So how did this hop stuff start for us? The first Bead Shop Hop was in 2010 and it included 35 stores over 2 weekends (Thursday to Sunday). Several people (including Mitch) told Susan there was no way she could complete the whole thing, but she was curious (and a bit stubborn). So the first Saturday of the hop she set out for stores in the Southern region to see how far she could get. It was tricky. She was on her own without GPS and it was tough to follow directions printed from Google maps without a second person in the car.
Susan arrived at her first stop, Bead Island in Murietta, fairly close to when they opened and it was good start. However, the drive from Murietta to the next store in Julian was much more challenging than expected. There was a lot of traffic due to a motocross event at Pala Raceway. Susan got really turned around before she found the second store outside Julian. Then she got turned around again when trying to find the next stop in El Cajon.
The day was more challenging when she found that the area around The Black Bead in San Diego was packed with people due to a local festival and there was no parking. Sadly, after 45 minutes of driving around, Susan had to give up trying to find a parking space and move on. The day didn't work out the way she planned, but she still managed 8 stores which seemed pretty good for her first day of the first hop.
At that point, it really didn't seem possible to complete the whole thing. However, Susan decided to try visiting some of the stores closer to home. So on the second day she went to as many stores as she could. Despite traffic and getting lost again, she visited another 8 figuring that 16 stores was pretty good and she was content. Then we got talking and Mitch realized he could work it out to go with her the following Saturday (the 2nd to last day of the hop). So we visited nearly all the stores in the Northern region and had lots of fun trying to fit them all in that day.
Then came the final day of the 2010 hop. While it was tempting for Susan to try to finish, it also seemed impossible. Mitch couldn't go and there were 11 stores left, spread from Oceanside to Palm Desert (by way of San Diego, Vista, and Claremont). It was a lot of distance to cover in a short time, but Susan made it! She even had about 30 minutes to spare and to shop for the first time at Monica's Quilt and Bead Creations in Palm Desert.
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| Even though some of the stamps came out faded, Susan did the whole thing! |
We both looked forward to the hop in September 2011, especially Mitch who had enjoyed his one day of the 2010 hop and wanted to take on the whole thing. At that point we were just about going on 5 months of waiting to adopt. While we were still in basking in the happy glow of the newly waiting (yes, there is a happy time before the wait grows old), a road trip seemed like just the thing we needed. So we coordinated our work schedules and took 4 days off (Thursday through Sunday) to visit the 29 stores participating in the 2011 hop. Planning our route was fun and it helped keep us distracted. The 2011 hop also included a lanyard design contest which kept Susan busy beading. We didn't win, but Susan had a great time decorating our lanyards - Mitch's stitched with some dinosaurs and hers painstaking stitched with a floral border.
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| Our lanyards for the 2011 hop. |
The 2011 hop was even better than the first. Experience makes a huge difference and Susan's knowledge of the stores from the previous year came in handy. It helped us create a list of stores we wanted to spend the most time in and allowed us to plan the timing of our route more carefully. The GPS Susan received as a gift from her parents was also a significant improvement over the printed directions from the year before. It helped to have 2 drivers, rather than 1 and to stay on the road rather than head back home each night. We stayed overnight the first night in Temecula, at home the second night, and in Lancaster the third night which made better use of the 4 days.
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| The 2011 trophy (gumball machine filled with beads) is behind Susan's left shoulder. |
We had a great time! The stores were also more organized and much more welcoming than the first year. Susan didn't have much time to pause for anything on her mostly solo trip in 2010, but in 2011 there was more time to check out most of the stores and enjoy creating a few projects on the road. We even learned to work with metal clay silver at Beadiak in Agoura Hills, a first for both of us.
You probably know from our Bead Shop Hop 2012 post that we enjoyed a 3rd year of hopping, despite a bit of sadness that we still hadn't matched. It was hard for Susan to warm up to the idea of the 2012 hop, but we're really happy to have been part of 3 Bead Shop Hops. That said we are very much hoping that we won't be able go in 2013. While of course it would be fun, we're ready to adopt and take a few years off from beads and road trips. Bring on the sleepless nights and diaper changes!
If you're interested in more, we've got the 10 things we love about the Bead Shop Hops.
1. It's a giant road trip. (Need we say more?)
2. The unique environment and selection that each bead store offers.
3. Shopping at small businesses (and supporting Southern California communities in the process).
4. Enjoying the variety of landscapes in Southern Califoria and the gorgeous views on the road (beaches, deserts, mountains, and more).
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| It's a lovely drive on the road to Julian. |
5. Roadside attractions and curiosities. (Yay, Cabazon Dinosaurs!)
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| Mitch loves dinosaurs and big roadside dinosaurs are even better! |
6. Classic candy. There's a good shop in Chino (The Candy Shoppe) and another in Lancaster (Charlie Brown Farms).
7. The fun (and challenge) of planning a route that gets the hop accomplished within the allotted time frame.
8. Inspiration from new selections, project samples, make & takes, demonstrations, and more at each store.
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| Mitch learned how to make a wire wrapped loop for a make & take charm at CT's Beads N Things in Lancaster, CA. |
9. The kindness and encouragement from store owners and employees.
10. The beads, of course! (Especially since there are usually vendor trunk shows and special deals during the hop.)
And, if you're interested in even more, we put together YouTube presentations of pictures from the 2011 hop. They are about 2-3 minutes each so check them out if you'd like to see the hop "in action".
2011 Region 1 - Los Angeles & Ventura counties
2011 Region 2 - Orange, Riverside & San Bernadino counties
2011 Region 3 - Riverside & San Diego counties
Yay! You made it to the end. That's how we felt!!!
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