Category Archives: History

Antiques Market Finds

My husband’s family was in town from England to see the new baby, and on a day trip down to Kingston, we visited an antique market (which takes place every Sunday!). There was tons of gorgeous stuff, and I had … Continue reading

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Latest Estate Sale Finds

Aren’t these totally kitch and adorable?  My mother and I, hesitantly followed by my sister who felt she hadn’t been given all the pertinent information about this trip, found them in a smallish house’s estate sale.   The cupboards were full … Continue reading

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Vintage Finds in Real Life (with pretty bird patterns)

Last week I pointed out a few good resources for finding vintage patterns online, but there is something exciting about holding a vintage iron on transfer in your hands, or reading a book that says that embroidery is not only … Continue reading

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Vintage Patterns and Orange Chickens

I love vintage patterns.  I like them kitsch, I love them nonsensical and I love them pretty. Sometimes I don’t really get them, like the myriad days of the week tea towel patterns.  Did people ever really change their kitchen … Continue reading

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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet…

I have a particular piece of text, written by Shakespeare, which is very close to my heart. I have thought of getting it tattooed many times before, and I decided I was going to stitch it this spring. After figuring … Continue reading

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Subersive Sues – Slightly NSFW

Why is it so much fun to combine something innocent and childlike, like a Sunbonnet Sue or a lovely little bit of cross stitch sampler, with something rude or obscene?  It’s not like I’m the first.  Subversive Cross Stitch has … Continue reading

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My Grandfather.

My grandfather, Roch Dallaire, passed away on the 7th of November, 2011.  He was 87. At my grandmother’s wake, her daughter played classical music to celebrate her love of music and the cello.  At his, they displayed all the pieces … Continue reading

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Embroidery via Snowsuits & Quilting

When we lived in Yellowknife, there was only one place to buy clothes, and that was in the Sears catalogue. That meant that you could be sure that if you had the yellow snowsuit from page 236, at least three … Continue reading

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Embroidery via Lumberjacks and the Canadian Armed Forces

My grandfather was a lumberjack. He was also a construction worker, a makeshift electrical engineer and a general hired hand; the story starts when he was a lumberjack. Lumberjacking was the kind of job, especially in the forties and fifties … Continue reading

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