A Winner & Vacation Stitching

 Chippewa Flowage, Hayward, Wisconsin

Do not read this post if you are hungry!

Wow! You readers really like your pie ;) I had 81 entries and lots of favorite types of pies:

fruit filled - blueberry, lemon, blackberry, huckleberry, cherry, strawberry rhubarb, peach

meringue - chocolate, lemon

cream - chocolate, coconut, banana, 

pecan and shoofly and too many more to mention,

but the most popular were apple and pumpkin! Of course all pies taste better with ice cream!

And I loved Vicki Jo's comment: 

"Or as my Daddy used to say, he had 4 kinds of pie as his favorites: hot, cold, one crust and two crust!"

The random winner of the little giveaway is OhioLori (who likes Cherry and Peach btw)!

Congratulations OhioLori! Send your mailing address to me at pgagliardi9@hotmail.com and I will send your package on its way...

 In my vacation posts, I shared my stitching as it progressed.

 It was a fun project 

And I thought it was very appropriate for my location.

 Cee Rafuse of Early Style Penny Rugs based this rug on the antique above.

This is Cee's design.

I bought her kit of hand dyed vintage wool and her wonderful hand dyed string for stitching.

And here is my rendition:

I decided to omit the year and substitute two flowers. Then in each corner I added familiar creatures that live around the cabin - song birds, ducks / loons, squirrels / chipmunks and a beaver that swims up the channel by our cabin and then crosses the road each night at 9:00.

It's my favorite souvenir of our time at the cabin.

 Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom.

“Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves money belts which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near nor moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

~Luke 12:32-34

Blessings, Patti

Northwoods, antiques and a little giveaway

 

We did some antiquing on our vacation this year.

( A rainy day and a really cold day helped.)

 

 

I loved this old barn and the treasures that it held.

 

Loved the collection of old bottles

 

and outboard motors

 

and license plates, too.

 

 

This old house sits at the top of a hill in the town of Spooner.

What a grand house it must have been back in the day...

 

Here are the treasures that came home with me.

(And yes, that is Peanut on the right.

He always needs to help when he sees that I am going to take a picture.)

 

I already have ideas for future creations with some of these items.

 

I loved the hexagon shaped sewing basket and the little treasures found inside - including an old hair pin, a Cracker Jack ring with a green heart shaped stone, a calendar reminder of Flag Day (the day we adopted our pups) with a USO flag pin and a Sunday School attendance pin.

Can you believe that the little sewing basket and its treasures was $1?!?

My mom, sister and I always used to say we can't pass up anything for a dollar! 

 

 

It was such a lovely vacation and I like to share that in some small way with you.

 So here is a little giveaway:

 

 

This giveaway is for a fat quarter of pretty butterfly fabric from the quilt show, a fat quarter of the Wisconsin shop hop fabric that I picked up at River's Edge, a little square of plaid wool from  Willow Wood Market, a spool and button hook picked up while antiquing and a little flower penny kit picked up at Woolkeeper - an adventure that I haven't shared yet ;)

Simply leave a comment on this post or send me an email to pgagliardi9@hotmail.com with "Giveaway" in the subject line. Since the most comments that I received from my vacation posts were about the pie in the first post, tell me... What is your favorite kind of pie???

I will pick a random winner on Wednesday, August 17th.

 

Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes.

~Luke 12:22-23

 

Blessings, Patti 

Hayward Piecemakers Quilt Show

We've been heading up to Hayward, Wisconsin for almost 20 summers now and I have never been there for their local quilt show! This year I was lucky enough to attend!

Such stunning and inspiring work!

So many different styles and colors!

I really loved this one especially after I read the card attached. 

"I started out cutting the first strips all wrong, but I made it work by cutting the remaining strips equally wrong."

And in the end it didn't matter, as it turned out stunning!!!

Love the cardinals in the birch trees!

This one was special too, as the card read,

"I wanted a quilt for my husband's birthday. Seeing that he is my best catch, I wanted a fish design."

So sweet!

This quilt started with some found antique quilt squares. 

The maker then searched out vintage fabrics to complete it.

Lovely results!

I loved how the local nursery supplied pretty flowers to set off the quilts.

This beautiful quilt was raffled off during the show.

I bought my tickets, but didn't win it.

There was also a nice merchant mall. 

Gail of River's Edge was there, but we were so busy chatting, that I forgot to take photos!

I was also thrilled to find a designer who was new to me:

Willow Wood Market

She had many of her own lovely designs as well as some from other designers.

A lot to take in...

And so many that I have never seen before.

I had such a hard time deciding what would go home with me...

Here were my choices:

This Yoko Saito book is fabulous!

Somehow I missed it during my day at River's Edge. I guess there was too much to see and take in. So I was thrilled to see it at Gail's booth at the show. It is expensive, but there are so many wonderful patterns that it is well worth the price. I highly recommend it for Birthday and Christmas lists :)

I was also excited to find these two antique shuttles for $3 at the guild boutique.

And from Willow Wood Market I bought three kits - two were Bonnie's original designs and one was for her take on a Wooden Spool Design. I loved the plaids and textures. Can't wait to get started!

Such a wonderful way to spend part of our final day of vacation. My husband was so sweet and said that he wanted to be sure that I didn't miss it, so he took me there before we headed to his final round of golf. Stopped at a Wisconsin Supper Club for a fish fry and headed out for a final kayak ride.

It was a perfect final day!

I'll have one more vacation post with a little giveaway... coming soon!

 And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.”

~Luke 10:27

Blessings, Patti

River's Edge Antiques & Quilt Loft

Last year I had the pleasure of visiting Gail Grassel and River's Edge Antiques & Quilt Loft

 (You can read about it here.)

This year I made sure that I had more time to visit so I wouldn't be rushed!

It was a great time to visit as Gail is hosting a trunk show of Crane Designs by Jan Mott!

Where to look first?! So beautiful and inspiring!

I would have loved to bring one of each home ;)

The detail on the four seasons scenes were unbelievable!

I thought that there was so much to see last year, and this year there is even more!

Some of the models are Jan's and some are Gail's, but every one is gorgeous!

And in addition to the wool - the quilts and fabrics are breathtaking as well.

Upstairs in the loft, there is even more.

Including a fabulous selection of Valdani.

I was so lucky to join in the fun with Gail's stitching group and got a sneak peek of Gail's wonderful and generous free wool applique block of the month for August. 

These patterns are free for the given month here or at the Facebook Group "Wool Applique" - if you are a wool lover you will want to join :) 

(Previous months are available for purchase.)

Thank you Gail for such a fun afternoon!

Gail's website can be found here and her Facebook page is here.

And what did I purchase?

Here are my treasures!

I'm thinking that Crane Design's "Faith" will be perfect for Easter!

And look at these sweet fabrics from this year's Wisconsin Shop Hop!

Progress was made on my vacation project at the Stitch In - in between the shopping lol! :)

Next, I'll share the quilt show 

and after that there might be a little giveaway... :)

"You are my refuge and my shield;

    I have put my hope in your word."

~Psalm 119:114

Blessings, Patti

A Different Kind of Vacation

 

Our annual trek to the north woods was definitely different this year.

I always look forward to this week - unplugging completely from the internet/phones

 and reconnecting with nature.

 

It was oh so different this year, as our sons could not join us.

Both were participating in internships/research fellowships in their field of study.

It was a disappointment to us all, but a great opportunity towards their future.

It was also a chance for my husband and I to reconnect...

 

 

We found that we spent time doing things that we enjoyed - 

things we might not do as much when the boys are along... 

Of course I spent time stitching...

 

And my husband golfed.

(I tagged along as the courses are usually beautiful and I can stitch in the golf cart ;) )

 

We spent time on the water, fishing as we usually do.

 

This was a once in a lifetime experience...

You probably need to zoom in on these photos to see a territorial chase between two loons.

 

They were actually using their wings as flippers to "swim" on top of the water in hot pursuit.

 

They moved very quickly creating a lot of waves.

Shortly after, the first loon left and the second loon seemed quite pleased with himself.

 

Of course I had to stitch some more...

 

We went to the Norske Nook for pie (before dinner lol - don't tell the boys!)

They have 45 nationally award winning blue ribbon pies! 

 

How do you pick just one?!

Of course I ate each and every bite!

 

Then I stitched some more...

 

We had a neighbor come for a visit.

 

And she brought her darling children.

 

Momma had found a little blueberry bush right by our deck.

She ate a few and then brought the ducklings along for a treat while she stood guard.

 

We went on our daily kayak runs as we do with the boys.

 

And hit another golf course for good measure -

while I stitched of course.

 

And all too soon, vacation was over and we were headed home to our sons and our pups.

 

I also had the good fortune of revisiting a wonderful quilt shop

and a small town, yet big on inspiration quilt show - more on that to follow.

(along with my stitch project finish)

A lovely yet different kind of vacation, but it is also good to be home!

Here's hoping that our sons can join us next year!

 

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven."

~Matthew 5:14-16

 

Blessings, Patti