May finishes...

I almost missed sharing my Buttermilk Basin May finishes!

It is so hard to believe that tomorrow is June 1st ~ especially with the furnace running today...

First is May from the "Year in Stitches Collection"

You will notice a theme with my finishes this month... 

this time of year, any bird that I create becomes a robin.

I just can't help myself :)

Next is Spring Seasonal Basket

Wool & Needle BOM - May

This is March from "Live Simply", but I thought it worked better for May :)

And finally Basin Banners - May trimmed in tea dyed lavender velvet.

Tomorrow these will all be put away to make room for June :)

So glad that I remembered to photograph and share before I packed them away.

Don't forget that there is still time to enter my little giveaway here.

"Blessed be the name of the Lord

    from this time on and forevermore.

From the rising of the sun to its setting

    the name of the Lord is to be praised.

The Lord is high above all nations,

    and his glory above the heavens."

~Psalm 113:2-4

Blessings, Patti

This, that and a little giveaway

If you would like to see a beautiful presentation of the "From Our Hands & Hearts ~ Creative", please click here. The photos are much more professional than mine!

A week after returning home from Ohio, I was off to Miami, FL.

Just a quick business trip.

I did find a few spare moments for stitching in the sun and listening to the surf.

I worked on "A Token of Spring" from the Little Sparrow PinKeep Club by Scattered Seed Samplers.

I thought it was definitely a beautiful sign when this mourning dove came to roost on the balcony while I stitched.

I had to return to Chicago quickly as I was meeting my husband and sons to attend an awesome concert

The Who!

I don't know which generation was more excited ~ the parents (us) or our kids!

After Joan Jett and the Blackhearts warmed us up, then The Who played for a solid 2 1/2 hours.

They played all the greatest hits and had the crowd on their feet all night.

It was so awesome to be sitting in the 6th row.

A wonderful vantage point.

In addition to Roger Daultry and Pete Townsend, our younger son gave a full run down of the band that included Simon Townsend (Pete's brother), Zak Starkey (Ringo Starr's son) and Pino Palladino, bassist extraordinaire.

Then Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam got on stage and rocked the crowd.

It was an awesome night to remember.

Next up:

This weekend I finished my Rebekah L. Smith class project!

I am so thrilled with how it turned out.

I love the backing fabric that Rebekah provided.

And I added a little ticking tag and wool heart.

And finally for the little giveaway. 

It isn't much, but someone may like it...

A spool of vintage ribbon from the Brown Rabbit, some of the antique crochet trim, shirting and reversible wool found at the antique mall and an issue of Early American Life magazine. This is the last holiday issue. Once home I realized that I already had it. The wonderful thing about this issue is that it includes a pattern by Rebekah L. Smith!

Isn't this sewing book sweet!

As always, this little giveaway is open to everyone. Simply leave a comment on this post or send an email to me at pgagliardi9@hotmail.com with "Giveaway" in the subject line.

And tell me, what did you like best about the Ohio trip?

I will pick a random winner on Friday, June 5th.

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven..."

~Ecclesiastes 3:1

Blessings, Patti

From Our Hands & Hearts ~ The End

On our last day, it was time to do a little exploring...

First stop - Pine Cone Gift Shoppe in Uniontown, Ohio.

They specialize in American made and especially Ohio made primitives.

I highly recommend taking the ride.

Two little eggs painted by Rebekah L. Smith came home with me.

As did my first two pieces of Shooner Pottery - the bird with tulips and the spotted hare - a perfect remembrance of my trip!

The octagonal bird plate is by Stephen Earp.

After our little side trip, I decided that I couldn't go home without seeing a bit of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

It was just beginning to green up.

It was a lovely blue sky day.

You felt like you were out in the middle of nowhere until you had the occasional glimpse of the interstate that runs through the park.

The historic Boston Store built in 1836 was a great place to take a little break.

Then it was time to explore another path that led to this:

The very pretty 60 foot Brandywine Falls.

It's amazing how the moss grows on the rocks even with the constant roaring water.

It's also amazing how trees will grow wherever they can.

Little views of beauty all around.

But all too soon it was time to say goodbye.

I did make one final stop on my journey home when a billboard beckoned me.

Who can refuse a ginormous antique mall?

It was about the size of a Home Depot.

I could only allow myself 45 minutes knowing how many hours of driving I had ahead of me.

Needless to say I was in there an hour and a half and still didn't see it all.

I found a few treasures in my short time.

I never saw so many beautiful button collections.

This board of vegetable ivories couldn't be left behind.

Along with some pretty dark shell buttons and buckles and antique crochet trim.

This interesting treen box with original paint was another find.

I have no idea what it would have been used for.

I think the little indentation in the top is calling for a pincushion made of antique fabric.

And finally some antique shirting and some wonderful reversible wool - pink on one side and cream on the other.

Thank you so much for coming along with me on this lovely, yet long-winded journey.

I'll be back later this week with a little giveaway of trip souvenirs.

“Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him."

~John 3:17

Blessings, Patti

From Our Hands & Hearts ~ Part 5

And so the Mercantile continues...

Next stop was the delightful booth of Primitives Past. So many beautiful items to choose from, again I agonized over having to make a decision. Their wooden wares are so beautiful and useful. Of course I couldn't make a decision on an item or a color. Thank goodness they have a website here for when I finally decide! I did purchase one item from Pam Gill that I couldn't pass up...

This beautiful hand painted velvet strawberry pinkeep.

I love it!

The next stop was the booth of Alice Fraizer of Folk Art Primitives.

Her booth was filled with gorgeous wools of so many unique textures. You can find her website here.

Do you see the large wooden bowl at the bottom of the photo? It was filled with something that I haven't seen before:

Antique wool paisleys! I've never seen anything like it before - so of course two pieces had to come home with me :) I've always been a fan of paisley...

I am so sorry to say that I didn't write down the name of this lovely booth.

Thanks to my new friend Linda from Ohio, I learned that this booth was The Brown Rabbit shop which you will read more about further down the post. Thanks Linda!

So many lovely antiques and handmades

I loved this display of sweet handmade birds.

My purchase here is such a treasure!

This stunning box covered in scherenschnitte silhouettes!

The paper used was from an antique German book. Just looking at it inspires me so!

Talk about inspiring! Next up is the always fabulous booth of Stacy Nash!

Her website is here.

Stacy has such a wonderful knack for display and presentation!

Can I get one of everything please!

My final purchase from the Mercantile was this lovely pillow by Doreen Frost of  Vermont Harvest Folk Art. Her website is here and her blog is here.

She has such a unique punchneedle technique and her use of colors is inspirational!

I'm so glad that this original has come to live with me!

I must apologize for not having any photos of Doreen's booth or the stunning both of Lori Ann Corelis :( 

I think I was just so overwhelmed by it all that I missed my photo taking opportunity :(

Click here to see Lori Ann's Spotted Hare Website and her blog here.

After we had finished at the Mercantile, Linda and I walked through the town of Peninsula.

It was a beautiful day and the historic homes were as beautiful as the flowers.

A lovely day for a walk.

We stopped in a few shops and my favorite was tucked behind Yellow Creek Trading Company.

Brown Rabbit was filled with vintage and handmade treasures.

I found some pretty vintage trims wrapped on wooden spools.

Well. I think that I have one more post of the rest of our final day and my journey home.

After that I will be ready to share a little giveaway.

Thanks for letting me relive my memories of this wonderful trip.

For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

~Galatians 5:13-14

Blessings, Patti