Kelly had asked about tips for doing a "Shop Hop" (visiting lots of shops a day when they have their special "shop hop" or "Quilter Run") and it kind of got buried at the end of the SoCal Quilt run thread, so I thought I'd post this separately.

Shop Hop tips:

1. Take a notebook and write a little bit about each shop you visit - they start to blur after a while. Some will specialize in one fabric over another, have nice staff, smell nice (yes, there was one that smelled so wonderful and I remember it from before that I made sure my friend and I went there yesterday!) Ask questions: "What do you specialize in"? Get a class schedule - they may have a weekend class worth driving out for.

2. Take a list of what you need for upcoming projects, swaps etc. Cross it off as you buy stuff.

3. Also, if you see something at a shop that you haven't seen before (and you want) BUY IT!! It may not ever be at any other store again (or at that store when you go back). This is true for the 1st shop on your "hop." I bought less in the beginning and the first store I went to had a lot of great stuff that I probably would spend more time and buy more -- and it's the one that's 2+ hours away from me in the desert.

4. Bring healthy snacks, carrot sticks, apple slices (you can buy the pre-cut packaged ones). Most shops on the run had CANDY or popcorn or other tasty but unhealthy treats. Most also have bottled water, but bring a beverage in the car.

5. Along this line of thinking, if you are trying to go to all the shops in a day, bring along a sandwich or bagged lunch. Restaurants can take too long and you're going to want to spend your time in a shop not waiting for service.

6. Don't drive and eat - you do have enough time to take 5-10 minutes to eat in the car, on a bench outside a quilt shop, etc. I had a few stupid moments (trying to eat jello in the car with a fork!) that could have been avoided.

7. Use the bathroom at the quilt shop. Or if you're between quilt shops, McDonalds is always a clean bathrrom option. One of my friends Mapquests McDonalds along her route in case she needs to go to the bathroom.

8. Figure out your map ahead of time and which stores are closest together. Our Quilt Run has a good map with directions but I also did Yahoo maps. Sometimes one was better than the other.

9. Have fun! I went alone in the beginning and that was fun, and I went with a friend one day and that was fun too.

--Amy