There is nothing that can compare with the sight of loons on Big Birch Lake at sunset…. Or the way the clouds reflect in the water under a stormy sky. Green becomes iridescent, blues shimmer and the gold of the sun on the distant hills is in stark contrast to the storm clouds.
Enough of waxing lyrical…. Sometimes I just can’t help myself.
As I write this blog, the mellow light of the standard lamp reflects in the window of the Gazebo… Looking through the reflection on the glass my eyes become adjusted to the dark. There are small lights at the edge of the woods some 10 meters away and I sat for a while and watched two fat raccoons take their supper.
The quilt shops we visited today were Aunt Annies in Avon and Grubers in St Cloud.…Gruber's defies description… If I remember correctly there are about 10 rooms each hosting a different genre of quilting and knitting….I’ve visited many times, but it doesn’t diminish the excitement you feel as you walk through the door… full size shopping trolleys decorated in fabric scraps give you the hint that this store is a little out of the ordinary….
There are 100’s of books for purchase set in genre’s, flowers in one section, history in another, piecing, wool, embroidery and the list goes on. Samples cover every wall, so inspiration is never far away. I didn’t purchase any fabric, I’m only concentrating on one project for the next year or so…..
The owners of Gruber's, purchased a huge building which houses other shops and one of my favorites is an antique mall. I succumbed and bought a vintage crazy patch quilt top made from feed sacks for a mere $22. I love the fabric and it hasn’t been laundered so it’s in wonderful condition. It will be a great fabric archival piece. As I was paying for my purchases the assistant asked my opinion on two other quilts she had out the back….wow…. My heart beat faster….
One is a star quilt, 1930’s, hand pieced and quilted with a thin cotton bat….. It has never been used and it had an appraisal certificate…..!!! that sure found it’s way into my bag….
There was another gorgeous one….buttercup yellow, with flowers appliquéd on it….I need to go into my data base to name the block…I should have taken a photo…. That one was made in the 1940’s, never used, hand pieced and hand quilted…. Appraised. If any one is interested I can sure go back and purchase it….!!!
Di, Joan and I sat outside of Grubers in the foyer and had show and tell and coffee…. Yes, there is a foyer where me can sit and wait for their wives… it’s decorated in country hunting style with a big leather lounge suite, huge fireplace, tall ornamental pine trees and lots of magazines !!!!
That’s the way to make the men oblivious to the spending in the other department!!!
Aunt Annie’s is in the town of Avon, just 12 miles from St Cloud.
Owner Lucy is a talented quilt maker and we were privileged to see some of her landscape and music pieces she had made for a recent show.
Lucy stocks very different fabric, Japanese, African, Australian and decorating fabrics along with the ordinary quilting stock. She had a bag of silk worm cocoons she was about to dye…. So we poured through a book she had that showed how they could be used….
We also visited a huge craft store…. Probably as large as a K Mart… Crafts Direct…. I thought Di was going into shock she was so excited…
Di’s trip is about to end. I’m taking her down to the cities today…. It’s been wonderful sharing my life here with her… I can talk about it at home… I can show pictures.. But it’s not the same as sharing the experience.
Aunt Annie's Quilts and Silks PO Box 359 Avon, MN 56310 320-356-1061 ...
