During my first month living in Korea, some friends took me to the amazing fabric store called “Happy Quilt” for the first time. The blog post that I wrote about it (click here to read it) has had a steady stream of viewers searching for information about the store. Last month, Happy Quilt relocated to a bigger and better location. I stopped by a few days ago to take pictures for this new post and (not surprisingly) left with some fabrics that I fell in love with 🙂
I took photos on my way to the store to help anyone searching. Directions are at the end of this post.
The new Happy Quilt is amazing! It’s much larger, brighter, and more organized than the old store. The fabrics are much easier to browse through now and there is some organization as far as fabric prints.
After spending time photographing the store and drooling over browsing the fabric selections, the old man working came walking toward me with a roll of designer purse fabric! After I picked up my jaw, I asked him if he had other colors. He led me into the locked storage building beside the store where there were mountains of fabric! Let me repeat… I’m sure you could find any print you want in this store. The old man showed me a stash of designer fabrics such as Coach, Louis Vuitton, and Gucci. The fabrics were very thick and rich in color and texture. I’m not about to make my own purses, but I did decide that we need some new pillows in our house 😉
How to get to the new Happy Quilt store:
You can either drive to Happy Quilt or you can take the subway line #1 to the Jije Station and then walk or take a taxi to Happy Quilt. View the map at the bottom of this post to see the walking routes between the station and Happy Quilt.
You can click on the pictures below to see them larger.
I drove South on Route 1 (aka “little 1”, not Expressway 1). Just after you drive under these two highway overpasses, you will see Emart on your left and a long narrow bridge going over the train tracks to your right which you will turn onto and drive over. There is a stoplight at the turn for the bridge. If you are driving North on Route 1, Emart would be on your right and the bridge will be on your left before the highway overpasses.
As you come over the long bridge, you can see Happy Quilt ahead and to the left. There are 3 large signs on the blue and gray buildings that say “HAPPY QUILT” so you can’t miss it.
Just after the long bridge, there is a small bridge that goes over a stream. Right after this small bridge, the road branches like this:
Just around the corner you’ll see the small Happy Quilt sign. Turn right at that sign (directly behind the sign) and you’ll drive down a little alley before seeing the glorious Happy Quilt buildings on your left.
This view is from the Happy Quilt side of the bridge looking back toward Route 1, giving you a perspective of where the bridge is in comparison to Emart and the Jije Station.
It is possible to walk to Happy Quilt from Jije Station. Happy Quilt is .5 mile (800 meters) from Jije Station if you exit from the back and walk on the roads through the field. You can also exit from the front and take the sidewalk over the long bridge but that walk is slightly longer at .6 mile. Click the image below to view it larger.
Dongdaemun Fabric Market (a huge market in Seoul full of fabric and sewing notions of all kinds)
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~Author Unknown
I just wanted to let you know that I found this post to be so helpful! I was able to make two trips to the ROK to visit my husband, and visited Happy Quilt a total of five (!) times using your directions. My husband has also used it several times to go gift shopping for me!
Thank you so much for the update! I love your post and love seeing the recent photos of the area! Happy sewing to you on your new machine!!
Just went back to Happy Quilt on April 11! Still great fabrics and great prices! Exit 2 is closed for construction (big expansion) so take exit 1 And walk the bridge If you go by subway. Thank you Angela for leading me there in the first place! Pics of construction on my blog goschott.wordpress.com.
This is a fantastic post. I just visited their stall in Dongdaemun this weekend, and I will definitely make the trip to the warehouse when my sister visits later this year. We will have a field day!
And I just checked out your blog and Utopia Handmade store – you are very talented! I'm sure you are going to have so much fun making beautiful things with all of your new fabric! 🙂
Thank you for letting me know – that is wonderful to hear! I'm so glad that you got to the store and loved it as much as I did! It is so sweet and helpful that they gave you a ride to the station 🙂
Sensational shop. Loved it so much that I went back the next day! Ended up bringing a full suitcase of fabric home with me. The range and price were amazing!
Both days they offered me a lift to the station and on my second day, the older gentleman gave me a few pieces for free.
The two back warehouses are worth a look at if you get invited. I bought quite a few pieces off the bolts that I didn't find in the front showroom.
Brilliant post! Thanks 🙂
Heading there tomorrow and can't wait!!
Happy Quilt is about one hour south of Seoul and the DMZ is at least an hour north of Seoul. You would not be able to see both places in the same day.
If you don't have time to travel to Happy Quilt, the Dongdaemun Fabric Market in Seoul is a great place to visit and Happy Quilt has a stall within that market. See the Dongdaemun post here: http://johnnieandangela.blogspot.com/2011/04/dongdaemun-fabric-market.html
See our DMZ blog post here: http://johnnieandangela.blogspot.com/2011/07/dmz-part-1-of-2.html
Have fun on your trip! 🙂
Angela–I will be traveling with some friends to Seoul and will be definitely going to Happy Quilt. Could you please tell me if Happy Quilt is in the same direction as the DMZ? Trying to cover as much ground as we can in the two days that we are there.
I added a map in the post showing the walking routes for you 🙂
Get off the subway at the Jije Station, which is a small building not connected to any other buildings so you can't get lost when you get off the train. Happy Quilt is .5 miles (800 meters) from the Jije Station if you exit the back of the building and walk on the roads through the fields. It is slightly longer (.6 miles) if you exit the front of the building and go on the sidewalk over the bridge.
What subway exit is it? About how long of a walk is it to the store from the station?
Thanks for the post!
The Dongdaemun Fabric Market in Seoul is filled with countless vendors, shops, and stalls on every floor. Happy Quilt does have a shop/stall is in that building but I'm sorry I don't know on what specific floor to tell you. If you go there, you are sure to have a great time browsing until you find it! Each floor does seem to have a theme for the items for sale, but again I'm sorry that don't know specifics for quilting cottons.
Here is a blog post I wrote on Dondaemun in Seoul:
http://johnnieandangela.blogspot.com/2011/04/dongdaemun-fabric-market.html
I am going fabric shopping in Seoul very soon for the first time. Do you know which floor and building I will find the Happy Quilt Shop? Is there also a specific level for quilting cottons? I am realy looking forward to the trip. Thanks Susan
How fun that you got to go with your mom! I'm glad that our blog helped you find the store! I enjoyed reading your blog post about your adventure – it makes me wish that I could go back! I was there dozens of times while I lived in the country but with a selection like that, it's impossible to go enough 🙂 Thank you for linking back to this post!
Hi Angela,
Thank you so much for the fabulous directions to Happy Quilt. My mom visited from Canada and we made the trip-it was amazing and we had a great time. The amount of fabric is overwhelming and we were there for a long time making our decisions. I've added a link to your blog in my post about my adventure at Happy Quilt http://browniesandburgers.wordpress.com/2013/06/04/happy-quilthappy-me/
🙂
Thank you for linking back to our blog! I'm so glad that you were able to find Happy Quilt and blog about your adventure 🙂 It sounds like you enjoyed it and made some great purchases!
I also enjoyed your posting about Happy Quilt and I went there. I put a link on my blog to yours. You have great pictures and directions. Thanks.
I am excited for you! There are always taxis available at the train station so you can take one and point your way to the store. However, you would need to call for a taxi at the store to take you back to the train station so if you don't speak Korean, then have someone write "call me a taxi" on paper for you because the store workers speak limited English. Once you have a taxi, tell the driver "Jije Yok ka-ju-say-o" (which means "please go to Jije Station). Have fun!
Well my day finally is tomorrow,I so happy to go even I need to be in the train for about 3 hours along lol..Do you know if I can take a taxi from the train station to the store.I really don't want to walk all that along.A little worry about this..
That's awesome! I am so glad that you were able to follow my directions to the store and that my photos helped you find what you were looking for! Love buying yards of Vera, right?! I enjoyed your blog post about your experience, it sounded like such a fun adventure! Thank you so much for mentioning our blog 🙂 Happy Travels to you!
Angela – Your detailed directions to the new Happy Quilt near the Jije Station gave me one of the highlights of my trip to Asia this spring. On March 9th, I followed your directions and found a treasure trove of fabrics at Happy Quilt. When I asked for the Vera Bradley fabrics, I got a blank stare from the man at the checkout counter (no one speaks English there), but when I showed him the photos on your blogsite, he smiled and pointed me right to the Vera Bradley selection. Thank you so much for giving me not only a great stash shopping day, but also one of the best stories of my trip. See my experience and photos and thanks to you at http://www.goschott.wordpress.com under "Seoul: The Motherload of quilting Fabrics."
When I was living in Korea, I found that I got the best exchange rate (USD to Won) from ATM machines. Unfortunately the average vendor could not be trusted to calculate the correct exchange rate and often charged too much in USD. Therefore I almost always paid with Won everywhere and only used a credit card in trusted retail stores. I always paid with Won at Happy Quilt but I do believe they take credit cards as well.
Hi,thanks for let me know,we are here already,just move to the apartment..A soon is not too cold I will go..How can I pay there,won,USD..Can I use credit cards?
You can definitely go by train! It's almost exactly a half of a mile from the Jije Station to the store. I saw people walking on that road often. The long bridge even has a brick sidewalk for biking/walking that you can see in the photos above. Have fun living in Korea! You will LOVE Happy Quilt!
Hi Angela thanks a lot for this post..I will move to korea on Feb 8..I would like to know if I can go to this store by train..I see the picture of the Jije station,I would like to know if is near to walk from to station to the store…I pretty sure will love this store a lot…
Yes, they have a huge selection of fabric including solids and polka dots. You will love this store!
Hi Angela I would like to know if happy quilt have cotton solid colors and polka dots? I will move to Korea soon and I be ready for get i have to go to this store…
Happy Quilt is a fabric warehouse store that doesn't currently have a website or online ordering capabilities. I wish they did – I really miss that store now that we've moved away!
Hi Angela.
Thanks for your post. Do you know the website of Happy Quilt? I can't go to the store. Can I buy fabric online?
Van
Hi Angela – thanks for your post and your blog about South Korea. I visited there for 2 weeks in April this year and one of my trips was to Happy Quilt (on my 50th birthday in fact) where I had a lovely time choosing 12 packets (2 yds each) of fabric – then learnt I got one free! The pricing is just amazing. We had so much fun getting there. I was with my husband and sister in law, and we caught the train to Jije and walked out the back exit; so we were walking through rice fields rather than the road to our destination! The wind was blowing, it was about 4 degrees C – but it was so worth it! My sister in law has since found the store in Seoul, but she thinks Jije has the better selection. From there we travelled by train to Seoul (1.5 hours approx) and enjoyed a trip to the Textiles Museum and up Seoul Tower, before going home to Pangyu for birthday dinner and cake. What a great day. I've since returned home to Canberra, Australia (via the USA – east and west coast, and yes, more fabric shopping….) and have already stitched a quilt with my Happy Quilt fabrics. Am loving your blog! Bronwyn, Canberra
PS: Did you ever find someone to machine quilt a quilt for you in SK?
This is so amazing! Thank you for all the work you did, your directions, and pictures are perfect! Tamie
thank you so much for taking the time to post these directions and photos! -Carrie Gowan
O. M. G.!!! I have GOT to get out of Dongducheon one day and just come down there!!!! We have been here a year and a half and still never made it down there!! Thank you SO much for the directions, you will never know how much those are appreciated! Its nice to see what the store looks like before we go so that we know we are heading the right direction! 😀
The prices depend on the fabric. Expect to pay 3,000 won (about $3) per yard of regular cotton fabric. The precut packaged fabric is 2 yards in length and is 6,000 won (about $6) per package. The thicker fabrics and designer fabrics (Vera Bradley prints, etc) are 6,000 won per yard and the quilted fabrics are 9,000 won per yard.
Hi Melissa! Depending on where in Seoul your friend is, this Happy Quilt store is at least an hour by train, subway, bus, or driving.
Angela how far is the store from Seoul? I live in the us and want some of this fabric really bad! Lol the designer brand. have a friend who lives in Seoul who I may be able to ask and see if he can go for me
Hi, Angela!
Thanks so much for the information you've provided on your blog. I came across it while searching for additional information on the Happy Quilt warehouse and just wanted to say that the information is fantastic, and your pictures are stunning. I am planning a trip to the warehouse and the flower market based on what I've seen here! We just moved to Seoul and this blog is one of the best I've come across.
Thank you!!
Thank you Rich! Happy Quilt DOES have a retail shop in the Dongdaemun market. It is obviously not as large as the one pictured in this post, but they do have a good-sized selection of fabric.
Happy Quilt have a retail shop in Dongdaemun market.
Hi Angela, thank you so much for your reply.
Now I'm more confident to do shopping in Dongdaemun. 🙂
Can't wait for my trip end of this month! 🙂
I'm sure that many stores in Seoul do wholesale, including some in Dongdaemun. However, most vendors in all the places I've been to (including Dongdaemun) seemed to have no problem selling to the average retail buyer, especially if you have cash in hand. If one vendor won't sell you what you want at the price you want, simply go to the next vendor. Bargaining is acceptable here and expected in most marketplaces, just make sure to have cash for purchases.
wow Angela, the price is just fantastic!
I'm located in Singapore, and it's difficult to find fabric that I love with that kind of price here. 🙁
and so fabric shopping is definitely one of my to-do-list when visiting Korea 🙂
I saw your post about Dongdaemun as well, but I heard that most of the stores are doing wholesale, so is it difficult to find stores who's 'friendly' enough to retail buyers?
Hello Angela, your post is so great!
I'm going to Korea end of this month and I want to visit this store!
could you give the details of the price? like that precuts fabric, how much are they range-wise?
Thank you!
This was the BEST post i have seen. I was at the old one in april while visitng my husband. I knew they were moving, but there isn't a single bit of info on it online… I am so glad I found this post, because he is going there for me today to bring back some goods during his mid tour. =)
I really apprecaite you taking the time to put this together!
Excellent! I can't beleive the coach fabric. =) Funny!
if you are ever in europe visit my fle market blog
http://www.europeanmarketjunkie.blogspot.com
Angela =)