of them were large enough to be used on their own. I was tempted to get a few and fashion my own large area rug...but maybe next time. Overall, a great visit-but I wish that the one volunteer wouldn't have been so disrespectful. The customers pay to keep the business afloat, so kindness is crucial. read more

Fabulous Fabrics actually go in the trash? Are you kidding me? Not as much now that Fab Mo scouts out the goods, picks up, sorts and offers to the crafty public every month! How cool is that? Check out the web site for specials sales on things like tile and household goods. I volunteer at this place. It so rocks my socks! I love the things I am able to create on a super tight student budget. My current Issey Miyake pants look great and they came from upcycled fabric. Concept! Ok gotta go... get my craft on with the goods I scored at Fabrics and More. read more

FabMo - At Fab Mo we love everyone equal. Volunteers or fabric lovers. - Fabric Stores Near Me - Sunnyvale, California

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FabMo is a wonderful place for finding fabric, wallpaper, leather, tile and many other things that are saved from the landfill. They have two events each month on Thursday, Friday and Saturday and are sometimes open at other times. Check the website at FabMo.org on their calendar to see what is coming up. They also have an online store on the website that is curbside pickup only - this was necessary during restricted access times during the height of Covid but it is still available. I volunteer there!! read more

TOTALLY DYNAMITE! This is a wonderful place to not only get inexpensive or FREE fabric, but also a way to decrease our carbon footprint and reduce the amount of garbage we put in the landfill. You must make an appointment to enjoy this fabric extravaganza, and they also promote giving a donation to keep the place running (please donate!) They give away many samples of fabric that stores just dont want anymore.. that would normally go in the garbage can. They offer many styles of fabric, even sewing patterns, yarn, and sewing needles. Anyone who enjoys quilting, looking for a fun material to make a tie, or just looking for ideas, I recommend making an appointment read more

FabMo - Fabric Stores Near Me - Sunnyvale, California

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Remember, this isn't a walk-in store. Most of their events are by appointment-only, and they will occasionally host first-come, first-serve FabMo is great for getting really really cheap fabrics & home goods. Most big bolts here are upholstery grade, although you will find many garment-grade fabrics that are smaller. It'll be a rare occasion to find garment fabric larger than 3 yd, but I've found lots of fabrics for practicing my sewing and making accessories. Occasionally they will host leather sale, which is insanely popular. The reason why it's A-OK as opposed to Amazing is because of a few "bad apple" rude volunteers / customers.. (It's hard to tell who is a volunteer and who is a customer.) I once biked here and accidentally forgot my bike lock. When inquiring if there was a place to park my bike in a more hidden location, one of the ladies rolled her eyes at me, shrugged, and yelled "SHOULDA BROUGHT YOUR LOCK!" in a bullying tone. Her words didn't hurt. It was her eye roll, shrug, and the tone of voice in which made me feel unwelcomed. When I pointed out the lady who did that, the volunteers gave me a sorry shrug. I didn't bother with the appointment. I left. I was pretty mad after that incident, but I would feel too bad giving them anything less than 3 stars. Most people there are quite helpful (until they're stressed I guess), and I've found some really awesome fabrics for my sewing projects there. Definitely check out FabMo, and make sure to bring thick skin in case some people are having a bad day. read more

Wandering through Makers Faire, kids bored, we stumbled upon the FabMo booth. They've got piles of ribbon, fabric, buttons, tiny tiles, whatever, in plastic containers and are inviting the little ones to make hand puppets from these scraps. The kids had a fabulous time, planning, picking pieces, gluing. And now we have two hand puppets made from what otherwise would be sitting in some landfill not giving my kids that Big Grin. The women manning the booth were tickled by all the kids clearly using too much glue. read more

I found this place on yelp last week as I was searching for fabric stores on the peninsula. I read the reviews and did not know what to expect. My mom and I signed up and went in yesterday. WOW! what a fun and interesting place. It is great for the crafter who likes small projects. That is why it is perfect for me. I had a blast finding interesting and unusual snippets for making wallets, bags and purses.I cannot agree with Karla we were told about the donation tin but did not feel pressured at all. Maybe Karla just had an over zealous volunteer that day. The ladies were very nice. I even felt like going to volunteer some time soon. I did find a lovely piece of black and white fabric that was at least two meters worth. I looked it up and it was $50 a yard....score. I took home a book of samples. The fabric was high quality as they ranged from $300-$500 a yard. I know it is just snippets but still worth it. We had a fun time. My mom joked that she felt like she was stealing. We took home a half a grocery bag of fabric. We cannot wait to go again. I have already created one clutch purse from some of the fabric. read more

FabMo - Purple clutch made from three pieces of fabmo fabric. - Fabric Stores Near Me - Sunnyvale, California

My friend introduced me to Fabmo and I'm so happy she did! For my $20 donation (which I didn't feel pressured to give, I just followed the suggested bag size donation at the door) I was able to make an entire quilt top and lots of fabric left over. The designer fabric is great and I got a fabric book, odds and ends of trim, some embroidery floss... It was really fun to fill my bag! Eagerly looking forward to the next month! I like the reservation system to keep people spread out. read more

FabMo - A quilt top made from Fabmo fabric scraps - Fabric Stores Near Me - Sunnyvale, California

FabMo is so fun! They have all different sizes of fabrics depending upon where they get the fabric. If a dressmaker, upholster goes out of business and they donate their inventory to FabMo then you have fabric on rolls. If the fabric is from the Design Center generally they are small swatches and discontinued fabrics. I volunteer there and I pay for my fabric. I have gotten some Fabulous fabrics to cover my window seat and make matching pillows. The fabric retailed at $225, I bought it for $10/yd. Amazing. I live on the coast and I have gotten some Sunbrella fabrics for outdoor pillows...24" squares~fade resistant and mildew resistant~ incredible. read more

. I used to regularly go to their monthly sale and encouraged a friend to tag along one of those times. The place claims everything is donation based but not really. It can be extremely pricey depending on what you pick since the amounts are based on the bag size. A few small pieces of fabric samples could easily cost you $10 The volunteers are very pushy and nag you constantly. But, it's for a good cause and the founders have good intentions and fabric is my weakness. So, I continued supporting till my friend was insulted that day. I paid for the both of us and stepped out to keep my bag in the car while she lingered for a few more minutes and followed me. The volunteer near the door shamed her for stealing and I was shocked when the volunteer didn't even believe that I paid for both our bags. She thought I was donating more. Why should I? We paid $20 for stuff that is really worth nothing.Scrap-SF puts this stuff at their free section. The good thing is, this incident cured me of my fabmo addiction. read more

This is a crafters dream. For just a few dollars I was able to get the fabric we used to create a "fairy" play space for my 6 year old. The ladies working there were very friendly and kind. read more

What's not to love about FabMo? Their idea of recycling fabrics, tiles, wallpapers (etc) that would otherwise be thrown away is GENIUS. They also don't charge much as only donations are required. Donations are used to help pay rent for the place. My sister and I came here with two bags and left with them full of fabric squares, scraps, and 2 fabric books. The volunteers were all really nice and very chatty. I am pretty sure they are only open a few days out of the month, so get in while you can. There are always tons of different fabrics to choose from, so dont worry about missing out on all the good stuff! read more

I have seen Fab Mo around my community at special events and even taken home some free samples. So when I saw that Fab Mo was holding a "upcycle challenge" at the San Mateo County Fair I didn't hesitate to enter. What I got was a bag full of materials, and a chance to see what I could do. It was hard at first, I drew a blank. Very small pieces of samples, some weird stuff like tile and wood pieces, etc. Well much to my surprise, the doll play house I made won first place prize in the Fab Mo Challenge! That means I get to go to Fab Mo and fill a bag full of stuff and see the new location, I can't wait. I'm so happy to have had a chance to participate in the contest. I would have never thought to make something like that, it turned out great and I am going to make another one! I just wanted to say thank you to Fab Mo for the inspiring stuff, and for doing things like this for the community. I haven't had this much fun since I was a little kid in art class. read more

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what a gem! my dog DESTROYED a couch cushion, and after a quick look on yelp i figured i'd try my luck here. i found THE PERFECT match for our cushion and just barely enough fabric to get the cover made. i made a donation and walked out with exactly what i was looking for! i imagine if i was actually one of those crafty people, i would be here every week. what a great concept - happy to support a place that is doing something so cool. read more

Its such a nice nonprofit organization i got many good stuff there buttons,zippers,vintage patterns,even cutting board but fabrics are smelling odor so badly read more