My made-to-measure womenswear course at Central St. Martin’s started last weekend. It was exciting (expect an update soon!) but I soon realized that I didn’t have all the tools I needed to create my own clothing patterns.

Determined to not show up next week without tools—and with only Sunday to shop—I headed for the only fabric shop I could find that was open on Sunday: Ray-Stitch in Angel, London.

I’d been to this shop once, when it had been so busy that I could barely move within it. It’s a smaller shop, but every inch is packed with treats: fabric “fat” squares, swatches, and rolls; a cutting room that doubles as a haberdashery; even a mini-room that was wall-to-wall patterns, and an entire shelf of sewing books. (Also a sofa—which I thought was odd, until a couple came in and the gentleman made himself comfortable, while the woman perused the patterns. Genius!)

If I hadn’t been on a mission to find a patternmaster, I think I could have spent all day in this place. But they didn’t stock them (although they stock French curves, I needed a tool with 90- and 45-degree angles in it), so I knew my time was limited. I ended up picking up a few patterns, and a bendy ruler that my instructor had said I might find useful.

Then on my way back to the till, I saw the strangest thing:

“What’s the catch?” I asked.

“No catch!” a cheerful saleswoman replied. She explained that sometimes, due to a surplus of stock, discounting the patterns isn’t as effective as making space as giving them away.

Maybe I haven’t lived long enough, but I have never heard of a store doing this—just giving things away to customers it knew would appreciate them. This was such a cool idea, and definitely a reason to come back (as if I needed another!).

Granted, a lot of them were in the smaller sizes (pattern sizes run small, and the most common size in the UK for women—a 14—requires the larger sizes available, so I’m assuming they’re the most popular).

I took two free patterns, in addition to the ones I decided to buy. Both patterns I purchased—one from Liberty, and one from Papercut—are from brands I haven’t tried before, so I’m curious to see how easy they are to follow compared with the Simplicity or Very Easy Very Vogue collections, which are my usual go-tos.

When I got to the counter, I got talking to another sales associate—everywhere I turned I kept seeing signs saying “MAKE ME” and “TAKE A CLASS” so I asked, how often do classes happen?

It turns out, this place is apparently like a yoga studio for sewers—there are up to three classes per day, often selling out, with six spaces each ongoing in the basement. They post their calendar online and cater to creators at every level, from beginners to those looking for advanced techniques. Such a cool idea for a sewing shop!

It definitely won’t be my last time visiting them—heck, even writing this piece I ended up checking out their sale fabrics online! If you’re in north London, be sure to visit them in person; or check them out online on their website, or their Instagram.