In my blog I plan to chat about nature, crafts, baking, gardening, beekeeping, family, and whatever else seems appropriate at the time. Sit back, relax, and enjoy!

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Garden Trip - the First Stop

A couple of weeks ago my Dad, my Sister and I went on a day bus trip to some garden places in Northern Indiana. The first stop was an antique store and an old fashioned dime store.
If you look out the back door of the antique store, you see this quaint little garden surrounded by buildings.

I think old bricks make the best back drop for gardens. (Don't forget about my brick moving party btw) I love the way they used old tiles and chimney pots as planters and bird feeder stands. And the water feature in the middle is an added bonus in a garden.

Sorry about the quality of the pictures. We couldn't go in this garden, we were looking at it through a door.

Comfy benches to SIT ON add a nice touch.

Notice in the right hand corner, they used large pots, turned them upside down, and sat the smaller pots on top of the larger ones. It gives height to the garden, you can see the smaller plants behind the larger ones, and it give the illusion of the plant being bigger than what it is. (Do I sound like a garden tour guide? I made that all up by myself!)
Then we went to a candy store. They called it a Dime Store,

but they specialized in giant jelly beans,

and old-fashioned candies.


If you are around my age, 52, you'll remember these candies as kids.

Funny how things change so gradually that you don't even realize they're gone

until you see them in an old-fashioned candy store. I had to buy some of this gum.

I used to chew it all the time as a kid. Then use the pouch for something else when I was done with the gum. That's probably when my fiber (yarn, material) addiction actually started!

This part of the country is known as Amish Country and one of the garden tours they are known for is their quilt garden tour.




The dime store had a jelly bean quilt hanging on the wall.









We were not on the actual quilt garden tour, but since we were on a garden trip, we did get to see a few of the quilt gardens. I took this picture through the bus window because it looks more like a quilt when you are up higher looking down on it. The plants will fill out in another month and I'm sure it will look beautiful. There are 18 quilt gardens in the area.


For more info check out


http://www.quiltgardens.com/



and for the Wakarusa Dime store
http://www.jumbojellybeans.com/

or e-mail at
holly@jumbojellybeans.com
1-877-715-9821

And just fyi...this place is going to be sold at auction, in case you were looking for a new house. It used to be their farmers market barn.

I hope you enjoyed the first stop on our tour.

Cindy Bee

7 comments:

  1. sounds fun...I like all the old candy too..
    I used to put My Jane West doll's camp dishes in my empty Gold Nugget gum bag.

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  2. Were those the old "Cigarette" candies? Come to think of it, that might be where my smoking habit came from! lol We used to sit around with those and pretend to be smoking them all the time!

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  3. LOVE THIS POST!
    Oh my gosh!
    First, I loved the dime store my Sis & I walked to when we were little. A Ben Franklin Store! It was called the Dime store because you could buy a bunch of candy for just a dime. In fact, back then you could buy a lot for a dime!

    The one thing I LOVE about going to Cracker Barrel Restaurants is all the Vintage candy you can find. I love all that stuff made with real sugar an a 1,000 calories each!

    What a cool trip. Oh I wish I could buy that "little" shack for sale.

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  4. Sure remember the Dime store owned by Lizzy. Actually I think it was called Lizzy's. Loved taking the change found in the couch down to Lizzy's for some gum.

    Quilt gardens what a unique idea...at least to me.

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  5. What a great place to visit. I just love finding those vintage candy shops. Mallo Cups were always a fav of mine. Too bad you couldn't get into the gardens, but thanks for sharing the pic you were able to get.

    I think I've actually been to that Farmers Market Barn. Wow, for sale... It was always a fun stop im Amish country.

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  6. Love those candy cigarettes. I remember getting those at drugstore when I was a kid. I have always wanted to go to the Amish area in Indiana, maybe next summer when we go back to Western Michigan. Looks like great fun!!
    xo
    Caroline

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  7. RJ - I have no idea what happened with all of my gold nugget bags. I'm sure I used them for something. That gum has a somewhat banana taste to it. I don't care much for it!

    Nicki - Sorry girl...that theory won't work! I used to play with them too. How is the non-smoking going?

    janis - I LOVE Ben Franklin stores. We used to have two in our town and they had everything. They are both closed now and the guy that used to own it volunteers in the Community Garden now. He's a wonderful man.

    jul - I think quilt gardens are a unique idea too. This area of Indiana is known as Amish Country, so you can imagine....

    GB-I have a funny mallo cup story. Several of us relatives go on a shopping trip every November. One year my Mom or my Aunt (can't remember which one) got a mallo cup and they couldn't find it. When we got out of the van, they found it all over their butt! LOL

    BoHo - I would recommend taking a full day, or two, and visit the area. I think you'd like it. I'd love to visit your farm and market! It looks wonderful.

    Cindy Bee

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Thank you for taking time out of your busy day to leave a comment on my blog. I enjoy reading them. I hope you have a wonderful day.

Cindy