Over The Rainbow Bridge (La Conner, WA)

I'm having a hard time keeping up with myself and the internet.  Part of the problem is the slow internet, but the main problem comes from this area having so much to do.  We have visited Oak Harbor, Anacortes, and La Conner in this last week.  I won't bother listing all the parks we stopped at, as well. 

I have so many pictures to share and experiences to talk about, but at the same time, I'm having a hard time sitting in front of a computer waiting for it to upload the next page.  So, I think I will keep this post short and I will add photos to Webshots later.

We visited La Conner this week on a sunny day - surprise!  It is such an enchanting town and I have been under its spell since we visited here three years ago.  


We walked the main street and as usual, I took way too many pictures.  La Conner's quaint downtown area on the Swinomish Channel is filled with wonderful gift shops, galleries, and museums.  Oh!  Speaking of museums...there's a quilt museum here and I plan to visit them next week.   The Quilt & Textile Museum is up the hill in an an old Victorian home. I have been there before and really had a great time looking at quilts and wandering through the beautiful old mansion.

Views from the docks

and this view at the opposite end of the channel with the Rainbow Bridge

La Conner has so many shops to look through including a quilt shop called Fabric Déva (no website).   I actually did not buy a thing from the shop this time....only because I could not make up my mind, got frustrated, and decided I'll just have to go back again.

The Ginger Grater on 1st Street

There are a lot of nice restaurants and pubs along the waterfront with sitting areas on the dockside.  I love the looks of this one.  It has a waterfall coming off the dock and into the channel.  People are sitting nearby eating while enjoying the sunshine and listening to the water fall into the channel.

Even La Conner's bridge is enchanting.  This bridge has been a burnt orange since 1957.  After getting the first coat of primer, the town's people decided they liked the color and asked DOT not to add the typical green coat of paint.  It has been burnt orange ever since and is known as the Rainbow Bridge.

Rainbow Bridge

On The Cutting Board

Last winter, I decided to make a small sign for Patagonia-Sonoita Creek Preserve's gift shop.  Actually, the shop is also the office area and when visitors look through the screen door, they did not see the items for sale inside.  We kept hearing the same comment a little too often - "oh, I did not realize this was a gift shop" even though we had t-shirts and hats hanging outside with a sign.

Sooo, I thought I would make a little sign to hang on the inside of the screen door with hopes of getting a little more business for the shop.

I thought about using one of the many birds sighted on the preserve, but then I worried about the correct color.  If I am off on the color, I'm sure I would hear about it from some of the die-hard birders!  Then I saw this cute clipart of a squirrel holding an acorn....Perfect!

I'm using the lighter fusible webbing for this project.  It should be easier on my hands while I am embroidering the edges and details.  Isn't he cute?

I will be wondering how a birder can sight birds if they miss this sign.  Okay, I'm ready to start some embroidery work. 

Today is Saturday - we are off to see the Farmer's Market and downtown Mount Vernon.  Catch you later!

Happy Quilting!