Quilting/Fabric Stores I Love

 

I have the opportunity to travel a little bit for my job and for vacations, and I try to visit quilt stores whenever I can.  I have also moved a bit, so again, I have favorite quilt stores across the country.  I'll try to update this list whenever I visit new stores, and provide you with my impressions of stores.  I would appreciate your suggestions/additions to this list so that I'll know the quilt stores to visit in new towns.  I will list the stores by state: 

Arizona

Quilter's Market  http://thequiltersmarket.com/  

 This quilt store was featured in the Quilt Sampler's Top 10 quilt shops one year, and it is clear why.  The store is filled with bright and cheery fabrics.  It's like eye candy when you first walk in the door.  They have a nice array of precut fat eighths and fat quarters pre-packaged in "kits" called "paintstics."  They are so hard for me to resist, because they are just gorgeous.  There is a fantastic selection of batiks.  The kits they have available always grab me, and it seems like I always leave their store with at least one.  The staff are very friendly and helpful.  A must visit.  I go there every time I am in Tucson.

California

Sew Modern  http://shop.sewmodernonline.com/

This is a fantastic shop in West Los Angeles.  If you are looking for traditional quilt fabric and civil war reproduction fabrics, you have come to the wrong place!  This store is all bright, modern fabrics with big prints and retro style.  Lots of imports, from Japan to Australia.  The shop is bright and cheery, and so is the help.  I am in love with this shop!  Bring your wallet.  You'll be leaving some cash behind!  If you want to see photos and read more about it, see my blog post here.

Florida

Three Crafty Ladies  http://www.threecraftyladies.com/shop-online.htm

I visited the shop on Sanibel Island.  There is also a shop on Boca Raton, but I haven't been there yet.  This is a really interesting quilt shop, because it isn't just a quilt shop.  You will also find cross-stitch supplies, artist supplies, jewelry making supplies scrapbooking supplies, and lots of good stuff.  There is a wide range of brights and batiks in the shop, and you'll find lots of pretty shop samples that are very "Florida."  The owner and staff are very nice and helpful.  I very much enjoyed my visit to this store and will return whenever I go to Florida and am in the area!  I blogged about it here if you would like to read more and see photos. 

Quilt Lover's Hangout http://quiltlovershangout.com/

This shop is in North Fort Myers.  It was featured in Quilt Sampler's Ultimate Shop Hop as one of the to 10 stores in North America.  This is an honor that is well deserved.  This is a full service quilt shop with all sorts of different fabrics:  Civil War reproductions, 1930s reproductions, batiks, modern, and traditional quilt fabrics.  The shop carries lots and lots of notions and has a ton of shop samples hanging everywhere to inspire you.  I could spend many, many hours in this shop.  This is a must-see shop.  The staff are also really helpful and friendly.    I blogged about it here if you would like to read more and see photos.

Idaho

Sages Creek Quilt Co  http://sagescreekquilt.com/

This was my hometown quilt shop when I lived in Pocatello, Idaho.  Terrie, the shop owner, is wonderful, as is the entire shop staff.  They have a fantastic fabric selection and wonderful samples.  They have a long-arm machine in the shop, too.  The shop is a little tucked away, but it is well worth an extra trip to get there.  I love this store, and I miss it tremendously since moving away.

The Gathering Place  http://tgpquilts.com/default.aspx

This store is located in Rupert, Idaho.  It was a 1-hour drive from my home to this store, but I didn't hesitate for a minute to make the drive when I felt like going.  It is FANTASTIC!  I could spend the entire day at this store.  The number of bolts of fabric they have is astounding, as is the number of samples.  Great staff.  Plan to spend a lot of time here if you visit.  We used to make an entire day of it when my friends and I went there.  It was featured as one of the Top 10 shops in the Quilt Sampler magazine one year.  It is just a great place.

Indiana

Caroline's Cottage Cottons  http://www.carolinescottagecottons.com/

This store is in Rome City.  It is a quaint little shop inside an 1870s house that Caroline and her family have restored.  It is absolutely charming.  She has a great selection of wools, civil war fabric, traditional fabrics, and 1930s reproductions.  Caroline has very good taste in fabric and patterns.  I really enjoyed her selections.  She and her staff are also incredibly helpful and friendly.  They gave me a demonstration when I asked how something was done.  I really enjoyed my time in this store and would go back!  I blogged about it here, if you want to see photos and get a more thorough review.

Lolly's Fabrics and Quilts  http://www.lollys.com/

This store is in Shipshewana.  It's an awesome quilt shop, with every kind of fabric you can imagine.  You could spend the better part of the day in this store.  Better yet, it's in the heart of Amish country.  There are great hotels and inns in the town, as well as antique shopping, bulk food shopping, bakeries, etc.  It's just a fun town to spend a lot of time in.  This fabric store has breat notions, books, samples, etc. in addition to the wonderful fabrics.  I blogged it here, with photos, etc. if you are interested in seeing what the store is like.

Michigan

Field's Fabrics  http://www.fieldsfabrics.com/storeZ.htm

This store has an amazing amount of fabric, and all fabric is always 20% off (or something like that).  A LOT of notions and sewing/quilting supplies.  This is a full-service fabric store, with stabilizer, adhesives, sewing needles, zippers, etc, etc.  I really enjoy shopping here and can spend a lot of time in the store.  There is one in Kalamazoo, but I think there are others around the state.

The Hen House Primitive Quilt and Craft Supplies  http://thehenhousemi.com/shop.php

This store is in Charlotte. It's a small shop, with tons of inspiration for the quilter who likes the primitive style, Civil War style, miniature (Jo Morton) style, and wool working.  You will find an excellent selection of beautiful wools and "dark and dirty" style fabrics.  You'll also find supplies for punchneedle and wool rug hooking.  The ownner and staff are wonderful.  Very friendly and helpful!  This shop was featured in The Quilt Sampler as a destination quilt shop (for good reason).  You'll enjoy poking around in this shop.  It is full of beautiful antiques and finished samples as well.  I blogged about the shop and posted photos here, if you are interested in more details.  I went back a second day for a rug hooking lesson and blogged photos of the classroom and more about the shop here.

Quilts Plus  http://www.quiltspluskazoo.com/

This store is in Kalamazoo. It's a nice little store with very nice staff.  It is currently one of my local quilt stores, and I enjoy shopping there very much.  I would say they carry very traditional fabric.  A little modern (e.g., Amy Butler), but mostly your very traditional fabrics, including a good selection of batiks.

The New Ewe Knitting and Quilt Shoppe  http://www.newewe.com/

This store is in Newaygo.  Half of the store is devoted to knitting and half of the store is devoted to quilting and sewing.  The gals who run the shop are super nice, and the shopping experience is wonderful.  The quilting side has a smattering of lots of different types of fabrics:  Some civil war reproductions and other "traditional" quilting fabrics, some brights, some childrens, some flannels.  There is a nice lunch spot in town (The River Stop Cafe), as well as some antique shops.  Well worth the stop.  If you want to see photos and learn more about it, visit my blog post about the shop.

Minnesota

Rosebud's Cotage http://www.rosebuds-cottage.com/

This store is in White Bear Lake.  It is a very quaint and picturesque town. Better plan to spend the day there.  The store is located in a very historic building with lots of neat architectural details.  The shop has a little bit of something for everyone.  Some traditional, some modern, some just fun, some embroidery, some wool, some scrapbooking supplies, buttons, ric rac, some candles, lots of patterns...it's just a really fun store.  What makes it even more fun is that Roseann Kermes (the owner) and her staff are just as nice as nice can be.  I really enjoyed this shop.  Well worth the stop!  If you want to see photos and learn more about it, visit my blog post about the shop.

Nebraska

The Quilted Moose  http://www.quiltedmooseonline.com/index.html

This is a somewhat small shop in Gretna, but it is jamb packed with fabrics!  Lots of great fabrics from every style you might like, including a big selection of Daiwabo fabrics from Japan.  The staff were incredibly helpful and friendly.  Lots of great samples on the wall, too!  For my blog post about the shop, with photos and more description, click here.

New Hampshire

Keepsake Quilting  http://www.keepsakequilting.com/default.aspx

I would refer to this as a destination quilt shop.  It is located in Center Harbor, along Lake Winnipesaukee.  It is a very traditional quilt shop, with very traditional quilting fabrics.  You'll find lots of batiks, traditional fabrics, wool, 1930's, and novelty fabrics.  There is a very nice yarn shop right next door also!  For my blog post about the shop, with photos and more description, click here.

Utah

My Girlfriend's Quilt Shoppe  http://www.mygirlfriendsquiltshoppe.com/

This is a very cute shop with a great atmosphere. Wonderful people run the shop.  They have lots of styles of fabrics.  I would say mostly, however, the shop has modern and bright fabrics, as well as some pretty cute kids fabrics.  A little civil war ("dark and dirty"), but mostly bright, fun, and cheery.  For my blog post about the ship, with photos and more description, click here.

Virginia

Jinny Beyer Studio  http://www.jinnybeyer.com/

Wow.  I was in Washington, DC and made the trip out to Great Falls, Virginia to visit Jinny's studio.  It was not an easy trip.  Had to take the Metro to the end of the line and then take a $35 cab ride to the store.  But...it was so worth it!  I love Jinny's fabrics, and it was so fun to see them in real life, along with lots of her quilt samples.  The staff was so wonderful...one suggested she lived not too far from a Metro stop, and if I could wait until 4:00 when she got off work, she'd drive me to the Metro stop on the way home to save me the cab fare.  Wow!  So, I could spend $35 more on fabric instead!  You MUST go to this store if you are in the area.  I only wish I could be in town when they are offering a hand piecing class.  So far, no luck with that.

Wisconsin

Heart 2 Hands Quilt Shop  http://www.heart2hands.net/

I never expected such an awesome little quilt shop in Neillsville, Wisconsin!  Every time I go there, they have more fabric, more great ideas, and I find I have to spend more and more time in the shop.  Very helpful employees, too.  Also, Neillsville and the surrounding towns have some really nice antique stores, if you like that as well.

Quilt Yard  http://www.quiltyard.com/

This store is located in Osseo and is owned by Betty Cotton.  You may have seen her on Sewing with Nancy.  She is known for her "quilt-as-you-go" method of quilting, which results in reversible quilts.  Her shop has a variety of nice fabrics and wonderful samples.  Of course, there are several samples of her reversible quilts.  Osseo is a super cute town, with a great Norwegian restaurant and bakery.  It's quite a little touristy town, surprisingly.  Betty Cotton also has a nice quilt retreat center in this town as well.  It's well worth the trip to visit this shop.

Nancy's Notions  http://www.nancysnotions.com/

My sister-in-law lives right outside of Beaver Dam, which is where this store is located.  Every time I visit my sister-in-law, I try to make a trip to Nancy's Notions.  You've probably seen Nancy Zieman's TV show on PBS.  Well, this is her store.  It's fabulous.  Tons of fabric.  Samples of all the projects you've seen on TV and in her catalogs.  Lots of great ideas.  Wonderful staff.  I love supporting this store just because it's a "hometown-girl-done-good" story.

Comments

[Greta Songe]

What a great list of shops! Thanks for taking the time out to share your favorites! I am doing some promotions of my new fabric lines with Marcus---and quite a few of these seem like great fits for my collections. THanks so much!
Greta