GONZALES — February is the month of love, and more than 100 Gonzales residents honored that by hosting the Love Your Heart Mini Mall on Feb. 3. The event was for the American Heart Association, and each vendor that participated in the mall donated raffle prizes.
“The Lions thought it would be a good way to bring more people in and get more vendors selling more products,” said Minnie Flores.
Mia Nicole of Mia’s Slime Factory made slime for her booth and was busy on Saturday selling slime.
Manuela Jimenez was not creating slime but she did crochet and knit such things as blankets, character hats, scarfs, mermaid tails and anything that a customer is interested in. Jimenez is the owner of Ya Ya’s Creations.
“I’ve been knitting for over 10 years,” said Jimenez. “My mom used to crochet and knit so its something fun that we did and is tradition for me now.”
Jimenez also gives some of her beanie hats to the hospital for newborn babies and also makes beanies for cancer patients who lost their hair.
Due to cooler temperatures, more residents have been getting colds and the flu, so the next vendor created couch tissue boxes. Juanita Montelongo’s husband usually gives her a gift and a few years ago he said he was getting her a couch. She opened her gift and saw a tissue box but in the shape of a couch. She took it to work and a coworker saw it and encouraged her to make the couch tissue box and that coworker would be her first customer.
“I spent one month on trying to make it,” Montelongo said. “I didn’t know how to sow. I played with the pattern and I couldn’t figure it out.”
Montelongo overcame the obstacles in creating a couch tissue box and now has couch boxes in themes like Dia De Los Muertos, sports teams, donuts and more.
The event took place at the American Legion Hall, and the Gonzales Lions Club prepared pancakes for attendees.
