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O Canada – After Hours in Perth

Some of my best friends are people I meet in quilting class.  One of the best parts  of being a traveling quilt teacher is the new life experiences that I discover.  Such was the exact case when I visited Ruth Oblinski in Perth, Ontario.  She and I met about 4 years ago at the AQS Lancaster show.  We hit it off right away.  Ruth made it possible for me to travel to Perth, where I stayed with her and her husband, Terry, at their lovely home in the country.

Ruth and me

Ruth and me

The unexpected treat of this visit was discovering the Classic Car world.  Terry is passionate about classic cars and is one handy man! 

Terrys Shop

 

He and Ruth were high school sweethearts and he had already been bitten by the old car bug.  His first car was a 1938 Plymouth that he bought for $60.  It’s the one that he and Ruth drove during their dating days.  He later sold the car, and then bought it back in 2009 for the princely sum of $2,000.  It was a junk heap by 2009.  So, he started restoration by hand, lovingly working each inch of the car.

1938 Plymouth

1938 Plymouth

He was about to set off to his car club meeting and invited me to ride along.  What a ride that was!

The upholstery

The upholstery

With extreme attention to detail, including hand made embroidered seat backs and door panels, riding shotgun was a blast.  What surprised me the most was the power of the engine – while I had expected putt-putt- sputter, it roared ahead with remarkable spunk, leaving the stoplight ahead of even the newest cars.

Plymouth by Terry

Plymouth by Terry

It was my first car club meeting so I was surprised to see a parking lot full of new and classic cars, all lovingly cared for by their owners.  Terry’s garage held another surprise that I would not get to see until the next morning.

1931 Model A  - Work in Progress

1931 Model A – Work in Progress

Jacked up in the back of the garage was Terry’s newest old passion, another classic that he had bought for $2,000.  It also was in poor shape where it is coming to life in Terry’s garage.

Seats not done yet

Seats not done yet

The detail with which Terry restores his classics is obvious.  Here, I got to see the condition of the interior before he began work.

Model A Engine

Model A Engine

This Model A, however, already had a powerful engine, rebuilt by Terry from a junkyard engine from a newer vehicle.

Model A Front View

Model A Front View

I would love to see this classic once Terry finished working his magic on the newest member of his auto family.

Who would have thought that a quilting trip to Perth would introduce me to the world of Classic Cars!  What a trip!

3 Responses to “O Canada – After Hours in Perth”

  1. Thanks Gail, boy your blog sure has interests for everyone!! LOL Love it!!

  2. mamie e says:

    Great pics great story, my bro in law is almost as handy as me sister….

  3. What a great story really and it makes sense quilting and antique cars go hand in hand. Once upon a time women where quilting as one of their weekly home chores while men where off in these very vehicles doing what they needed to do.With occasion dates. Thanks for an awesome story I know some very great women that do quilting .Ruth Oblinski as well as Sandy Lackey which is an up and coming great quilter that Ruth is teaching.
    Deb Dennie

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