Fabrics!
Cotton Prints- Kids
Cotton Prints- Asian
Cotton Prints- Abstract
Cotton Prints- Animals
Cotton Prints- Plants
Cotton Prints-Retro, wild west, cutting edge
Skulls! Cotton and more
Cotton Prints- Seasonal
Glitz and shiny
PVC
Plush Cuddle Furs
Fake Fur- Shorter furs
Fake Fur- Longer furs
Oilcloth-- all about it
Oilcloth-- Basic Prints
Oilcloth-- Fruit and Veggie Prints
Oilcloth--Floral Prints
Oilcloth--Ornamental Prints
Oilcloth-- The Great Outdoors
Chalkcloth
Clear vinyl
Iron-on vinyl
Sparkle vinyl
Stretch- Solids
Stretch- Metallics

Notions, Trims and Buttons!
Metal clasps
Laminated Image Buttons
Bone Buttons
Glass and Sparkly Buttons
Novelty Buttons
Shell Buttons
Fasteners
Trims

Dyes and Paints for fabrics!
Procion Dyes
Tie dye
Acid Dyes
Washing Machine dyes
Fabric Paints
Dynaflow
Simply Spray
Crayons and Pastels
Markers

Other stuff!
Mosaic Tiles
Mirrors
Precut designs
Glass blobs and shapes
Mosaic Tools
Mosaic Glue and Grout
Hemp Products
Maskmaking
Mendels Logo Merchandise
Haight Street Memorabilia

Who, what, when, where, why and How!
Who are we
Ordering
Gift Certificates

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We are a real live store, with a physical location as well as a web presence. In fact we existed as a storefront waaaaaay before dot anythings were even a thought!

Mendel's/ Far Out Fabrics
1556 Haight Street
San Francisco, CA 94117
Between Ashbury and Clayton Streets

Tel: (415) 621-1287
Fax:(415) 621-6587
Email: sales@mendels.com

Store Hours
Monday - Saturday 10am - 5:50pm
Sunday 11am - 4:50pm

Dedication

Our web page is dedicated in loving memory to Sarah Herscowitz.

Benjamin hard at work reorganizing the fur squares!

Our Story

Mendel's opened on Haight Street in 1952, by our founder and namesake Mendel Herscowitz (my grandfather) and has operated continuously and family owned since then. The original store was at the corner of Haight and Masonic . We moved to our present location, between Clayton and Ashbury, in 1968.

Running stores is kind of in our family blood. Mendel had a "5 and dime" store on Haight Street in in the early fifties (called B&L 5 and Dime -- named for his daughters Bette and Louise). Mendel's parents had grocery store in Daly City in the early 1900's. Bette bought the business from Mendel in 1978. Suddenly he was retired-- which meant that he could work whenever he wanted to and only to-- a nice situation to be in. Today, I (Naomi) help my aunt, Bette, run the store. When she is ready to retire (which means work only when she wants) I guess I will be in charge. And I have a son who has been working at the store since he was 3 weeks old (ok right now he just looks cute, but he tries to be helpful!)

The store is in a constant state of change. When Mendel opened the store originally, he sold house paint and linoleum. Times changed, and so did our merchandise. Today, we like to think that we are "the complete store for the creative individual." We have our own mix of merchandise, which you will never find duplicated anywhere. The defining factor is that we sell products for you to do stuff with. Why sell a tie-dye shirt, when we can sell you the dyes to make it? Why sell a necklce made of clay, when you can make your own necklace? Creativity is good and healthy and we want to encourage you to find your own personal outlet.

Ask anybody about our store and you will find out that we have a ton of fun here-- you might even hear some laughing if you call us. Obviously people need to have jobs so that they can afford to live (the essentials, you know), but it certainly doesn't hurt if you can work in an creative and supportive environment. It is kind of an old school way of running a store, but its the way we have always done it.... and it works.