The parking lots were no match for the thousands of shoppers who braved heavy crowds and traffic the day after Thanksgiving for the Black Friday sales at local malls.

At Chicago Premium Outlets in Aurora, most stores opened at midnight after Thanksgiving for their biggest sale of the year.

Die-hard shoppers flooded the stores all day Friday and a line of cars sitting in traffic on the driveways leading into the mall waited to find parking. Many opted to be creative and made their own spots by parking parallel next to curbs and in no-parking zones.

Carolyn Coleman of Batavia started her holiday shopping at 9 a.m. Friday, and said battling the crowds at Chicago Premium Outlets was worth the one-day deals she found.

“The crowds are a hassle, but I think it’s fun — I go every year,” Coleman said.

At Charlestowne Mall in St. Charles, the parking lots were full of cars all day, and it was difficult to find a parking spot without waiting for someone to leave their space.

Phyllis Kolodziej and her daughter, Corey, of Bartlett, who were shopping at clothing store Express, said they didn’t get up early to rush out for the sales, but still found a lot of deals when they got to the mall at noon.

“I’m supposed to be working today, but instead I came to the mall for the sales,” Phyllis said.

“One year I went out shopping at 4:30 a.m. and kept going until 6 p.m. — it was the longest day of my life,” Corey said.

Across the mall, outside of Prime Dollar, Sandra Fessler of West Chicago looked tired as she sat on a bench and waited for her husband to finish his shopping.

“I’m done shopping — I hate the crowds,” Fessler said.

Fessler started shopping at 9:30 so she could take advantage of a sale that ended at 1 p.m. at Carson’s.

“I bought a gift at 50 percent off and had a $10 coupon, so I only paid $5 for it,” Fessler said.

At Geneva Commons, Jami Dixon of Elgin rushed to women’s clothing retailer H & M for a sale that ended at noon.

“They gave you 25 percent off on everything you buy before noon, and I got a coat for only $10,” Dixon said.

Cori Peterson of Elgin spent $60 at Victoria’s Secret and got a free bag in return.

“I bought a lot of stuff for myself, but I did buy one gift,” Peterson said.

Peterson and Dixon, along with their friend, Casey Blum, said they had been shopping since 10:30 a.m. and after a quick lunch break, planned to find more sales.

“I think this is a crazy shopping day, but it can be worth it,” Dixon said.