Quilt Shops have personalities, too!
 

I often travel for work and one of the things I do when planning a trip is to research the LQS in the towns I visit. I recently got to visit the Cotton Cupboard in Bangor, Maine. I had been by there several times since it is near the airport, and finally got to stop in on Friday. What a wonderful shop! Great variety of fabrics, books and notions! And Gracie, the Boston Terrier is a doll!
Another LQS I like is the City Quilter in New York City. Such a neat "local" quilt shop in Manhattan, I always make time to get a visit. Any of you have recommendations in towns you visit?

I love quilt shops with character - in my area we have a shop called the Bake Shop - it is in an old bakery - the oven is still in the wall - fat quarters are stored in old bread tins. I like shops with lots of samples hanging. Thimble Cottage, Fabric City, and Quiltiques here in South Dakota are all unique shops and each offers a different flavor!

I haven't stopped at many when traveling, but I told my husband on our last trip that this was going to have to change, lol. He said he didn't know I would have wanted to stop at a fabric store.....?????....I just gave him that look.

My favorite to visit out of town is Piecemakers in costa mesa, California. What a fun group of gals that work there and I love their calendar. I have a stack of them from years past and love to thumb though them occasionally just to remember the times my sisters and I spent there.

Here in town I love the windy moon quilt shop. It isn't in the greatest part of town, but, the staff is well informed and are willing to take time with you to help if need be. The patterns and rulers are always my favorite parts of the store and they are very well stocked.

I travel to PA - the Lancaster county area. In fact am going this week. I always leave time and suitcase room for Old Country Store in Intercourse. Love the museum, the lovely quilts for sale, and the fabric.

We have Wilson's in Hagerstown, MD, http://www.iluv2quilt.com/ . It's billed the prettiest quilt shop in western Maryland. It's Mennonite owned and operated. Just a really nice place to visit.

Mine is like that, too. "Oh, you wanted to stop there?" (as we are going past it) "You should have said something!"

This is a man that can spot an eagle that looks like about 1/8 inch big to me while driving and 'misses' garage sale signs.

Quilts on Plum Lane in Dade City, Florida is a nice shop - the people that work there are great!

You must be married to my husband's twin.lol

Fabrics Etc and Fourth Corner Quilts in Bellingham, WA are both wonderful with different personalities. My son lives there and I love going to them when I visit.

There's a great place in NC called MaryJo's (I think). It's huge and the prices are nice, too.

There is a wonderful little country store LQS in Middletown, DE. Off the beaten path, but an awesome place to visit. I'm going on a business trip to Chicago next month and will be researching shops close to where I'll be staying. I was just going to get a shuttle from airport to hotel, but the thought of finding quilt shops has me renting a car - business expense DUH.

Always fun to go to different quilt shops and each one does have it's own unique look, and style. That is what makes it so fun to go visiting other places.

In the boondocks of Michigan's upper penisula is a large quilt/yarn store. It is in Paradise, MI, but I don't know the name of it. DH is good about stopping, whether I know ahead of time or if I see a shop on the road.

Mary Jo's is in Gastonia, NC. I love Mary Jo's! Another favorite of mine is People Places, and Quilts in Summerville, SC near Charleston. My LQS, Pappy's Quilting Place in Maryvillt, TN would also make my list of favorites.

My favorite shop is "All around the Block" in Giddngs Texas. I love Janice and her mom, who mans the cash register. they are both sweet and they can be. And she has loads of fabric to choose from and a nice selection of notions and thread.

I have been to Windy Moon in Reno! It is an AWESOME shop! I walked around in a daze, lots of fabric and books galore!

Oh, yes, I have spent time ( and $$$) at Mary Jo's! She was such a nice lady too!

I always find LQS when I travel and I travel a lot! I've been to quilt shops in more than half the states in the US and have found some amazing stores. It is always the highlight of the trip (for me, not for my DH or kids when we travel together) :-) I usually add one day to business trips if possible to hunt down a few quilt shops.

isn't that a great store?! DH and I are headed to Lancaster in June.

My favorite is Back Porch Fabrics in Pacific Grove, Ca. The owner Gail Abeloe is to be an Artist in Residence at Empty Spools, Session V 2014.

I tend to take my vacations in itty bitty towns that barely boast a grocery store, much less a quilt shop. Or I'm traveling for work and are either on a tight schedule or have no transportation. So not a lot of quilty luck for me as far as finding shops away from home.

Fortunately, Quilted Angel in Petaluma CA is a really nice quilt shop and isn't too far from home, so I don't feel TOO deprived!

Front Porch Quilt Shop in Ozark AL & Quilting by the Bay in Panama City FL. Both are lovely shops, very nice people, good selection of everything.

Anytime I'm in Alberquque,NM, I allways make sure to visit Kokopelli Quilting Co. Great fabrics and people.

Good Morning! I used to travel for my work also and loved checking out the local quilt shops when I was done with my job... I loved all of them... each one had a personality and reflected the personality of the owner and the local trends of what the folks were interested in... every quilt shop give inspiration and joy to me..
Mary Jos and Sauders are two of my favorite stores... great prices..and the people who work there are great!
hugs
quiltinmama

Here is Arkansas is a place called Cozy Quilts & Things and it is a little off the beaten path out in a small community near a small town called Mulberry. The lady who owns it is terrific! She and her husband are local first responders and if you drive up and they are out on a call they leave a sign on the door that says to go in look around and they will be back shortly. Only quilters do that!!! She also does LA quilting and the last time I was there she was having some problems figuring out the division of the quilt for her pattern so my friend and I were able to help her figure out how she needed to do her design. It was so much fun and she showed us how she set everything up to do the quilting. Even though I hand quilt I am not one of those who turns her nose up at machine quilting. I've seen bad hand quilting as well as bad machine quilting so it all evens out. On this board I've seen some of the most beautiful quilting that I've ever seen so it goes to show that you need to learn something new one in a while.

the Cozy Quilter Louisville Ky. nicest people and very open and organized

My favorite is the Quilting Cupboard in Rochester, MN not too far from the Mayo Clinic. We also have Grubers in St Cloud. That place is huge and if they don't have it you probably don't need it.:o

Well in June I'm going to my GDs graduation. I have a sister who live in Huntington and will definitely spend time with her. She know all the shops in her area and lived near a lot of Amish. I have relatives who live in rural towns. don't know if I'll have time to see all of them but going to try. I'm a 5-10 minute drive within 3 shops alone. I have their numbers on speed dial. The Singer Sewing Center, The Quilt Cottage and Heirloom Elegance. You can also get ideas for organizing your quilting rooms from them. Just walk through the door.

Yea! shopping at 55 MPH is hard to do. that was most of the way I used to have to visit quilt shops when we traveled. Now I say stop park, I'm going into this or that shop.

I frequent an amazing quilt shop in Laporte, TX named the Painted Pony. They have the largest selection of fabrics, notions, and finished samples I have seen. All of the ladies working there are quick to assist in any matter. They offer classes that vary from beginner to pro. Mr. Charlie, the Janome sales/repairman is also great to help out with any machine issue. If you are visiting Texas in the Houston/Pasadena area please be sure to stop by for a cup of coffee, a fresh baked cookie and an enjoyable visit!

Don't know why but this just popped into my head...DH travels a lot & when he takes me to a fabric store he looks & points out fabric to me. Maybe I can ask him to look for a LQS when he's staying in some town & go buy me a couple of yards of quilting material just ask a sales clerk to point him in the right direction.

In Kansas City we have several nice shops, Prairie Point in Shawnee, Kansas, and Rustic Yearnings in Kansas City, Missouri are two that I frequent. Also, Missouri Star Quilt Company is just an hour up the road off I-35. I was there Saturday. Everyone there is so friendly.

We visit the dinner theater downtown yearly from IL and Wilson's is ALWAYS on my list of must sees. The clerks there are wonderful and I love all the sample quilts and fabric bundles. I'm full of inspiration and packages when we leave. LOL

Shipshewana, IN is about an hour from me. Yoder's and Lolly's are there and are very nice. A little farther south in Rome City is Caroline's Cottage Cottons which I really like. Just got back from a trip to North Carolina to pick up our daughter from college, so had to make a stop at Mary Jo's Cloth Store. Love it, prices are very good!

Love , love this shop. Mary Jo and Viv and the rest of the gang are great. My BFF lives in Albuquerque and SouthWest Decorative is always, always on my list of things to do. Before the Tea Room but after the margarita's-LOL
It is the ONLY brick and mortar quilt store I shop at-I use Todaysquilting.com and Nancy for my online shop!!

When we visit our daughter in Bentonville, AR, a visit to the local Bella Visit quilt shop (Village Quilting) is a given. The people are so friendly and helpful. I love seeing the new fabric, projects and kits available. And it is a time to catch up too. There are other shops in the outlaying areas that have a different stock (i.e. civil war, mod, etc.) .

I am like a kid in a candy store!

bearisgray - I think my husband is related to yours. :O)

I agree. I , too, like Windy Moon in Reno. I also like the QuiltHouse in Gardnerville, NV. I miss New Pieces and Always Quilting in the SF area, Back Porch in Pacific Grove, CA and a place in Healdsburg.

I like Scrap Apple and Let's Quilt in St. George, Utah (plus some of the smaller shops). I also like New Moon Textiles in Pasadena (?) and Sew Modern in LA. I also liked the quilt shop in Sitka.

There are many others that I would love to visit. Definitely, would love to get to Paducah and see Hancock's.

You are so right. The shops have their own way of doing things and that's part of the appeal. There was a lovely shop in Phoenix Arizona (I hope it's still there) called the Quilted Apple. When I lived there, I was there almost every week. In Sevierville, TN, there's a sweet little shop called "The Cherry Pit." If you're ever visiting Gatlinburg, it's well worth the little side trip. Mary Jo's, which someone else mentioned has one of the biggest fabric collections around and nice people to boot. I've been in shops, though, that aren't particularly welcoming, or in which the stock is in disarray. That's as offputting as a pleasant shop is welcoming.

Our 2 nice local shops closed. I miss them. One was owned by an elderly woman who passed away, and when her shop closed, I assumed it would boost business for the other shop, but they soon closed, too. It is still in business online. The overhead is lower that way. Also, our Jo-ann's moved and expanded, and they began to carry some better quality quilt fabrics that make it harder for independent local businesses to compete.