Shows such as
The Rachel Zoe Project and
Project Runway inundate viewers with talk of draping, folding, and stitching—not to mention fierceness—in fashion. But how do we apply our newfound knowledge at fabric stores? They can be such dingy places: bolts of fabric thrown on tables, no labels or prices anywhere, a gruff owner who determines yardage by using his arms. Enter Sharman Spector of Britex Fabrics, the stalwart shop on Geary Street with a plaque immortalizing the names of its numerous celebrity customers. (Was that David Bowie inspecting the silver lamé?) Spector searches the world for the most unusual textiles and trimmings, keeping San Francisco’s diverse and iconoclastic customers in mind. Here, she tells us how to take an idea from a sudden brainstorm to a finished design, whether you’ve mastered buttonholes or never touched a needle and thread.
Britex Fabrics: 146 Geary St., S.F., 415-392-2910, britexfabrics.com
Your father, the late Martin Spector, first established Britex in Manhattan before opening his S.F. store in 1952. Were they a reaction to typical American fabric shops? The U.S. model was more for the trade, so most people who shopped there knew what they were looking for. Britex is really based on a European model. My father was from Poland, and my mother, Lucy, is Viennese. If you go to Europe, you will still find some beautiful smaller stores where the focus is on presentation.
What are some of the more unusual items you sell? Hundreds of French laces, and wools that range from the finest gauze to the smoothest of luxury cashmeres.
If you were going to have a suit made for yourself, what type of fabric would you choose for San Francisco’s year-round climate? Wool. It is timeless, it doesn’t wrinkle, and it travels well. And it isn’t too hot for San Francisco’s cool summers.
The majority of your female customers buy fabric for galas and parties. What’s the most important fall trend? Lace, and it is usually paired with something soft.
What about fabric patterns? Large, abstract prints.
What are men having made? Shirts. Two men recently came in and bought six shirting fabrics each. They are taking them to Hong Kong and having shirts made there.
I remember mothers sewing their children’s clothing because it was cheaper, but women have entered the workforce and don’t have time for that. Is store-bought clothing still more expensive than sewing? It is still cheaper to sew, if you sew it yourself.
Give me an example. You can find an Armani skirt at a department store for $4,000; or make the same skirt, a simple style, maybe with a kick pleat, using a yard of a high-quality wool crepe that I sell for $95 per yard.
Will the fabric be as up-to-date and the quality as high? I have an Armani beaded Chantilly lace that is made in Italy and sells for $1,150 a yard. I have silk prints made in Italy that are in the current collections of Pucci, Dolce & Gabbana, and Roberto Cavalli.
Left: Armani printed silk satin, made in Italy, $110 per yard; right: viscose and polyamide metallic lace, made in France, $125–275 per yard.
What’s the most common mistake people make when shopping for textiles? They confuse the fiber with the weave. A customer will ask for silk, a fiber, but they are really looking for satin, a very soft, lustrous fabric. Satins can be woven from any fiber: wool, silk, cotton, polyester. You should say “wool satin,” “silk satin,” etc. Since most people don’t sew, how would they go about finding someone to copy a skirt? We have a lengthy reference list of seamstresses and designers at our front desk. But start by choosing a fabric that you love. It determines each garment’s style and drape, and every fabric is going to lie slightly differently.
You’ve said that many of the artsy types who shop here are not influenced by fashion. What inspires them? Big museum exhibitions. With the Frida Kahlo exhibit at SFMOMA, a lot of people created retro Frida looks with rose fabric corsages and heavy Spanish-style lace. This month, the Yves Saint Laurent exhibition at the de Young is sure to inspire. He was a master.
If you’re interested in being eco-conscious, which textiles should you use? People are asking for more sustainable fabrics, like bamboo, which feels like linen, and organic cottons. But they’re still hard to get.
Do those sew and last as well as silks, linens, or cottons? Yes, organic fabric holds up well, since there is less dyeing and processing involved. Bamboo is an inherently strong fiber and is even used for scaffolding in Asia.
Recently, Vogue wrote about buttons falling off new designer clothes, and people are buying better buttons for brand-new garments. Do you see that kind of upgrade? Every day. People come in from all the major department stores and change their buttons, even on couture. Things have been mass-produced, and there is less care and effort put into garments.
Are you seeing a backlash against mass production and an increase in customization? There is an incredible movement to be creative and take time to make something. Not everyone uses a sewing machine—they embellish things by hand, adding lace or jewel trims to the necklines of dresses and jackets. They’re modifying things and making them more stylish.
Main photo: Britex’s Sharman Spector leans on one of the shop’s sliding ladders, which are used to reach fabrics stacked in the wall of wool on the first floor.