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Tasha Could Make That

Tasha Could Make That

Vintage knitting, sewing, and a lifetime of craftiness

The honeymoon

June 27, 2011 by Tasha 27 Comments

Thanks everyone so much for all the kind comments on our wedding! I admit, I’m still catching up with life. I promise I’ll have wedding photos to show soon, but I’m waiting until we get our photos back and then I’ll share all of our stories as well. In the meantime, how about I work backwards and show you our honeymoon photos?

The wedding was Friday, the party was Saturday and we spent Sunday and Monday nights on a mini honeymoon in Galena, Illinois. Galena is a very quaint town in a gorgeous part of Illinois, about 3 hours from Chicago in the far northwest corner of the state, not that far from the Mississippi River. We weren’t initially going to go anywhere after the wedding hooplah, as we’re planning to take a trip to either Scotland or Paris next year for our 10 year anniversary and thought we’re wrap it all up into one trip. However we decided to take a break for a couple of days and boy, we needed it.

We stayed in a fantastic little cabin on a property that had 5 rental cabins from the 1800s that had been updated on the inside with modern comforts. Both days we had the place to ourselves! It was absolutely perfect inside. Living space downstairs with a bedroom area and kitchen/living room, with a half loft upstairs where the bathroom and two person whirlpool tub were.

We felt at home right away…

I decorated our coffee table with the boutonnière and corsage from our wedding…

Did I say we had the place to ourselves? Well I was partially right. We had no human neighbors, that is. The property was right next to a large sprawling farm with a small herd of cows, who came so close to the fence at night we could practically touch them!

It was a beautiful view from our windows…

And the outside of the cabin was as inviting as the inside…

When we first arrived at the cabin, we noticed a curious addition to the decor: many many wine corks and beer bottle caps tucked away in odd little places in cracks in the wall, the ceiling, you name it. Obviously years of guests had added their own little touch, and clearly it wasn’t discouraged. So the first night we saved two caps…

And the next night, Mel added them to the wall above the fireplace, just under a large saw hung on the wall. (You can see several corks tucked into the teeth of the saw.)

Monday morning was met with gentle showers, so we sat on the porch having tea and enjoying the rain…

This is a cute photo of Pia, but even better, you can see my fantastic seersucker pajamas that I got at the Modern Vintage Chicago show.

This was the view from our front porch of two of the other cabins…

We took some photos around the property in the morning…

Once the rain stopped we headed into town. The cabins were perfectly located just a few minutes from the main part of town and a couple of minutes from the grocery store (there was a microwave and no stove, and we ate very well from the deli), but somehow it felt like it was in the middle of nowhere. Just ideal.

There was lots of interesting old homes…
We particularly liked this fire station, built in 1874, which was obviously moved into the building on the right when it was built in 1940. I appreciated how they tried to keep with the original feel of the old building as much as possible.

After lunch and a stroll around town we headed towards an antique mall we’d seen on our way into town. Some of my favorite places to stop in small towns are antique malls in warehouse type buildings. Usually it’s a metal building, kind of reminiscent of a manufactured home, with a big sign out front that says “Antique Mall”. Those two are usually a winning combination. And when you’re lucky, the sign is posted on a cool vintage pickup truck like this.
The place was awesome. Three trips back to the front counter to hand over piles of goods awesome. Crazy cheap awesome. Freaking awesome.
I can’t even recall all of the great finds we came home with, but here’s a sampling. Several hankies in great condition for $1 or less a piece.

Isn’t the embroidery on this one lovely? So delicate.

A great tooled leather purse in very nice condition for $18…

I picked it up to add to my pile and then saw its neighbor purse. Can you believe this??

Oh yes. That’s a diagonal lucite handle, metal clasp, raffia on the sides and Spanish dancers in relief on top! For $25. I think my jaw dropped. I didn’t even hesitate.

I also got a couple of knitting booklets, and three craft magazines. Two issues of Needlecraft from 1931 and 1924 and one issue of Home Arts from 1938, for $3 each.

Neat ads inside the 1938 Home Arts…

I absolutely love the mailing addresses, fantasizing about the owners, Miss Myrtle Fischer of Minnesota and Mrs. Helmuth Suckow of Iowa.

But the best find I’ll save for the end of the post. In the meantime, after our antique mall high we stopped at a small cabin by the Stillman Inn just on the edge of town. I can’t remember the name of it, but it was apparently inhabited up until the 1970s by a family of 6.

And now to the pièce de résistance from the antique mall, appropriately displayed on the handcrafted bed at our cabin. A vintage double wedding ring quilt!

Isn’t it just gorgeous? I still can’t believe it’s ours. What could be more perfect than a wedding gift to ourselves of a traditional wedding present, a quilt? It’s a bit of a mystery to us what era it’s from, but from my research and conversations with my talented quilter friend Elisa, we think it’s probably from the 40s or possibly 50s. The double wedding ring quilt pattern was very popular in the 30s and 40s, but I don’t feel the fabric patterns seem quite right for the 30s. No matter what though, it’s our wounderful gift to ourselves to remind us of our perfect little honeymoon retreat.

The trip was just so perfectly peaceful and relaxing. I’m hoping some day we go back there to stay in “our” little cabin again. It would make a great anniversary trip, don’t you think?

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Filed Under: Vintage Dibs and Dabs Tagged With: antiquing, galena, honeymoon, purses, vacation, wedding

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. wacky tacky says

    June 27, 2011 at 2:10 am

    Congratulations! I just started following you blog and I love it. That looks like an ideal honeymoon!

    Reply
  2. Moxie Tonic says

    June 27, 2011 at 3:13 am

    What a perfect get-away & honeymoon!
    Galena is such an adorable little town, I just love it there! I went to college North of Iowa City, and the route I took to get to Chicago went through Galena. It’s such a spectacular drive around that area as well, the river and hills and trees all make for some amazing scenery.

    Reply
  3. Moe says

    June 27, 2011 at 3:17 am

    I am blown away by all the cuteness and quaintness contained in this post – human, canine and architectural. That looks like a truly wonderful getaway.

    I LOVE that green dress you’re wearing. Did you make that? I feel like I’ve seen the pattern for that on eBay. I think I may have to buy it now after seeing how charming it looks on you.

    Ok, and that purse. I HAVE NO WORDS.

    Congratulations again, you too. I am so happy for you both. xoxo

    Reply
  4. The Thriftaholic (Leilani) says

    June 27, 2011 at 4:04 am

    YAY I loved every one of the photos you posted here– what an adventure. It definitely seems like the perfect honeymoon for the two of you, I can’t get over that gorgeous quilt.

    Reply
  5. Miss P says

    June 27, 2011 at 6:29 am

    Aw, lovely! Great place,great finds. You look really beautiful, happy and relaxed in that last photo especially. Well done to you both and thankyou for sharing.
    I keep eying up the Hostas in the foreground. The slugs always eat mine!
    Px

    Reply
  6. Sunny Buick says

    June 27, 2011 at 7:19 am

    Your photos are amazing! It makes me want to go and stay in one of those cabins! I live in Paris and I just got back from St. Malo. It would make a great weekend discovery visit to add to your trip to France (just a suggestion!)
    Congradualtions on your marriage.

    Reply
  7. TheBlackPinafore says

    June 27, 2011 at 7:57 am

    This place has remained frozen in time, beautiful photos.

    Reply
  8. Dolly Cool Clare says

    June 27, 2011 at 8:48 am

    What beautiful photographs! Your log cabin looks perfect, just the kind of place I would stay. Awesome finds at the antique mall too, esp the box purse and the quilt :))

    Reply
  9. Straight Talking Mama! says

    June 27, 2011 at 9:23 am

    Oh Tash that looks fabulous! What a lovely couple of days in an ideal location and what an amazing wedding gift to yourselves, stunning!

    I want to go there now though I suspect it would cos us a little too much ;o)

    Reply
  10. Casey says

    June 27, 2011 at 12:01 pm

    What a perfect little post-wedding trip! 🙂 I love those out-of-the-way spots to just relax and recharge for a couple days. 😉 And those antique store finds… *envies* Especially that tooled handbag–perfect!

    Reply
  11. Bella VonBluebell says

    June 27, 2011 at 12:17 pm

    Looks like a great trip!! The cabin looks so cosy 😀 I love the picture with both of your boots in it.

    Reply
  12. BaronessVonVintage says

    June 27, 2011 at 12:31 pm

    Now THAT’s a perfect honeymoon getaway! I LOVE your antique market finds, too….especially that box purse. WOW! Anyway, congrats again to you two!

    Reply
  13. Emily says

    June 27, 2011 at 4:21 pm

    What a lovely honeymoon!! Congrats to you and Mel! I also really am in love with your vintage finds! 🙂

    Reply
  14. Tasha says

    June 27, 2011 at 4:30 pm

    Thanks everyone!!

    @Moe Thank you!! ♥ Oh I wish I’d sewn the dress! It’s old and obviously was well-loved and in need of a few repairs (I even felt an underarm seam rip on the trip, yikes). But I think I’ve seen the pattern too! I love the dress so much!

    @Sunny Buick In fact if we do France next year, one of the reasons was to get tattooed by you! 😀

    Reply
  15. Sassy Lassies Vintage Life says

    June 27, 2011 at 5:08 pm

    All I can say is awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww! It sounds as though it could not have been any more perfect.

    Reply
  16. Rachael says

    June 27, 2011 at 7:04 pm

    Wow that cabin is mightily gorgeous – cabins always seem so homely.

    Reply
  17. rachel says

    June 27, 2011 at 8:42 pm

    What a perfect honeymoon. Many congratulations and much happiness to you both!

    Reply
  18. Miss Magpie says

    June 27, 2011 at 9:04 pm

    What an amazing honeymoon, it’s all beautiful and what gorgeous finds. I think I want to come antique shopping with you!

    Reply
  19. Annabelle says

    June 27, 2011 at 10:57 pm

    Oh rustic charm! The cabin looks like a lovely place to stay.

    Reply
  20. Little Rascal says

    June 28, 2011 at 8:13 am

    What a cute cabin, looks wonderful.
    I love that lucite bag, totally stunning, lucky girl!

    Reply
  21. Kelly Schmidt says

    June 28, 2011 at 7:18 pm

    I LOVE Galena! Looks like you two had fun 🙂

    Reply
  22. Lauren Hairston says

    June 29, 2011 at 3:16 am

    Looks like you had a fabulous time! I love the photo of your boots-what a lovely symbol of your now-official life together. Thanks to you, Galena is now on my list of must-visit places.

    Reply
  23. Miss Katie says

    June 30, 2011 at 10:56 am

    It looks like you too had a perfect time, the whole thing looks beautiful 🙂

    Also I’m passing some blog awards on to you, yay! Check out this post to see the yummy awards http://misskatie-littleredsquirrel.blogspot.com/2011/06/blog-awards.html

    Congratulations to you both again!

    Reply
  24. Jennie DeSoto says

    June 30, 2011 at 1:51 pm

    Congrats again! Rustic Charm for a charming couple! Great pics!

    Reply
  25. Tara says

    July 1, 2011 at 10:01 pm

    A big, big congrats to you and Mel!! The pictures are simply wonderful! I love your green floral dress paired with those gorgeous boots! From the looks of your pictures, the honeymoon must have been absolutely amazing! The quilt and that lucite bag are to die for! Congrats again to you both!!

    Reply
  26. Lisa says

    July 1, 2011 at 10:09 pm

    What a trip! What finds at the antique mall! What cute outfits! So happy for you, ma’am! 🙂 So glad you photo-documented this so we could come along on the special occasion. Congrats x 1000!

    Reply
  27. Miss Margarita says

    July 7, 2011 at 6:46 pm

    What an amazing place and that cabin is just adorable! I truly believe you had some great days!! Love the green floral dress you are wearing, let me know if you ever find a pattern thats similar to it 😉

    Reply

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