“At the time, there were a lot of traditional quilting stores, and we could never find modern fabric like we wanted,” Copeland said. “[My friends] said, ‘You should open a quilt store.’ So I did.”
In April 2014, Copeland rented a 14-foot-by-10-foot space in Marketplace Boutiques, a shopping center in Plano. Two years later, she relocated to a bigger location in Plano, and then last August she moved the business to its current space, which has 4,250 square feet.“I started out with a little booth because I really didn’t know what I was doing when I opened the store,” Copeland said. “I moved because I needed space.”
Since day one, Copeland said she has stocked bright fabrics, which is what her customers have come to expect.
“Because of the colors and layout of the store, we attract anybody from high schoolers to retired ladies who are tired of the traditional, early American-style quilting,” Copeland said. “[We attract] the customer who likes bright and fabulous color and is looking for something different—more of a modern quilter.”
The business offers classes for people of varying skill levels. The most requested classes are Beginner Quilting for $49; Collage Class, which is a no-sew class, for $65; and Basic Technique of Binding for $40.
Copeland said she brainstormed with a group of friends to come up with the business’ name. When they struck upon “Not Your Mama’s Quilt Store,” they knew that was the one, she said.
“I have a huge number of walk-in traffic that said they did a quilt shop Google search and saw my name and said they had to come see it,” Copeland said. “They were very excited just by the name.”
Copeland said her grandmother taught her to sew. When she had children of her own, she started making quilts.
“I decided to try it, and I fell in love with it,” she said. “Even when you don’t need any more quilts, you still make quilts because you love the process—the machine, the hum—you just love it.”
Not Your Mama’s Quilt Store
2963 W. 15th St., Ste. 3055, Plano
972-612-2641
www.notyourmamasquiltstore.com
Hours: Mon.-Sat. 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sun. closed
