I have had real luck in the New Orleans' area. After an initial shock of a guy walking in, the shops here have been very welcoming once I say I'm a quilter. 1 story. A female friend and I stopped in at a LQS I hadn't been to before. I picked up a bolt of cream on cream I needed and then wandered about. Another couple saw us and the woman tapped her husband with the 2 bolts she was carrying and said "see, that man is carrying his wife's material" my friend and I both laughed, explained we were friends and she can't sew on a button. The other couple laughed and she apologized for "profiling me".