The first place I bought fabric was JC Penney. Their fabric department was located in the basement. (The mezzanine was where the ladies' dept. was.) My mother didn't sew much, but I remember buying a length of yellow linen to make myself a dress when I was about 14. My mother chastised me for not buying green. It seemed that everything I owned at the time was green and I wanted something different. To this day I don't wear green!