I live on the Gulf Coast in Alabama also. Today it's not quite as nippy as the last couple of nights but wait till next week....we're going into the teens at night.
Check into quilt guilds in the area. There's one in Gulf Shores, one in Mobile (meets next Tuesday) and one in Pensacola (not too far away).
And don't know if you know about A&E Pharmacy in Pensacola but they have a great quilt store/fabric store.