Returning Home

This past week, I, along with my Dad and sister,  fulfilled one of my Mom's last wishes.  She wanted a portion of her ashes to return to her native Germany, so she could be reunited with her parents.  Her own mother's death devastated her, and today the two are together again.


My Grandparent's family plot is in the "Waldfriedhof" (Forest Cemetery) in our home town of Wuerzburg.   Most of the family was present as we remembered my Mom, and shared in her love of family.

She was always torn between her love for her family back home and her family here in Canada.  She now rests both here and there; she will forever be with all of us, in our hearts for eternity.

While in Wuerzburg, my Dad took my sister & I on an excursion through town.  He showed us where he had his first apartment, where my Mother worked,  and where they first met.  "Tanzcafe Ludwig" is still there, it just moved up to the second floor in the building behind us.  Today it is a trendy nightclub.

It was an absolutely wonderful day.  Although my Mom was not with us, I would like to think that she was.





One spring I want to try to fulfill one more of my Mother's wishes.  In the last years of her illness, she had wanted to make a pilgrimage to Israel and walk along the "Jesus Trail".  She had wanted to do this herself this past spring, but  was already too weak by then. Hopefully next spring we will be able to take the walk in her place.

Glorious Autumn

My days are generally spent in the shop, but the other day I needed to run down the block to our local pharmacy.  The moment I stepped outside I was overwhelmed with the colour along the street.  It seemed that the trees had turned a glorious yellow over night, or that I had been so busy that I didn't even notice.  The fallen leaves on the side walk only added to the picturesque setting I now found myself in.
I was mesmerized, breathing in the freshness in the air: I thoroughly enjoyed my stroll.
Why travel north for autumn's splendor when all you need to do is come to Port Credit.  This weekend is supposed to be beautiful, come take a stroll along the Waterfront trail, enjoy the views of the lake, and the colourful changes of autumn.  Then drop by Gitta's and see all the wonderful designs Jeannette Douglas has designed to celebrate this colourful season.

                                                                            These two  designs with their lovely reds and oranges make great fall projects.  The "Mini Pumpkin Sampler" (on the right), is the workshop we have scheduled for October 26th.

Designer of the Month: Jeannette Douglas

I first met Jeannette at the Creative Sewing & Needlework Festival in Toronto many many many years ago.  She had come to the Festival to show my mom & myself her first sampler, the Northern Shield sampler.  We both fell in love with it and wanted to see more.  The Northern Shield sampler was her first sampler in her Canadian Journey series.  And what a journey it has been;  over the years Jeannette has been designing non-stop.

As our designer of the month, we have a wonderful representation of Jeannette's older and newer designs; samplers, biscornus, needlecases, pincushions, minis, box tops, and quaker motifs.

We have also scheduled a sampler workshop for Saturday, October 26th. 

 Flo Osborne, Jeannette's model stitcher, will be the instructor.  Flo is an accomplished stitcher and teacher, and she is offering a choice of 2 designs, "Mini Pumpkin Stitches" or "The Stitcher's Needlebook" (shown above).  Both have a wonderful selection of sampler stitches, and silk threads.  Flo will also reveal a quick and easy technique for filling a designated shape with compensating stitches.   The Needlebook, published in 2010 as a workshop, will have an accompanying Sampler to be released in 2014.

Drop by the shop or visit Jeannette's designer page on our website to see all of Jeannette's designs.  Jeannette's in stock patterns and accessory packs purchased this month will receive a 10% discount.

See you in the shop.