Exploring London with a super senior
If you want to find hidden gems, try spending a day with a nonagenarian. Recently, I did just that with my 94 year old Mom who lives in London Ontario. When she asked if I would take her to pick up a few things, I said, “sure,” thinking it would be fun to see where she wanted to go.
Well, turns out she took me to several fun, off-the-beaten-path places - from a colourful fabric store to solemn Catholic bookstore (with an amazing collection of crucifixes), as well as stops at a tiny, toy train shop and a thrift store cafe.
Stitch-it Central
First stop was Stitch-it Central a fabric store on the east side of town - ironically on 1161 Hamilton Road, we used to live at 116 East 39th St in Hamilton, Ontario. The store is bigger than it looks from the outside as there is an entire second store at the back. I was in heaven with the kaleidoscope of colours, from threads to fabrics.
The phone was out faster than “Quick Draw McGraw,” (yes I am a septuagenarian and Quick Draw McGraw is a character from the popular Hanna-Barbera cartoon circa 1959 to 1962) taking photos. Turns out Stitch-It Central started in St. Thomas, (just south of London in 2008) and moved to London in 2018. Their claim to fame: they have 5,000+ bolts of fabric at any given time. I have no idea if that is a lot or not.
We were there so my Mom could get some gift certificates for Christmas presents.
Tree Trunk Sculpture Tour
While driving to and from Stitch-it Central, I kept noticing large tree trunk sculptures in front of various buildings. Turns out the Hamilton Road Business Improvement Association, Tourism London, The City of London and STIHL Canada have partnered to commission artists to create chainsaw sculptures using huge tree trunks to create in some cases larger than life sculptures.
What a unique and appropriate initiative! While many cities have mural and public art programs as a means of attracting people to their respective downtown and suburban main streets, I am not aware of anyone else with a tree trunk sculpture initiative.
What makes the collaboration even more meaningful is London is known as “The Forest City” so it makes perfect sense to have a curated public art program based on “the tree.”
But wait - there is more fun connections! London is headquarters for STIHL Canada, which just happens to make chainsaws. And they are located in a the “Woodfield” neighbourhood.
The program started in 2009 and today there are 30 sculptures, creating a fun tour, which I will have to do the Tree Trunk Tour on my next visit.
Pete’s Trains (formerly Doug’s Trains)
Our second destination was Pete’s Trains. Good luck trying to drive to Pete’s Trains on Horton Road! Why? Because, Horton Road is one-way except for the one block Pete’s is located on - the sign saying it is one way is almost impossible to see from William Street which is how we had to take to get to Horton Road. After a couple of passes, I parked at the intersection and walked to the store. It was then I discovered the sign saying two-way begins on Pete’s block. So, I headed back to the car where my Mom was patiently waiting and drove around for the third time and was able to park right in front).
When I walked in and said, “this is a hard place to find,” Pete wasn’t all that sympathetic. Not a great start, but as we wandered around and started asking some questions things warmed up.
The purpose of our visit was to buy some train accessories, (e.g. bridges, buildings etc.) for a new train set my Mom’s 6 year old great-grandson was getting for Christmas. But it turns out his train set is not the toy train scale so we weren’t able to find anything as Pete didn’t carry the larger scale accessories as they are very expensive. However he can order them for you.
FYI: Model trains come in six different scales base on the ratio of the model to the real thing. Who knew?
Don’t be fooled by the scale of Pete’s, a tiny, blue cottage house (the little house that could). It is very deep and jam-packed with trains and accessories. One of the first things I looked at were packages of tiny people and wouldn’t you know it the first package I picked up were golfers. I was tempted to buy them, but what would I do with them? They had a whole wall of cute little people to personalize the village with your train set.
Pete has owned the house for about 8 years; and before that, it was Doug’s trains for 30 or so years.
Wall of Crosses
After lunch at Edgar and Joe’s Café in the Goodwill headquarters also on Horton Road we headed to the Mustard Seed Catholic Bookstore for some stickers Yes, Great Grandma needed some stickers! Who know old people like stickers too. Located in a tiny plaza at 502 Springbank Road, you could easily miss it.
As we walked in, I couldn’t help but notice the wall of wooden crosses, or should I say crucifixes. I stopped counting at 100 crosses and there were more in the display cases. I asked if I could take a photo and as soon as I was told “yes”, my phone was out of its holster in no time.
Turns out the wall crosses are made by Our Lady of Grace Rosaries, which was founded in 1993 by Leisha Lariviere who began making rosaries for family and friends after receiving her first pair of rosary plyers as a gift. As the business grew, her father started making crucifixes for The Mustard Seed in 2003 based on the family’s collection of antique crucifixes. He makes the wooden crosses, often with donated wood, and sources the Jesus figures from Italy.
The shop specializes in items made from natural woods, maintaining original grains and tones.
St. Benedict Crucifixes: Featuring the St. Benedict medal, these are available in maple, walnut, and oak.
Traditional Crucifixes: Includes "Classic Bordered" and "Wide Cut" designs.
Specialty Designs:
Heirloom Crucifix: A premium 23.5-inch walnut piece with a bronze-plated corpus.
Maltese-Cut: Available in oak with a bronze-plated corpus.
Round Cut: Often made in mahogany with visible grain patterns.
Standing Crucifixes: Specifically designed with indented spaces for votive candles.
Name of Jesus Cross: A unique wall-hanging piece where the Name of Jesus forms the shape of a cross.
And I just thought a cross was a cross….
Last Word
Not only did I have a fun day with my Mom, but I enjoyed the thrill of being an “everyday tourist” and discovering some new hidden gems in London.
