Quilt show and shopping
 

I have just returned from what I thought would be a wonderful weekend of quilt related stuff shopping. My husband and I had reservations for a dinner theater that we had to postpone because of the weather. Our anniversary was on March 5 but we moved it to the 14th so I could do some shopping in Amish country around Lancaster, PA. My husband went on line and pulled up the addresses etc. of at least 44 shops that supposedly sold fabric or other quilt related items in the area around Lancaster County, PA. We used our GPS to locate a number of the shops that I had never yet visited. Much to our disappointment all but one of them were out of business. Many no longer had any signs and their phones had been disconnected. It looks as though many of the names and addresses came from the yellow pages on line. We ended up going to the National Quilt show being held at the Lancaster Convention Center. Again I was disappointed. There was a quilt I saw at the Sewing and Quilt Expo last weekend in Hunt Valley, MD that they didn't have a pattern for even though they were displaying it as if they did. With three floors of quilts and vendors I didn't find that pattern anywhere. As a hand quilter I mark my own quilts. The only vendor selling quilting stencils was someone who used a special pouncer that they invented or at least patented. They had wonderful stencils but they would not work without the pouncer. No sale there. I also noticed that like the Expo last weekend the vendors biggest drive was to sell longarm machines, supplies and accessories. On the way home this morning we stopped at that old stand by Sauders and I spent $108 on fabric. They have wonderful prices and sell bolts as well as flat folds etc. We decided to try one more shop that was on the list my husband downloaded. It was located in Hershey, PA. Of course it also no longer existed. When I called the phone number the recording said it had been disconnected. Just wondering if anyone else had similar stories.

I'm going on a shop hop trip to Denver in several weeks and noticed when I was looking up quilt shops that some of them had closed. Many new shops had opened though. What my friend and I do is call the shops we have found on-line to see if they are still open. Sorry you had such a bad experience. I love going to new shops to see what fun fabrics they carry that aren't available in my area.

I have learned to double check all quilt businesses in other areas before I make a special trip there. The way I do it is to post on Facebook the name of the quilt business and ask for info. I found out fast several of the ones I had planned to visit were shut down. I also got a lot of info about the stores here and on other quilt boards. Yellow pages are way outdated. I don't go by what the yellow pages list unless I call first.

I went to the AQS show in Phoenix in Feb. (the show in Lancaster is also AQS so the same quilts would be on display) and I agree that there were a LOT of vendors selling longarm machines. Also, embroidery machines, batiks and embellishments. Quilting is changing which isn't a bad thing but not much left for traditional quilters to choose from. I did buy the stencils with the pouncer but haven't used it yet. I now buy most of my fabric online or at a few LQSs.
Sorry you had a bad experience with most the quilt shops.

I'm hoping to be there later this month. Would you be able to post the names of the shops that you learned are closed?
Thanks!

I just checked online and found that the Quiltmakers Cottage in Hershey PA closed in November. So sad. I really liked that shop and stopped whenever I was in that area.

I once went to a shop listed on the GPS yellow pages... what a surprise... its was fabric underwear for men who dress as women. I learned to call and ask what types of fabric they sell.

Happy (belated) Anniversary on March 5. Which year were you celebrating? We celebrated our 50th on that day, as well as our baby girl's birthday.

I'm always surprised when shops that close don't take down advertising or web pages. I've wasted time that way also. But, that husband sounds like a keeper!

We have a wonderful shop in Tucson closing Bella Quilt shop will be closed as of March 31st. I really did not like the AQS show in Phoenix I spent less than $20!! Unheard of for me