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I don't have an LNS here, Crabby or otherwise There is a huge Hobbycraft about 10 miles from my house, but I only go there if I've run out of one single thread that I forgot to order online and am desperate for it, simply because they're twice the price of Datskat (my ebay thread seller) and anything other than threads I order from Sew & So.

I didn't realise Sew & So had a store - I really need to make a trip to Stroud too, and make sure I have a big fat wallet full of spending money! If their online shop is anything to go by, I could probably spend hours in the actual store and come out considerably less well off than when I went in!

Sewandso's shop

https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?ie=UTF-8 ... CD4QrwswAQ" target="_blank

the shop looks so small! (Compared with the huge inventory on their site)

It does look small and so I decided to see if I23 Stitch was as huge as I think it should be also, given their inventory. I can't get a url from Goggle Maps for it, but if anyone is interested use their address 14852 S Heritagecrest Way Unit C Riverton, UT. Can't tell from the pic if they actually sell anything in the store or if it is an office for the online store only. Definitely not big enough to hold their inventory either.

Carole

You mean Sew and So is a Real Place... Oh, dear. Ohdearohdearohdear... good thing I'm 400+ miles away.

MaudL wrote:the shop looks so small! (Compared with the huge inventory on their site)

I thought the same thing when I went to Nordic Needle in Fargo ND.
They are probably the site I use most often for browsing.
And their catalog has so many new charts and tools.
Their store was full.. and everything was neatly organized by designer or technique. It just wasn't as big as I was expecting. But then again, papers and booklets stack really nicely and don't take up much space. Same with drawers and spinner racks of threads. Loads of fabric can fit into a small space- as with theirs- most was still on the bolt and cut to order.

I don't know what I was invisioning.. a warehouse full of aisles and aisles of stitchy things? I'm not sure. It was fantastic little side trip- don't get me wrong. So nice to see materials and items I wasn't familar with. But my mental version of the store was very different than the actual store.

Serinde wrote:You mean Sew and So is a Real Place... Oh, dear. Ohdearohdearohdear... good thing I'm 400+ miles away.

Serinde I know what you mean! I even googled the directions from Edinburgh - Apparently it only takes 5 hours and 40 mins!

Next time my husband and I visiting friends in Cheltenham I think I might be suggesting a sidetrip....

Flo

Serinde wrote:You mean Sew and So is a Real Place... Oh, dear. Ohdearohdearohdear... good thing I'm 400+ miles away.

I've just convinced DH to go via Stroud when we visit his parents next weekend

Mabel Figworthy wrote:
I've just convinced DH to go via Stroud when we visit his parents next weekend

Yay! Have a great time

Looks on map to see where Stroud is....

I just checked out directions to Stroud and I am in Vancouver Canada!
That's not as crazy as it sounds as I will be in London in September. 2 + hours by transit is do-able on a day if I have some time
Any shops in Paris I can check out on this trip as well?
Cheers

There's only 1 LNS (& it's not so "L"-about an hour away) and it's like Dr Jekyl/Mr Hyde.

When I first started back stitching I needed (read-wanted) some particular thing & DHs night school is relatively close to the store I found online. I sent him there & he (who knows all about hobby's--he does model trains and is also familiar w/cross stitching because his Mom used to do it & I do it) was ROYALLY snubbed. When he called me after he left the store I was shocked at the description he gave me!

Ffwd a few months & I ventured in there. I had no problems. So I've been back there a few times. When I was putting together a stash-mas gift I was OVERWHELMED at the kindness the owner showed when I told her why I was there.

Don't know if DHs experience was the product of a bad day or what. I am willing to give someone a 2nd chance, so there's that.

I personally like to browse a LOT in a store like this--but I am usually there to purchase SOMETHING...but I don't really liked to be hurried along. (I like to enjoy THEIR "stash", ya' know?)

Sent an email to Sew & So to ask whether this shop was them, as it isn't mentioned at all on their website -- that only mentions the one on the industrial estate. I couldn't imagine that it had nothing to do with them, but I thought I might as well ask

This morning Lisa wrote back:
"There is a small shop in Lansdown Stroud which our managers mother owns. It is only small but is jam packed but does not hold everything on our website."

As for that last comment, it would have to be a Tardis to do that ! But I'm sure it will make a very nice stop on the way to DH's parents (he's giving me an hour for the shop and lunch...)

Well, I just had a crabby shop experience.

A friend and I both ordered from a dutch online (also brick & mortar) shop, she on May 2 (Thu), me on May 3 (Fri). I only ordered a set of needles, they had a bit of a strange shipping charge policy, 3 euro (more than the max for regular mail) for 1 item, 6.75 (package post) for 2 or more, so one it was. Paid online, hoping they'd send it out the same day so I'd get them on Sat.

Heard nothing for days, nor did my friend. She phoned them on Wed, the answer was that the lady on the phone did the online orders and she was only there on Wed's so it would be shipped out that day. Thu was a holiday here so they should have been in on Fri. Nope. Not her, not me. On Sat she finally got her order but I didn't. On Tue still nothing so I emailed them that I was disappointed and to please cancel and refund my order. No answer. So I called them this Friday, two weeks after placing the order. I introduced myself and she was like "Yes, you also sent an email". Well yes, so why no answer? She said something about not being able to find the email after customers coming into the store and not being able to find my order in the system. I said well this is the order number and I have the payment here too. She kept going on about it not being in the system and not finding my email and then with a big sigh said "Well, just give me your address and I'll send them out today". She did, with a apology note. Well, too little too late. This was one of those occasions where a small purchase could have led to lots more but this is a case of never again.

To make things worse my friend's order was not complete, one of the things she ordered on Thu was sold in the store the next Sat so they were out of stock, they would ship it on Fri (May 10) but they didn't, it was shipped on the Thu after that.

In case any dutchies want to know, this is (in Dutch) needle and thread dot com

On the other side there's hardanger.nl. Placed an order there on Mon at noon for some fabric swatches (loved that they sell swatches. 10 x 7 cm for 30 eurocents) and some needles, got an email at 1730 apologizing for the late reply (huh?) and that my order was shipped, got that the next day. Ordered the fabric I chose on Thu, got an email within the hour that it would be shipped on Fri, got that yesterday. Excellent service, I'm sure I'll order more there!

KarinvdB wrote:
Well, too little too late. This was one of those occasions where a small purchase could have led to lots more but this is a case of never again.

She missed out there. Serve her right! That is very bad customer service.
I'm glad your other one turned out much better. What a difference!