The Fabric Store, Crystal Lake, IL

This is Miss Millie, the owner of The Fabric Store. She'll be 90 this year! She's showing me the hand-puppet drawer, with handmade puppets for the children of her customers to play with while their moms shop. Miss Millie told me about a day at the beach with her 50-ish grandson last summer. She told him she was going to do a cartwheel, & he said, "Grandma! What if you fall?!?" She said, "It's sand!!" This lady is the original & only owner of this incredible store, which includes a wall of home dec fabrics on rolls, more buttons than I've seen under one roof anywhere, fabulous trims, tassels & braids, & a huge range of up-to-the-minute quilt fabrics, all arranged by color. Miss Millie & her 60-ish clerk do everything by hand, including calling in credit card payments. They are inspiring.