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By JOYANNA LOVE  | Managing Editor

Sew Charming has been voted the favorite quilt shop in Alabama through By Annie’s Local Quilt Shop Contest.

Penny Smith of Sew Charming said the contest was hosted through ByAnnie.com and several sponsors. Visitors to the site voted for their favorite quilt shop in each of the United States on the website.

The company had promoted the contest on their social media, but then forgot about it.

“We didn’t expect (to win) because there are over 42 quilt shops in the state of Alabama,” Smith said. “… We were surprised and shocked and super excited. Our cheeks hurt from smiling so much.”

A customer saw the winners’ list before Sew Charming, and she was the first to let them know when she congratulated them.

A banner for the win was delivered this week and will be installed on their fence soon.

As a part of winning, Sew Charming will receive recognition on some of the sponsor sites.

Smith said quilters will visit quilt shops as they travel. The ones they like then get talked about and shared with their friends.

“If you tell a quilter about anything, it is going to spread,” customer Jeanette Glasscock said. “If it is a good quilt shop, and the main thing in the people that run it, too. If they are nice, they (quilters) are going to go.”

“We have people coming from all over,” Smith said.

Travelers from North Carolina, Washington and Indiana have made stops at Sew Charming.

Quilting continues to be something people enjoy because it is fun, and they can do it with friends, she said.

Glasscock said the nostalgia is also part of what makes it enduring.

“Thinking about that your grandmother did it,” Glasscock said. “Your great-grandparents did it.”

“It’s something to hand down, an heirloom,” Smith said.