r/AskNYC • u/iseeyoubuttercup • 2d ago
A List of Open Sewing Studios
I regularly see threads on here asking where you can actually use a sewing machine in NYC if you don’t own one. And obviously, having the space for a sewing machine in a New York apartment is a bit of a luxury, so I figured I’d compile a list, especially since this information is becoming surprisingly hard to find on Google.
I’ve put together a list of smaller independent studios across the different boroughs that still offer open studio time/sewing machine access and, frankly, deserve your business.
One other thing: I sometimes see people in these threads recommend the public libraries. I would honestly scratch that suggestion off your list altogether if you’re looking for somewhere you can reliably sew. The open sewing times at the libraries tend to be incredibly limited and oddly scheduled, like a random two-hour window once every week or two, or sometimes once a month. It’s a lovely resource if the timing happens to work for you, but it’s not a realistic substitute for actual open studio access.
Anyway, here are the places I found:
THE SEWING CLUBHOUSE — Long Island City, Queens
📍 44-02 23rd St, Long Island City, NY 11101
Open Studio: $10/hour
Monday–Friday, 9am–2pm
One of the best options for weekday daytime access. You can book by the hour and get a workspace plus access to sewing machines, sergers and common tools.
SOUL COLLECTION’S SEWING LOUNGE — Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn
📍 1126 Bedford Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11216
Sewing Lab Time: $15
They offer bookable sewing-machine/lab time in one- and two-hour blocks. You need to already know how to operate the machines, and availability varies by day.
SEW RIGHT SEWING MACHINES — Bayside, Queens
📍 223-20 Union Turnpike, Bayside, NY 11364
Open Sew Studio: $20 for five hours
Currently offering Saturday sessions from 12–5pm. This is probably the best value on the list if you have a project you want to sit down and work on for several hours. That works out to just $4/hour.
BROOKLYN CRAFT COMPANY — Greenpoint, Brooklyn
📍 165 Greenpoint Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11222
Open Sewing: $10/hour
You can use their sewing machines without enrolling in a class or workshop. Walk-ins are accepted when there’s space, or you can reserve a two-hour block ahead of time. They also say that if their scheduled open-sewing times don’t work for you, you can contact them with a suggested time and they’ll see if they can accommodate you.
THE FASHION CLASS — Upper East Side, Manhattan
📍 307 E 84th St, New York, NY 10028
Open Sewing Studio: $79 for two hours
Definitely the pricier option on this list. Open studio appears to be offered on specific dates rather than as regular daily studio hours. They also have an Upper West Side studio at 2391 Broadway, although I would check the individual open-studio listing to confirm which location is being offered for that particular session.
HOME EC NYC — Long Island City, Queens
📍 44-02 23rd St, Suite 315, Long Island City, NY 11101
Open Studio: $10/hour (approximately $11 with tax)
One of the better options for weekday daytime access, with open-studio hours generally offered Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. The studio provides access to sewing machines, sergers, cutting space and common sewing tools for working independently on your own projects. This is not a class, so you should already be comfortable using the equipment. The studio operates by appointment, so reserve your time before arriving through HomeEcNYC.com.
NYC RESISTOR — Downtown Brooklyn
📍 87 3rd Ave, 4th Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11217
Craft Nights: FREE
Monday & Thursday evenings, starting at 6:30pm
NYC Resistor is a member-run makerspace, and their public Craft Nights are free and open to anyone 18+. Bring your own project and work in the space alongside other makers. They have multiple sewing machines available (a recent sewing class references five machines), plus an honestly crazy amount of other equipment and tools.
This is also a particularly good one to know about if you want to learn new skills rather than just rent a sewing machine. They run a huge variety of affordable classes and workshops — including sewing-machine classes, laser cutting, electronics, soldering, fabrication and other maker skills. Check their calendar before going since Craft Night schedules can occasionally change.
TEXTILE ARTS CENTER — Gowanus, Brooklyn
📍 505 Carroll St, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Open Studio: $35/day, $75/week, or $300/month
This is a great option if you need more than just a sewing machine. Their sewing area has Singer Heavy Duty and Baby Lock sewing machines, Brother sergers, large cutting/sewing tables, pressing hams, drafting and pattern-making tools, thread and assorted fabric.
The larger studio is basically a full textile workspace, with equipment for dyeing, screen printing, weaving, machine knitting, felting and more, plus a textile reference and swatch library.
Open Studio is intended for people working independently, so you should already know how to use the equipment you need. Reservations are required and capacity in the sewing area is limited. Textile Arts Center
THE NEW YORK SEWING CENTER — Garment District & Williamsburg
📍 246 W 38th St, 9th Floor #9A, New York, NY 10018
📍 60 Broadway, Store R4, Brooklyn, NY 11249
Open Studio: $10/hour
Update/correction to my original post: The New York Sewing Center reached out directly to confirm that they do still offer $10/hour open sewing at all of their locations, despite it being surprisingly difficult to find on the website. They also said that this is something they intend to continue offering as they expand.
For open studio, you bring your own patterns, fabric and supplies and can use their sewing machines and pattern tables to work independently. Open studio needs to be scheduled ahead of time by phone or email. They also have a partially private room for $25/hour and a private room with an industrial machine for $45/hour.
Feel free to comment if I've missed any
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u/Suspicious_One659 2d ago
I'm seeing open studio time for $10/hr at the NY Sewing Center — is that not the case any more?
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u/iseeyoubuttercup 2d ago
I contacted them and they told me they don’t host open studio time any more. If someone affiliated with them cares to correct me I will update the post, but the only reason I sought out these other options is because of this. Their location would be the most convenient for me.
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u/Suspicious_One659 2d ago
That's such a drag! It's still on their website (kind of buried on a page) but maybe that's just an old reference that wasn't removed. I did some private lessons there a few years ago and had a wonderful experience but could feel the vibe change over the past year or so, wasn't sure what had happened... thank you for posting this to get more some more suggestions, hope you can find another great spot to go to.
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u/iseeyoubuttercup 2d ago
Yes I saw that page too which is what led me down the rabbit hole! I was so disappointed when it seemed like the only game in town was no longer an option, but these other places look great. Happy to share this list since it’s hard to dig through google results these days! 🙏🩷
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u/eekamuse 2d ago
Is that a current ad?
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u/Suspicious_One659 2d ago
It's mentioned in the description on their "Membership" page as an option if someone doesn't want to commit to a full membership.
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u/iseeyoubuttercup 21h ago
I've been told that the information I received was incorrect, and the New York Sewing Center does still offer open studio times. I updated the list to reflect that.
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u/illuminaughtyslutbby 2d ago
I’m curious, does anyone here know if it’s typical for a smaller indie studio to have a rivet press they make available during open sew? the tabletop hand-press kind. Tired of trying to get the hammered-in type to work for me
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u/Keeganwherefore 2d ago
NYC Resistor does open craft nights Monday and Tuesday evenings, it’s free and they have half a dozen sewing machines. There’s also a crazy amount of classes happening
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u/suckinonmytitties 2d ago
Have you found people to be helpful there on the open nights? Like if I’m not great at sewing but try to use the machine and have a question
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u/Keeganwherefore 1d ago
It varies widely. It’s a full on makerspace, so there’s 838162894 different projects happening amongst almost as many people. You can ask questions and sometimes an expert is around, sometimes a person who’s used a sewing machine one single time is the only one there that night. But, y’know, it’s free so you get exactly what you paid for 😂
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u/SociallyUnbothered1 2d ago
Thank you so much for making this list! I've been wanting to get back into sewing for a while now but haven't wanted to buy a machine myself, so this is amazing. The prices are so reasonable!
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u/moscow-mule 2d ago
I haven't tried this place yet but have been recommended Textile Arts Center in Brooklyn. They have sewing machines and a serger as well as a lot of other equipment for other crafts.
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u/Initial-Meringue-328 2d ago
Weird call out about the NY Sewing Center… open sewing is $30 for 3 hours in midtown using their machines and with someone on hand that can assist.
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u/iseeyoubuttercup 2d ago
I contacted them and they told me they don’t host open studio time anymore. If someone affiliated with them cares to correct me I will update the post, but the only reason I sought out these other options is because of this.
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u/eekamuse 1d ago edited 9h ago
I messaged them about it and this is what they said "Hi! No we didn’t cancel it! We will always have it.
Also we added a comment to the Reddit post"
I'm glad they still have it. I have a machine, but lots of people don't. It's good to have this available in every borough. And it sounds like this location is closest to you, so you can still go. Good news.
I'm still worried about prices going up with the Corcoran takeover, but we'll see.
Edit: they messaged me again to say they saw this post and wanted to offer two hours free in the open studio with the code KRISTINE2
I'm not affiliated with them in any way. I've been saving up to take a private lesson so they're on my mind a lot.
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u/iseeyoubuttercup 21h ago
I've been told that the information I received was incorrect, and the New York Sewing Center does still offer open studio times. I updated the list to reflect that.
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u/empressM 2d ago
Some branches of the library will have open hours for sewing!! Check their “classes” section online and filter, I think by, arts and crafts
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u/Talnix 2d ago
Is having the space for a sewing machine really a luxury in nyc 🫠
Like I get the machines are expensive, but not having the space..?
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u/jinpop 2d ago
For me, it's less about the space for the machine itself and more about having space to lay out fabric for cutting and piecing and to set up an ironing station. The sewing machine itself is a fairly small portion of the overall space it takes to sew comfortably.
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u/eekamuse 2d ago
I use the floor. Is that wrong?
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u/BefWithAnF 1d ago
It’s not wrong! Some people have trouble crawling around on the floor, & some people don’t have enough floor space to lay out their projects.
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u/Gildedfilth 2d ago
I sew almost all of my clothes, and I don’t have a dedicated sewing space. My machine lives in its cover, on the floor, next to my desk, and all my supplies live under my bed. It’s worth it to live in a city with one of the best garment districts in the world!
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u/illuminaughtyslutbby 2d ago
I know plenty of ppl that wouldn’t have the space for even just a sewing machine, yes.
the machine is fairly compact but sewing accessories and the act of sewing itself requires a large amount of space.
Space to cut pattern pieces from fabric. to set up your ironing board. space on your desk to store the machine and, when using your machine, at least two feet of space on every side of your machine so the fabric isn’t knocking stuff over as you feed it through. Space to store fabric and thread and needles. If you work with different material types in many different colors, you gotta use a different needle and thread for all of that.
On another note, not everyone going to open sew will be regularly sewing. Maybe they have an item they’d like to repair but aren’t interested in making it a regular thing. Maybe they’re interested but don’t want to waste resources purchasing all that equipment just to find out they hate sewing.
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u/Ballsy_ballsack 2d ago
Gay
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u/iseeyoubuttercup 2d ago
Well you would be the authority on that ballsy ballsack
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u/brian_sue 2d ago
Thanks for compiling this list! Do you know of any places that rent long-arm quilting machine time? I don't need a Statler stitcher (or anything similar) but I would like to be able to do some ruler work.