Is San Dimas anywhere near Huntington Beach? I have a quilting cousin there who would be among the first on line when you open.

Customer service/friendly attitude is more important than a huge inventory. I will drop some serious bucks when in a shop that has a welcomming, intrested in helping me 'tude.

I usually go for fun bright colors like blues with stars, little princess patterns, hot chilies and tea cups.... My problem is (you've probably got a term for it) is the secondary colors, fabrics that frame those primary patterns...mottled yellows and blues, whites and off-whites that give the bright ones true definition, and are still strong. Make sense?

I like a store that have coordinating fabrics. To me nothing is more frustrating to find the perfect fabric for your project and then not be able to find anything to go with it. I can't tell you how many times I have passed on a fabric that I loved because I couldn't find anything to go with it.

Good luck with your new store.

Hugs, Gail

ditto

it's the type of fabric you carry that's important. If you haven't already - do a little MR in your local community. E.g. - they like small motifs, large flowers, Asian, panels, batiks, novelties, repros, whatever. It doesn't matter what we on the Board like unless we live in your town.

If you have local guilds, distribute an inclusive list asking them to rate # 1 thru #3 their favorite type of fabric.
Have a quilt made and displayed of new fabrics (pay someone to do it if you haven't time) And, if you do this make sure you have sufficient supply of the fabrics used in it. To my amazement I learned from a friend who worked in a shop that customers wanted exactly the fabrics used in the quilt. Singular lack of imagination - but there you go.

I rarely shop in one of my LQS; he carries fabric that I find boring. However, he does very good business because it sells well here. As they said in The Music Man - you gotta know the territory.
Good luck - make it happen!

[/quote]

Are you opening a LQS in San Dimas????? I am VERY excited! Where? What is the name of your shop?? I will find you!!! :lol:[/quote]

PM me with you email address. The name of the shop will be: Beautiful Quilt Fabric AKA beautifulquiltfabric.com....in about five weeks. It will be in downtown San Dimas, two spots are still being debated with landlords.

Huntington Beach is about 1 hr and 15 minutes from me.

I am into brights and contemporary fabrics. Best wishes foryour success.

Don't for Blenders.

A variety of White on White, off white, cream.
Darks, brown, black, navy
All brights ( for the Kaffe Fasset crowd)
Large Prints for the Amy Butler/Michael Miller bunch-Great for clothing, purses, totes as well as quilts
Pastels
Novelty -Kid Prints
Batiks
I really didn't answer your color question. You are very safe with a variety of Greens, bright to muted, used alot in applique.
Purple, violet are the hardest to find.
Don't like burnt orange, though I attended the U of Texas-Austin
CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR NEW STORE. Let us know if you are selling online.
D in TX

Lady Diana is one sharp chica! I would love to shop @ HER store!

I'm sure all quilters want the same thing - variety! Be sure to find a line of fabrics you love (i.e., Civil War, batiks, 30's, vibrance) and let it be your 'signature'.It'll become the 'draw' to your store. My LQS uses customer service as their draw. There are 2 quilt shops 40 mins. closer to my town of 125,000, but CS is horribly lacking. So a nice 40 min drive on the interstate takes me to a shop where they know my name, greet everyone with a smile, handshake and welcome. Coffee, tea & cookies available. And it doesn't hurt that they have turned the back of the building into a retreat area (2 kitchens, 2 sewing rooms, sleeping accommodations for 34, showers, design boards, garden, heat & A/C individually controlled...in some ways, better than home!). If you're in the area, check out Threads of Time in Danville IL.

Where is Calif is that? Would love to find your new store.

I want to go to Danville...

Come on to Danville! I work at the shop Mon & Tues, except for the weeks I have a retreat. My retreats are every other month and anyone is welcome to join us! If you don't have a bunch of friends who want to come to a retreat, this is a good way to test it out. Next retreat is in July. PM me if you're interested. Go to the Threads of Time website and check out Retreat Center! It is a marvy place to sew!

For me, the mark of a good quilt shop is the range of blenders and fabrics that "read" solid (I rarely use true solids). Batiks are the next stop. Colors need to span the color spectrum -- sometimes I really need a piece of my least favorite color. And a nice selection of 108" backings -- those could be a wonderful addition to the color groupings you have in mind.

For notions... We have quilt shops all over the place, but I can't find the Olfa frosted rulers in sizes other than 6x24 except online, so it may as well be your store I order from!

My favorites are tonals and batiks.

As far as color goes it changes with my mood or the season, for instance I don't generally work with a lot of oranges or lime green but I just made a quilt that pops with both and I love it but its Summer and that is what I'm in the mood for now.
Generally I have a tendency to go more toward purple/blue/green
Like many others have said it is difficult to find a good variety of nice cream on creams,white on white, or off whites, true blacks (things you generally use for backgrounds)
I love a good selection of blenders.
Something that is sadly lacking (none existing really) in my area is 30 repros and Civil War repros and Kansas Troubles or Thimbleberries,
I love it when someone brings in a whole line and not just 3 or 4 because it is much easier to coordinate if you have the whole line to choose from.
Other than fabric I'm always looking at new tools and gadgets.

I agree with the above!

I specialize in I-spy and memory quilts so I like brights and lots of kid's fabrics for fussy cutting the I-spy squares.

Good luck with the new online store!

Peggy Larson
http://quiltingcolorsandfun.com

I like polka dots... purples, blues, pinks, whites, blacks, greens, and cream... also music notes!

I completely agree! Also good white on whites.

warm quilt hugs, sue in CA

I look for Oriental fabric first, then anything aqua. I love white on white for backgrounds. Good luck to you. Sounds like a lot of work but fun and rewarding.

I want to make a Aqua and brown quilt.I am really having a hard time finding aqua.

I like floras, batiks, reproduction 20's and 30's, most colors, I don't like the retro 60's adn 70's fabrics. I like when fabric that are meant to be together are grouped together. It makes it easier to find what I need.

I do scenic quilts.so I look for fabrics that I can turn into tree trunksand limbs,grasses,sky,mountain. etc. I dont care,well I do,but ,color is not my main object if you get my drift. lol I do a lot of old barns and so I look for lumber looking grains in the colors. Jo

Cotton cone thread for the longarm. I like Presencia, but very difficult to find if you don't have wholesale license.

I like blues and greens, My least favorite is burgandy

I love all the jewel tones:blue,purple(#1),green,gold,
etc.. tone on tones and florals! I'm a sucker for florals.
Sharon W.

The hardest to find is pastels. I make a lot of "softer" quilts and pastels are rare. When I do find them, I buy more than enough for my stash.

I have a very hard time finding very light batik background fabric.

I can't think of a color I don't like - we need them all. It really depends on the individual quilt and the mood the quilter is striving to create. If I had to choose something I think is not so pretty, it would be 'muddy' colors. Other than that, I have a definite preference for shops that concentrate on quilts - not other arts and crafts. But that's just my opinion. :)

I love the earth tones that blend and enhance pinks, maroons (sp), and all shades of green. I am not a flowery person and with 4 grndsons and no granddaughtes I love prints and designs for my focus fabrics.

Any color but orange, yellow but then again they can be worked into other fabrics.

Congratulations and good luck on your new business. Please put me on your mailing list.
Definitely, light colors, blenders, batiks or marbled. Red is my fave, also bright bold prints. Complete fabric lines are great so that you can get all the prints you need for a quilt. Moda, Kaufman, Miller, Bailey etc.

Blenders...must have blenders!

I second the request for neutrals. I will have to look up San Dumas, CA. I live in Desert Hot Springs in the winter. Good luck!

Yellow is my all time favorite...I like it with blue, purple, red, even green. Everything goes well with yellow.

Sue

I'm sure you will get as many different answers as members here about the colors. I feel like the person who said a good selection is a good bet.
The thing I feel most shops lack is thread. I know that it's pricey for you to purchase, but I love a shop that has lots of threads in many different colors. Different types of thread also. Can you tell that lately I'm thread obsessed?

I'm with mamabird3 buy in families. It is nice to be able to find something that coordinates to make a nice quilt. Also I am always looking for 108" fabric. I use this for back of quilt. I find a 108" fabric that blends in with the quilt.

A few years ago, I would have said I dislike anything orangy. But I now have some oranges in my stash! I like all colors in the right quilt. I am picky about getting the right shade in the color I want, so, I would say for every color you have, get as many shades as you can (tomato red, cranberry red, rosey red,etc...) About the only types of fabrics I don't like are the more trendy types,(John Deer tractor, I Love Lucy, etc...) But I am sure there are tons of people who love those. Recently I have been looking for yellow, and I have had a hard time finding a lemon yellow, everything is very golden yellow, but if the fabric companies don't make them, not much the LQS can do.

On line store? Wonderful ! I am always on the look out for polka dots. especially the eighth to quarter dots on white ...like to use these instead of solid white in making blocks. Suggest a variety of stripes...any color, any width. I simply cannot locate the simple two color stripes anymore; plaids ( not homespuns) any color and of course, lots of geometrics and florals colors? My favs are purples, blues and yellows