Do You Have a Quilt Shop Finder?
My quilt shop finder, also known as our GPS, is invaluable to me in finding new quilt shops. In December’s blog entries, I told you about the Quilter’s Travel Companion, the book that lists 400+ quilt shops. I recently visited my daughter in Atlanta and had one day to visit quilt shops on my own.  Now, Atlanta is a very big city and I don’t know my way around outside of mid-town or Buckhead, but with our GPS and that book, I visited 4 shops in one day!! And they were all delightful!Â
Three shops were in Marietta, a suburb about 20 miles from downtown. The “Tiny Stitches” shop is similar to our Thimble Pleasures in fabric selection and quilt design choices. They had just completed a customers’ quilt show in the shop and I got to see all the beautiful quilts from their patrons! What a delight! The shop was also featured in the spring edition of America Quilts magazine, as one of their 16 Hot Shops! Owner Maetha Elliott was not there the day I visited, but I want her to know that her staff was friendly and inviting! We chatted and they told me about their shop and helped me find the fabric I needed. This shop sponsors lots of events and clubs that create a quilt community among their patrons. I will definitely visit the again!
The second Marietta shop, Little Quilts, is located in a house and is very cutesy with lots of antiques and a large selection of wools and historic reproduction fabrics. I found these wonderful towel kits in the shop (that I will tell you about in another Blog entry). There is so much to look at in this shop; you have to plan lots of time for your visit! They also carry children’s fabric, contemporary Kaffe Fassetts, Moda, and batiks. Again, the staff was friendly and chatty. It was fun to look at all the “little quilt” patterns in addition to all the other quilts in this shop. The third shop in Marietta, Red Hen Fabrics, is located in a red barn-like building near the historic town center. The shop has one room with three long arm quilting machines that patrons can rent by the hour! If you like to look at big, historic Southern houses, visit the Historic downtown area before returning to Atlanta! Nice little places for lunch, too!
The fourth shop I visited was in Decatur (near Emory University), Intown Quilters, Inc. One of my personal top 10 quilt shops (you know Thimble Pleasures is #1!), this shop is filled with brights and contemporary fabrics – boasting the largest selection of Kaffe Fassetts I have ever seen. There are always new quilts on display with seasonal themes…..last week the theme was summer with some very cute beach fabric! They also carry some beautiful French children’s fabrics, lots of notions (have you seen the jumbo rick rack??) and lots of great books.
All in all, a great shop hop day. Remember to patronize the small independent quilt shops when you travel (and where you live). Like, Thimble Pleasures, they offer quilt classes, a sense of community, and friendly service that you won’t find in the online shops! P.S. If you don’t have a “quilt shop finder” (aka. GPS) – get one and call ahead before you go to be sure the shops are open!!