Galena Part 2

I had every intention of posting the second half of our recent trip to Galena, IL before tonight, but as you can see it didn't happen. So, here it is now! The first store I visited was a neat quilt shop called Phat 1/4's This is what I bought here:

Reproduction fabrics (of course) and a neat apron pattern. Phat 1/4's is also a Bernina dealer. I drooled over the 820 model. It is the one with the extended arm and many neat features. That machine is on my "Oh Wouldn't That Be Nice To Have" list. The owner was so nice to chat with I ended up forgetting something there, but I will tell you more about that in a minute.

Hubby told me, "Hey, there is a yarn shop next door." Hmmmmm Sounds good to me! We went next door to Fiber Wild! Talk about a dangerous place for me to be! As some of you might know, this past Winter I picked up my knitting needles again. I have had so much fun knitting socks. Fiber Wild! had such beautiful sock yarn, plus any other type of yarn you could imagine. The customer service there was beyond my expectations. Amy and Sean are the owners. While Amy was patiently answering all of my questions Sean was talking to Hubby about what there was to do in the area and basic guy stuff. I found a sock pattern that Amy had designed and I found the perfect yarn. It is the pink/purple/green/yellow yarn that you see in the photo. When I was looking over the pattern I saw something that I didn't understand. Yarn over. I have just been doing the purl knit thing. Amy showed me a few different things about knitting that I didn't know and said that if I had problems with anything to stop in the next day and she would help me. Great. When I tried to pull out my credit card to pay for my purchases I realized I didn't have it. Yikes! The last place I used it was at Phat 14's next door. I had been so busy chatting there I walked off without my card. Sean assured me that was nothing to worry about, my card was safe. I just needed to pick it up in the morning. Hubby pulled out his credit card and away we went. That night I started knitting the new socks. Yes, I had some issues with the yarn over thing. The next morning the first stop we made was to the quilt store, and yes, my card was waiting safe and sound for me. When we went into the yarn shop we were greeted with ahhhhhh your back! Amy sat down with me and helped me with my yarn over issues and made sure I knew what I was doing. I asked her for assistance with finding a light weight but warm yarn for a shawl. I always freeze on Sunday mornings in church when the A/C is on and I want to be able to put something cute around my shoulders. I found the perfect yarn and pattern to fulfill my request along with a beautiful blue yarn that just called my name and wanted to go home with me. Yes, I had a great time at the shop!

The next stop was at a neat bead shop called Galena Beads. I have always wanted to learn how to make my own jewelry, but to be honest, I need another hobby like I need a hole in my head! I was looking at the many ready to wear jewelry pieces that were available for sale there and found a beautiful green necklace and ear ring set. The only problem was that I only had one top to wear that would work with that color. I then saw a sign that said I could take learn how to make my own necklace right then. I mentioned it to Hubby. He said to go for it. As I was picking out the beads to use Hubby told me he would go and visit some of the shops and come back in a little while. To make a long story short, when Hubby got back I had just decided what beads to use. He sat down beside me as I was guided along the process of making my first necklace. That was so much fun I decided I needed to make earrings to match. Fun! I also bought beads to make a bracelet to match when I got home. This is what I made:
As we were walking into different antique stores the owners recognized my dear Hubby and say, ahhhh your back! I didn't think too much of this until about the third time when the shop owner asked to see the jewelry that I made. (Hubby had told him his wife was making a necklace and he had time to kill) I happily showed him. I then commented to Hubby about the many shops he had been in while I was at the bead store. "Well," Hubby said, "I was gone for an hour and thought you would have had the necklace made by the time I got back." I couldn't believe that it had taken me an hour just to pick the beads out! There were so many to choose from and I kept changing my mind. I thanked Hubby for being so patient and understanding. At the antique store, Gustafson & Grey to be exact I did find this:
They are silver button covers that for some reason just needed to go home with me. We had a wonderful time in Galena!