Almonte, Ontario: The Friendly Town

Here's some snapshots of the quaint Almonte, Ontario, Canada. That bag's claim is genius--nice, J.B Arts. As a woolen mill town it is rooted with textile history and presently flourishes with festivals and creativity galore!

Salvage décor boutique Tin Barn Market melts upcyclers into a puddle of joy. Also, note the Lending Library.

Baker Bob's next door is now back from their bakeation.

 Cheerfully Made: where it rains watermelon seeds

The clock tower

Mighty fine gingerbread

Heirloom Café

Victoria Mill

There's three antique stores and an antique mall just on Mill Street, the main drag in Almonte--such paradise!

The antique mall

Almonte Electric Plant

Menzie's House B&B

 Nifty shingling on Almonte Riverside Inn that coordinates with the roof of the Almonte Old Town Hall.

  A millstone engraved with a poem and turned into bench

Amazonian Almonte--the waterfall at the center of the town

 I'm a sucker for a good bunting, this prayer flag included. It looks lovely fluttering against the waterfall.

The words "textile" and "museum" are thrilling on their own--together they are too good to explain.

 If you follow that exciting arrow you will end up at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum, housed in the Rosamond Woolen Company building, built 1867. Speaking of textiles, here's my Almonte collection.

I recommend a stroll through Almonte!

Storefront Potential

I snapped this photo of an empty boutique in Montréal a while ago. Notice the curious objects in the window--a wooden stepladder, two white boxes topped with a white ceramic cat, an aquamarine demijohn, and a cinderblock all against a kraft and newspaper backdrop. The striking blue and white makes me think of Greece. Who says empty storefronts have to be drab? Future shoppers delight in details that make them peek in.

Global Talent Search 2016 Prep

As seen on Facebook, I had enormous fun following the quirky prompts in preparation for the Global Talent Search, which starts next week! Eeeee! My answer to the Day 1 prompt is simply "water."

The Day 2 prompt made me hopeful for the future of seeing the golden Creatively Graceful logo silhouette on pretty products in creative stores!

Day 3 prompted one of those artist moments in which your fingers produce something that baffles your brain. 

The Day 4 prompt made me remember the beauty of the colours I often overlook.

Finally, the Day 5 prompt concluded the week with sweet pastel cheer, metaphors, and diverse typography!

The Creative Florist

The Creative Florist is up for voting in Spoonflower and Betabrand's Double Take Challenge! 

"I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address." 

--Joe Fox in You've Got Mail (a cute and witty movie, by the way)

Vintage Louisbourg Pennant

I got this fun '60s or '70s felt pennant from an antique store shortly after my trip to Louisbourg.

Back in Time for Dinner

Historians, decorators, costumers, and foodies unite! This documentary, Back in Time for Dinner is mind-blowing! It is the journey of a family in Britain living one year per day through the 1950s to the 1990s, behaving and eating according to the era. Their meals are based on the National Food Survey, a survey completed by households once a year from 1940 to 2000 in which participants documented all the food they bought and ate in a week. It is fascinating to see how societal events and technological advances altered food habits. 

The 1950s--A real contrast of the austere '50s in Britain to the prosperous '50s in North America!

The 1960s--"You get a fridge and then you burn your bra."

The 1970s--This epidsode made me want to eat hummus.

 The 1980s--Because marmite really gives a whole microwaved chicken the "golden" look.

The 1990s--Variety is key.

...and beyond!

1950s Porch Dwellers

I found this photo in a Country Living magazine. Such youthful summertime bliss!

The Painted Watermelon

Every summer I pick these cute wooden watermelons out of my seasonal décor object boxes and sit them on my shelf. The small one was painted by my grandma, and the large one by her fellow-artist friend. 

July Bulletin 2016

Vibrant and fruity inspiration (note: that watermelon above is a 19" tall sculpture entitled Melon Still Life, created by Franklin Gilliam in 1981 of granite and marble!)

Heart of the Country

Who's noticed that Canada's Capital is shaped like a heart?

With Glowing Hearts Fabric Collection

Happy Canada Day! The past several months I have been working on designing a cotton quilting fabric collection in celebration of Canada's 150th Anniversary on July 1st, 2017! The collection was produced by Moda Fabrics and is to be distributed by Trend-Tex Fabrics. With Glowing Hearts: Celebrating 150 Years will be available in shops November 2016. There will be a quilt design contest run by Trend-Tex, and the winning quilts will be displayed at International Fall Quilt Market 2017. So get those sewing machines ready, eh...