Steinlauf & Stoller

I came here with a designer who likes this place a lot. It’s definitely got lots of stuff if you have sewing and design skills. It strikes me as a place where you’re going to get more help if you’re known by the staff but I remember just looking at stuff when I came in here. I know how to sew but I’m a novice completely out of her element here. If you have some skill in design, you’re probably going to be happy here.

The prices are very reasonable and the people working their are really knowledgable. I was looking for fabric dye for my tights which were accidentally bleached and thankfully they’re just all black tights. I was worried as I YouTubed a video of a girl dying all of her black jeans, black jacket and a lot of black shirts to freshen up the color and some of her clothes didn’t really absorb as much. So I was worried that was going to happen to me. I looked for a dye online that dyed spandex material but didn’t want to wait for shipping so I decided to google and look up places in NYC that sold fabric dye. I came here because it was the shop nearest me & the only one I could easily find! They gave me two options of either liquid or powder I chose powder hoping it would be more concentrated? Don’t know since the girl in the YouTube video used the liquid. But she also stuffed too much clothes in one bucket and I watched another fabric dying video that suggested the more easily the clothes can move the better the color will be absorbed. I was scared the tights wouldn’t take the dye because it was like 85% cotton and 5% spandex and the dye said to use salt for cotton and vinegar for like acrylic or wool something like that. I was confused once again. Was spandex considered an acrylic or polyester or its in a category of its own? So I went in and asked and they assured me as long as my article of clothing is majority cotton I should be able to successfully dye it. I think that makes logical sense. This place is everyone’s favorite as a lot of people are coming in and out its quite popular. They have a wide range of material and great service!

I’ve been coming here ever since I was in fashion school 14 years ago, and I really want established local businesses like this to thrive. I totally get the «it’s NYC you better know what you want» thing, and it is something for new people in the city to get used to, but even still-​customer service is hit or miss. Sometimes it is amazing (actually it’s always amazing with the older employees), other times some of the younger staff act like you don’t exist. I’ll still keep coming here because they are well stocked and I don’t want to give the money that should go to local NYC business to Amazon, but I do hope they sort out the bad days with the newer employees as I don’t think every customer will be as kind.

Very welcoming and such a wide array of supplies and knowledge on said supplies. If ever you’re in need of something button or clip related. They’ll get you sorted.

The button snap on my relatively new puffy winter coat broke soon after its purchase. Groan. Where would I find a replacement and how would I get it on the coat? Steinlauf & Stoller to the rescue!
It is worth traveling miles for the service I received and the quick attention. All the snaps were replaced (more than 10 I think) and for a more than reasonable fee. Thank you, thank you.

Just bought elastic for my hula dance group’s costumes and wished I had more time to look at all the notions. Helpful staff but you have to understand the humor otherwise it can be interpreted as rude. (Hey, it’s NY!). Prices better than Michael’s but could be slightly higher than other places. It’s convenient and it’s open and I had no time to shop around. S&S is an institution in the garment district. I have to come back after I dust off my sewing machine and start a few projects!

As everyone else says, for bra making, corset making, and couture sewing, this place is the gold standard in the Garment District.
I don’t find the staff to be rude, just businesslike. I will say that I’m a cheery, bubbly person and I’ve never been able to get the man helping me to crack a smile. But they’re always very helpful answering my questions about things I’ve never bought before, letting me feel the interfacing to see if it’s what I wanted, etc … and service is always prompt! I’ll take perfect professionalism over a smile.
If you’re pricing out thread and sewing supplies, Sil Thread and Daytona Trimmings may have them cheaper, but there are plenty of things (horsehair, underwires, boning, bra hooks, bra cups, every type of interfacing known to man) that you can only find here.

The young man who works here was astoundingly rude. I came in with some questions and he literally spoke to me as if I was a young child, explaining things in a slow manner, almost gasping with disbelief when I asked him questions that I, apparently, should have known the answers to.
I have never experienced customer «service» quite like this (except, perhaps, on airplanes…)
Thread prices were a little bit ridiculous but I was in a rush so I had to get what I had to get.
They should seriously reconsider employing this d-​bag… I can’t imagine anyone having a pleasant interaction with that young man, and based on a couple other reviews below seems I am not the only one of this opinion.
TL;DR: if you know what you want and what a fair price is, consider coming here. If you’re not sure, do your research first or go elsewhere, unless you want to be talked down to by a loser who works in a sewing shop.

This is the kind of intimate-​scale, personalized service business that hardly exists anymore in cities. They do all sorts of magic, are cheerful to do it and do it for very reasonable prices. The store is a treasure trove of findings and threads. They must stay there forever!

I came in today looking to purchase safety pins since my pencil skirt, embarassingly, ripped during work. I told the lady in the front of the store my situation and she generously gave me safety pins and helped me put together my skirt. She was so sweet. This store definitely has wonderful customer service!

I came here the other day to pick up some supplies. They have pretty much anything you need and have been around forever.
Since I work a block away it’s nice to have this place around. Not sure about their prices but they seem fine to me and the people are very knowledgeable.

I have been going to them for years. Since the area has so many trim and supply stores they seem to be the oldest. Love that they have Nancy to do the groments and covered buttons she is terrific. Always polite, even when the client is nervous. It’s my go to for supplies, and if they don’t have it I then go to others in the neighborhood.

Snap and Grommet repair!
I had a snap on a nice leather wallet fall apart and I was very depressed. I had no idea how I’d fix it. After asking around a bit, someone told me about Steinlauf & Stoller and about the magica woman in the window who simply sits all day with an antique-​foot-​powered-​industrial snap and grommet machine to solve the problems of people like me.
I made the trek over into the heart of the no-man’s land that is the 30s on the west side. I jumped up into the innocuous store-​front and low and behold, boom, right there on the left as you walk in the store, there she is. I think her name is Nancy. She’s kind and patient and just waiting to fix your broken ass snap. I gave her the piece from the wallet, she sized a new housing, popped it up and into place on the machine and with a kick of her foot, the arm came down, the snap was reset, and after depositing my $ 5, I was on my way.
Crisis averted.

I love this place, but I did get overcharged for a Jiffy travel steamer last May 2011 that Jiffy sells on their own website for $ 75 and you can buy the same model at Manhattan Wardrobe supply for $ 79. I was in a bind and needed it for a workshop I was teaching, so I didn’t have time to shop around. They charged me $ 125. That’s close to a full sized industrial hat steamer, the J-​1. Too bad for me!
Otherwise, they’re very friendly and helpful. I’ve been coming here for years.

Great place. Small, but they have what you need. Call before you go, and know what you want. It gets busy, so they can’t stop what they’re doing to cater to you.

Selection is ok, though not very well labeled.
Cost seems average. $ 10 minimum for credit card.
Customer service is terrible. Two men were working there and they were both very rude and not helpful. I went in with a list of 5 items I needed, left with 1. It’s possible they had everything there but it was too hard to find things and definitely not worth it to deal with sales people.

S & S Inc. totally made my day!
A snap had come off on my leather purse and I needed to have it snapped back on. Nancy who works in front of the store helped me do just that, she is amazing and super friendly. She also informed me of the correct name of the piece that I needed repaired; it’s a snap not a rivet. Yup. :)
Didn’t browse the store, but they seem to have all the little basic pieces that you need to hold your accessories or clothes together.

Haven’t been to Steinlauf in ages and went in today to pick up some supplies for a wedding dress in one quick and easy stop. This place is always reliable and has all the sewing notions you need; muslin, pattern paper, thread, zippers, horsehair, fusible, zippers, rulers, etc.,.
The staff is super knowledgeable, helpful and friendly.

I went in looking for a zipper foot and a leather foot. The guy helping me was very knowledgeable and helpful, and the owner was very friendly (when I wasn’t sure I was buying the right size attachment, he said, «make sure you save the receipt!»).
Definitely will go back.

Lifesaver. Lost little me wanders around the Garment District in search of a few basic things — machine needles, zippers, snaps — and is overwhelmed by all the neon signs and gaudy fabric rolls in the shop windows. A few stores immediately turn me away, specializing in only one particular thing («we only sell ribbon» — how is that possible??!) and some I bail on, because they can clearly read the clueless, scarred look in my eyes and I can already feel myself getting ripped off without even knowing it. Enter Steinlauf & Stoller.
Once I finally was able to get there when they were open (how many times can one person fail at this? too many) I was in & out with exactly what I needed in minutes, and for a price I was pretty happy with. The employees seem extremely knowledgeable but also patient with my I’m-new-at-this questions. Their website could use a little help, but at least I was confident going in that they would have what I needed and a ton more.