Now if you are just looking for sample yardage and do not want to worry about future ordering (in which case you would need to consider minimums), then you are more free to consider ordering sample cuts from whichever vendor suits your fancy. However, keep in mind that not all vendors have stock on hand — many of them make to order, and most must ship from overseas. This can make the wait time 6 weeks or more.

Also, if you have never ordered from a wholesaler before, be prepared to answer questions such as your company name, address, phone, and tax id number. This is standard practice, because you are buying goods wholesale, without tax, with the expectation that you will be reselling the goods in one form or another. (Soon I will write an article on how to set yourself up as a business.)

• Calamo Silk — on 55 W 39th St. Calamo has all kinds of silk on premises, with about 100 different colors in stock. They send over their color card practically overnight, and the quality of their goods is pretty decent.
• C&J Textiles — at 230 W 38th St. Their website doesn’t seem to be working (did they change it?), but they always have a huge selection of various silks, along with some wool fabrications. 96 colors in stock for the more common weaves. Here, again, be prepared to set up an account with an account manager.
• Eastern Silk Mills — the factory is in New Jersey and the office is in the city, at 561 7th ave, 15th floor.  They also have 96 colors in stock, for several silk fabrications including charmeuse, georgette, chiffon, and organza (plus more).  It is definitely worth checking them out, as they are one of the few (if not only) suppliers which still operate and produce within the United States.
• P|V — on the 11th Floor of 225 W 37th (the same building that Mood Fabrics is located), Preview Textile Group has a range of common silks in 96 colors as well. I’ve been there to check out their silk (this is when they just started their business), but have not ordered from them.

There it is. What a short list! But here I am only including the basic silk sources, not the smaller, more high-end ones which offer high quality one-of-a-kind prints or custom colors. This is because you would typically have to order big volumes and would have to be lucky enough that they have the color you want in stock for sampling yardage. Once I did just that — I ordered sample yardage of beautiful irredescent chiffons from a small local textile importer. I was very happy with the fabric, but I did have to wait for shipping, and I would not have been able to order the minimum quantity for production. This is why it is important to think ahead, even when it is impossible to know exactly what you will need in the future.

• size — Size 6 or 8 is standard, but if you are smaller or bigger than that, for personal reasons you might want to search for a form close to your measurements. One thing to keep in mind, though — don’t be too strict on your requirements for a form, as no form (unless custom-made for you) will be perfect. You will always need to adjust your pattern for a live model, and this is stardard procedure in the industry. So if your form differs from the measurements you or your model have, you will just have to learn how to adjust your pattern to reflect this. There is no way around it.
• type of form — there are pants forms, lingerie & swimwear forms, sleeves to hook onto your forms, etc. Unless you are strictly a specialty designer and you will never drape ‘regular’ garments, then stick with the standard dress form. Pants forms, although you might think you need them, are typically unnecessary. You might imagine draping a dress on a full-figure pants form, but it really does not work well. Trust me. In any case, pants are usually created by flat-patternmaking and then fitting. Rarely do you actually need to drape a pant.

Next let’s list the best dress form sources — new, used, & alternatives:

NEW:

• wolf forms — THE standard of the fashion industry. You can order new dress forms from their factory in Englewood, NJ in standard sizes or custom-made to you or your model’s measurements. Check out their website for more details. Keep in mind though, new forms are expensive and take quite a while to produce.
• royal forms — sold at Ronis Brothers, here in the garment district on 38th between 7th & 8th. They also sell display forms and every type of form (including dogs!).
• superior model forms — owner Vito Montalto, at 306 38th St between 8th & 9th aves, runs this form company the old-fashioned way - practically everything is manufactured by hand. Years ago I visited his office, and true to his gracious old-world style, he personally showed me around his on-site factory, explaining every painstaking step of the figure-creating process.

USED:

• Hecht Sewing Machines — at 304 West 38th St (between 8th & 9th aves), this family-run sewing machinery company specializes in fixing and selling old sewing machines & accessories, which includes used dress forms in all shapes and sizes. Like a cool vintage store, Hecht’s goods are constantly changing, so you should go and look around often, until you find the form for you.
• retail store closeouts — this may sound like a longshot, but it is possible to find great used dress forms from retail stores. I did! Once I went to a closeout sale, and I noticed the store was selling their fixtures as well. I went up to the owner and simply asked if she was selling any dress forms (she had old professional ones as well as display forms). Long story short, I got a Wolf form for $60!
• craigslist - also a longshot, but if you are patient, you may be lucky enough to find somebody trying to get rid of a nice dress form, simply because they don’t have room for it anymore.
• ebay - of course! But be careful. Shipping fees are going to be high for a dress form, so you may want to find local auctions so you can pick up the form for free. Also, most of the search listings have been filled with display forms which won’t do a draper much good.

ALTERNATIVES:

• “acme” forms — from the cottage sewing industry of what looks like the 60s, these vintage forms were supposed to be adjustable by opening up the pieces to expose air and metal bars, quite simply, in between. For this reason, acme forms are unstable, wobbly, and difficult to adjust. They came in sizes a, b, & c, from what I remember, but they are so hard to adjust and don’t work well when expanded, so just forget about it. Even when ‘closed’, the forms lines do not match typical professional forms’ princess lines, etc, so it is just not a good alternative.
• Dritz “My Double” dress form — the modern version of the acme dress form, this form expands to different sizes by turning a dial. Again, these are not good alternatives for a professional dress form. Unless your draping is basic and non-technical, I would avoid these too.
• wire mesh forms — very vintage, I believe these forms were originally used at the turn of the century (or earlier), as you can still find some antique ones in the shape of corsets and bustles. These forms are completely see-through, and are gorgeous for display, with or without a garment.
• Uniquely You — styrofoam dress forms forced into shape by a cotton cover. I bought one of these, stitched the cover to my spec, and forced the styrofoam (barely) into the cover only to find out that the cotton cover simply stretched out of shape again. I wanted to do a new cover out of a stronger, non-stretchy material, but never got around to it. While fitting it the first time, I realized that it is almost impossible to get the styrofoam into the cover evenly — there is no way to ensure that there are no lumps, or that it doesn’t end up lopsided. Needless to say, I gave up on that idea…
• display forms — a bad alternative for a professional dress form, mainly because they are usually not cut to a real person specs. Display forms are for show, and are usually not pinnable or adjustable or anything. They also do not have lines to follow for draping.
• make your own duck-tape dummy! — sounds cool, and I considered trying this. I think I did but I did not get very far. Try this for fun, but don’t expect much!

So, there you go. It is not easy getting your hands on a professional form for draping (at least cheaply), but if you are persistent, one will come your way eventually. In the meantime, don’t fret — the real alternative, flat patterns and live fittings, can do a lot for you, and it is actually becoming a new industry standard.

In Manhattan there are currently a handful of stores which cater specifically to new up-and-coming fashion designers, either by allowing each designer to rent a portion of their retail space to sell their products or by actually buying the lines wholesale. Of course trade shows, showrooms, and sales reps are good ways to route your designs to the public, but young designers typically do not have the cash (or credit) to start out that way. It also doesn’t hurt to establish a direct relationship with the customer — below is a list of potential places to house your designs while still keeping one foot on the ground.

• EDGE*ny - the concept of showcasing young designers by allowing each designer to rent part of the retail space was basically reinvented by Nicholas Petrou many times over. EDGE*NY actually started out as “emerge nyc,” which was born from his original idea, “the MARKET NYC “, more of an informal weekend market at a gym in Soho. EDGE*NY is undoubtedly much more high-end, almost like a gallery of designer boutiques. Designers rent either a booth or counter space, and must man their own part of the boutique. Although the rates seemed a little high the last time I checked it out, it is still relatively cheap compared to opening up a store (especially in NOHO, where EDGE is located) and paying for utilities, labor, fixtures etal. Alternatively, try the MARKET nyc , which is probably more affordable (and more indie).
• the Changing Room - a young designer collective that seems to have ‘moved’ from a physical space in SOHO/LES to online. Hopefully, this retail store will revive itself on the internet, and not die out like countless indie-designer boutiques before it (like Forward NYC in the LES, Soho Burrow on Crosby St, and 30vandam in the West Village).
• the Dressing Room - also in the Lower East Side, this underground designer co-op is also a bar and vintage clothing exchange! I think this will be on my list of places to check out soon.
• INDULGE - looks like another collective, but by blending independent designers’ products with unique established ones, Indulge seems more like a multi-designer boutique in SOHO. I am not sure if designers pay for retail space or not, but it looks like they go through an extensive review before getting selected for the store’s assortment.
• Opening Ceremony - this multi-designer boutique showcases the freshest most cutting-edge designs at all times. The owners are always seeking hard-to-find items and unknown design talents for their store, so if you got what it takes, you should definitely give ‘OC’ a shot!
• Unsung Designers - an international online store for indie designers
• New York Designer - another online store for indie designers, but based in NY
• Habit - a boutique in Chicago dedicated to emerging design talent, this fashion spot is now selling their goods online as well. Note the quality of the products offered.

“The Fashion Center” not only produces the singular district map, but it also runs the famous Information Kiosk (with the gigantic button and needle on top) on the corner of 39th and 7th Avenue. It’s hours are short (M-F 10am-4pm only), so make sure to plan ahead. They kindly give out valuable garment district sourcing information for free, so it is definitely worth a trip. For instance, if you go and say “I’d like to know where to find factories that sew leather,” they will print up a list and hand it to you right there on the spot. This resource is one-of-a-kind for fashion in new york.