Flower Pins Done and back to Lollipop Bouquet

Yesterday I actually did manage to pull some loops on Lollipop Bouquet but not enough to want to show you yet.  And hooking flower pins has stages and between stages things need to set.  Then there is the trimming, making the leaves, covering the back and putting on the pin part.  Oh, then the cards to attach the pins to. 

Placed in two vintage sewing machine drawers and going to Cape May will be 34 flower pins.  I'm sure not all will sell but last year did manage to sell more than I expected, so hopefully there will be newbies to buy.  Or perhaps a friend saw the one the person purchased last year so this year they will pick up one for their friend.

Those of you who do craft shows know that you might expect something to sell for sure, if only you can get it done on time to take.  You work to get the task done because you KNOW it's going to be a seller.  You do your show and you bring home that project you worked so hard on. 

One just never knows what is going to sell as it all depends on the buyer and what is hot.  OR, what the buyer must choose between with their limited funds. 

Have a fun-filled and safe holiday weekend.

Saundra

Rug Hooking Books

I am a member of Yahoo Rughookers Bulletin Board where people post items for sale or to inquire about an item they want to buy.  Recently a member posted an add for some books she recently purchased off the shelf from a store which was closing.  She is selling these books at a VERY good price. Don't know if they have been sold yet or not but don't hesitate to contact her if you have an interest.  One book is a KEEPER as it has free patters inside to enlarge for your hooking pleasure.  It is a book by Polly Minick and her sister Laurie Simpson.

I have this book and is being offered at an extremely good price.    Here is the information which was posted on Rughookers:

Photos of each can be seen at my blog:
http://mffstudio.blogspot.com

dawnmacfall@centurytel.net

I recently bought many fiber related books from a store that was going out of business.  These are in "off the shelf - new condition"

A Rug Hooking Book of Days (Featuring the Fiber Art of Polly Minick) - $15.00 each (2 available)

Folk Art Friends - Hooked Rugs and Coordinating Quilts - Polly Minick and Laurie Simpson - $7.00

Patterns for Every Day Purpose (how to adapt a pattern for use in a variety of crafts)- Rug Hooking Magazine - $5.00 (2 available)

* Prices do not include shipping.  US shipping only.

Good luck to you on your purchase and thanks for dropping by.  Hope each of you have a fun-filled, safe holiday weekend.

Saundra

A Doll Artist will be Missed

Yesterday I received notice that a doll maker extraordinaire had passed way too early in her life.  Because of her works of art she was a visionary, a rebel, and in demand as an artist and teacher.  Her given name was Betty Blount but with her creative works she changed it to Akira Blount.  She was only 67 years young and her artistic visionary talent will be a loss.  This is the unfortunate e-mail received yesterday on that wonderful talented woman:

We are sad to report the death of a wonderful doll artist, Akira Blount, age 67. She lost her battle with cancer and passed away peacefully in her home Saturday, August 3, 2013. She started making dolls from cotton stockings in 1970 and soon developed a style of her own as she mastered needle sculpting. She was the president of NIADA (National Institute of American Doll Artists) and juried and wrote the introduction to "500 Handmade Dolls." She loved nature and wrote: "The energy and beauty of nature has always sustained me. Woodlands, in particular, I find compelling. My love of natural materials has led me to explore how I might personify the spirit of nature in images of the playful, creative forces in nature. Each piece is a combination of cloth, handmade paper, natural materials and found objects, most of which are collected personally from my farm and gardens." Her art work is included in Permanent Collections around the world including Paris France, the CLINTON LIBRARY, Little Rock, AR, SEKIGUCHI DOLL GARDEN, Shizuoka Japan, the TENNESSEE STATE MUSEUM, Nashville, Tennessee. Exhibitions include National Museum of American Art, Washington, DC, American Folk Art Museum, NYC, NY, Mint Museum of Fine Art, Charlotte, NC, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara, CA, Tampa Museum of Fine Art, Tampa, FL. The White House Collection of American Craft, a collection of over 70 pieces of contemporary crafts of which Akira is the only doll artist, has traveled to museums all over the USA since 1994 and is now on permanent display at the Clinton Library in Little Rock, Arkansas. She will be sorely missed.

 

I was extremely fortunate to take a class with Akira when I lived in the DC/MD area.  Like hooking camps you choose your fabrics and there is a GENERAL pattern or templates to go from.  Unlike rug hooking camps the teacher does not color plan or choose fabric to create your doll.  And the sewing, stuffing and hand stitching is up to you. 

 

While my heart is with antiques and primitive dolls there was this wonderful talent known as Akira that I just had to tap into.  This is the face of the doll I made from her class.  The nose, mouth and eyes were needle sculpted.  The eyes are painted with acrylics and silly me decided to glue lashes to the doll.

Here is her full body;  she looks like she is day dreaming and I didn't position her well for the photo.  She is sitting on a chipped white antique dresser and behind her are antique baby clothes which I have hanging on my wall in the doll making studio.  That would be the studio which isn't used much any more since my love of rug hooking has emerged.

A technique Akira taught us was the jointed knees.  Hey, these weren't just any movable knees or arms but something special which required a little extra work.  Notice the buttons on each side of the knee?  Also notice the construction of the knee joint.  And those buttons on each side of each leg is covered with the same fabric.....Magnificent concept and wonder why I didn't think about that!

The shoes were hand made and had fabric covered soles.  They were hand stitched individually and then stitched and trimmed to not be removed from the doll.

 

Experience the world of a great doll artist known as AKIRA  on this link:

Click here: Akira Blount dolls

 

Sorry if I'm boring you rug hooker fans, but doll making has been a part of my life too and felt this woman needed to be remembered. 

 

Have a great evening and congratulations to you Cyndi, the wool is on it's way!!!

 

Saundra

And the Winner of the Giveaway is........

While enjoying my second cup of coffee decided to draw a name for the 3 quarter yard pieces of wool.  And that lucky winner is.......

Cyndi Lott!  I've just sent her an e-mail so that she can give me her mailing address; congratulations Cyndi.  Let me know if you use it as is or if you are going to over dye it as I did.  OH, BTW, the wool is only suitable for wide cut (as I found out after buying it).  And the wool has been washed but didn't full up as I'd expected, so anything from #8.5 up it will be okay.

And I plan to stick that in the mail today so look for your wool in a few days.

Oh, and think I know why some people have a NO REPLY blogger address.  Seems those people who do not provide profile information on their blog, particularly no 'contact' e-mail address becomes a 'no-reply' because Blogger doesn't have an e-mail address for you.

Thanks for visiting and enjoy your day.

Saundra

Giveaway and Comments

I've gotten a few comments left by people who would love to win the wool giveaway but at this time aren't eligible because I cannot reply to their e-mails.  Even if I go thru the process of typing and sending you a message you never get it.  Here is why..... I have copied and pasted an example; sorry Fran, but figure you'd want to be included in the giveaway so perhaps you and the others would like to figure out how to change from a NO REPLY to a setting which will allow you to receive my message.

----- Original Message -----
From: Fran R <noreply-comment@blogger.com>
To: saundra125@comcast.net
Sent: Tue, 27 Aug 2013 04:08:30 -0000 (UTC)
Subject: [Saundra of Woodland Junction] New comment on Busy Bee and Giveaway.

Love all your rugs. Your blogs is wonderful. Thanks


So far here are those with a no-reply who unfortunately find themselves out of the running unless you change your e-mail choices and post another message to participate with a blogger e-mail that can be replied to.  I don't know if that has something to do with anonymous or hidden name, not sure.  On the list not eligible SO FAR are FranR, kstehens100, pudgypoo, Glenda.  More than likely there will be more added to the list who are unawares they have a no reply e-mail ~ but I've done what I can to encourage you to check your settings.

But so as to give everyone a good chance to win the wool thought I'd mention this because that may also be the reason why you didn't win my previous giveaways.

Good luck to all.

I think I know why those of you who have a NO REPLY are having that problem.  Seems to me it is those people who don't have a profile at all and particularly no 'contact me' e-mail address in that profile section. 

Saundra

Busy Bee and Giveaway

AH HA!  That last word got your attention didn't it?  I'll get to that part later. 

Yesterday I was a busy bee and worked non-stop from the time I got up until about 4 p.m.  Well, I did stop long enough to eat breakfast and lunch.  It started in the morning with coffee in hand to cut linen for 12 patterns, then serged the edges.  Today I'll begin to draw the designs.

Next was start laundry while pushing the mower in Ben's backyard.  Since it was a nice day, when the laundry was done I hung the white things on the line out back.  Followed by mowing the remainder of the acreage, pulling some (not all) weeds and trimming some (not all) bushes.  So this old gal is moving a little slower today.

Finally at 4 p.m. after feeding my boy Ben decided to sit, relax and start some flower pins.  Am not done with the Lollipop Bouquet but since Cape May camp is a few short weeks away wanted to make flower pins to offer for sale in the camp store. 

And now, for the giveaway part.  Heck, some of you probably already cheated and scrolled down to the bottom first just like you probably do with a good mystery and go to the back of the book and find out what happened without reading the middle of the book.....I know you people ;~).

Remember this wool?

Well I'm going to give away 1/4 yard of all three pieces to someone, but not the over dyed ~ I'll leave that up to you to either over dye or if you're brave you can hook it as is.  You can see the front and back of the brown, green and red in the photo.  The name will be drawn on Thursday, August 29th.

Here are the rules: 

~ Must be a follower (I'll check)
~ No 'anonomyous' or 'no-reply' e-mails will be eligible
~ Only US participants (sorry, thinking postage $)

That's it.  Just leave a message on this blog post that you'd like to be included in the giveaway.

Have a great Monday everyone.

P.S. 
Glenda, a message from you arrived but you have a "NO-REPLY" blogger address so will not be able to write to you and let you know you won.   Please everyone, check your profile (or maybe it is 'settings') and be sure you aren't a NO REPLY.  When you elect the 'no reply' blogger address I cannot respond to your message, and I refuse to post the name of the winner in hopes they will read and reply back to me.  I'd rather be able to send an e-mail to the person who posted the comment to let them know of their win.   

Saundra

PRIMITIVE BLACK

What do you do with wool that has an undesirable color to your eye?  Use it for primitive black!  Frankly I use a LOT of primitive black in rugs and while I purchase great darks from Betsy and Rebecca which need not be dyed, it is always great to use up those uglies in the stash and over dye them primitive black.  It's nice to have a mixture of textures and underlying colors mixed in the background or in a black horse or dog.

A few years ago someone on Rughookers Yahoo was getting out of the rug hooking business and had bolts of 100% wool for sale cheap.  I mean cheap and it was 100% wool.  When I say cheap don't think it was over $10 per yard.  Hey, what could be wrong with 100% wool at that price?????  DUH? 

When I got it I didn't like it 'as is' is because the white threads were too over powering even when hooked.   Think I purchased 2 yards of the red, the brown and green ~ 6 yards in all.  The green really wasn't bad but the brown and red had white threads which stuck out too much.  This is a picture of the three wools where you can see both sides of the wool; green on left is folded over and looks okay, brown on top and red on the bottom.  Just too much light peeking out for my liking.

So I did what any hooker would do, I over dyed some wool.  I used a recipe of 1/4 seal brown, 1/4 black, 1/4 dark green in a CBW.  I'm sure more experienced dyers would have had a better recipe and I welcome them to respond with one.

The wool was pre-soaked and guess there was about 1 yard of wool in the pot although I didn't measure.  Well after over an hour there was still dark water in the pot and it had almost reached a boiling point and then I turned it down and let it steam up my house (think A/C $).

These are the results of the dye job of the above wool.  Top row on left is the original un-dyed brown wool and to the right is the over dye of brown.  Bottom row left is the green and to the right is the red.

So after well over an hour in the pot and still color there, decided to pull out a smidgen more wool to toss in to use up the dye.  I considered putting in the mordant at that point but being a novice thought I'd just add a smidgen more wool to absorb it and then add the mordant.  Top row was the undyed wool and below is what I achieved from the last 15 minutes of dye.



For those dyers reading this I'd be interested to learn a better recipe for me to use on the red and brown wool with the white threads. 

Thanks for visiting.  AND......... maybe, just maybe there will be a giveaway of dyeable wool in the future.

Have a great evening.

Saundra

 

 

 

 

 



Lollipop, Lollipop, oooh lolli lollipop.....

Any of you guys or gals growing up in the 50's know how that song went.  And guess you know that is the lead into showing the update on Magdalena's Lollipop Bouquet. 

Well, you know I had to do it.... I did have to pull out a few neutral strips and enlarged some of the circles in the top row.  Not sure how much difference it really makes but here is what the rug looks like now.  And I can tell you right now the top right border color is going to change from light to something darker.

And this was a picture of the last posting for you to compare.   Actually I can see a little difference even tho all of the top circles weren't enlarged it still satisfies me.

As you can see in the first photo I started hooking the corner swag.  Sad to say that I'm my own worst enemy when it comes to hooking Magdalena's rugs.  The plan is to replicate the antique rug using my wool on hand but somehow, somewhere, the shape changes. 

In looking at her swags it might look like 3 rows of blue wool but you don't know if those were #3 cuts or #8 cuts since everything was cut by hand I'm sure.  So each swag may end up being differently shaped, and maybe even a color missing but will attempt to do my best.

OH, and the other thing..... in a previous post mentioned that in the original antique picture it showed that Magdalena used various colors in her holding line.  Check out my top picture and you can see that I've tried to do that too.  But think for sure I'll change the holding line on the top left corner to something darker.

And not sure if I'll continue using left overs in various colors for the holding line or use a long strip of wool with various textures to make the rug more stable at the edges.  Time will tell.

Thanks for dropping by.

Saundra

Magdalena's Lollipop Bouquet Design

Worked a little more on the Lollipop Bouquet and here is what I've achieved thus far.

Since it was time to move the pattern decided to take a picture and now will start on the left top corner of the rug.  Goodie, goodie gumdrops!!!!!!  When I start on a corner, a holding line, etc. I know it is getting closer to the half way mark.

And tho posted before, here is a picture of the original antique.  And DANG!  In comparing the two there are vast differences in what I see. 

Unfortunately it looks like I tried to stay true to today's lesson of "hook inside the lines so the motif doesn't grow".  It appears that was embedded in my brain because I've too much space between my rows of lollipops (circles).  Oh well, guess it will just have to continue in this fashion since there is too much wool to pull out and change.  But for you folks who want to replicate the rug, tuck that in your cranium.

As previously mentioned, and still true, everything so far are left over worms being used except for the neutral between rows of circles.

In order for me to get a better overall visual of my antique adaptations guess I need to take more pictures more often.  And frankly now that I've noticed the difference it is really bugging me.

Have a great evening everyone, and thanks for those of you who visit and post.

Saundra

Contimplating Cape May Rug Camp

Cape May rug camp "Rugs by the Sea" is less than 4 weeks away and am still going with the idea of hooking my departed Shadow.  There were a couple pictures of her and couldn't decide which view to hook and finally decided on the one where her head is tilted.  When I spoke she would tilt her head listening to every word I said and she cracked me up each and every time.  She looked so darn cute that I would laugh out loud then she would get up and come over to say she was glad she made me happy.

Here was the other picture under consideration.

After hooking my departed Rotties using a #3 cut for the dogs, couldn't stand hooking with at size any longer so hooked the background in #5.  My dear sweet Shadow is going to be a wide cut girl and think she'd approve.

I've even started pulling some wool but might rummage thru the brown bin once more.  If I don't have the right color wool I'll buy some.  But the pattern will only be around 18 x 24 so won't need a lot.  Yet think I'll need more of the lighter gold colors so maybe I'll try and dye a tad more before camp.

The background color will be the same green (or close) to that used   for the Rottweiler Memorial.  I have some of it left from the previous dye job but usually have consistent good results in repeating that color if I need more.  Here's my Rottweiler Memorial.

Hope you all have enjoyed the nice lower humidity and breezy days like I have.  But today it is back to a dark and rainy day. 

Saundra

Status of Lollipop Bouquet

Doesn't appear that I've accomplished much in the last 3 days but some loops have been pulled.  With unsuccessfully battling my web site using Dreamweaver, which I cannot seem to learn to use, trimming some bushes and cutting grass, it's really eaten into my fun hooking time. 

But this is what I've done so far.  Only 26 more circles to hook, which means I've hooked 40 of them so far.

This is what the original antique looks like.  It is hard to tell in this small picture but in larger views of the original antique it appears that Magdalena did an outline row using darks, lights and anything else which may appear in the hit and miss background.  So I'm getting anxious to do a holding line all around so that I can soon start that hit and miss.  But as you can see the largest part of the design is the lollipop bouquet so have a ways to go yet.

Hmm, I can see something I want to pull out, but probably no one will even notice if I do re-hook that one small spot.  That might make for an interesting post tomorrow....... 'what do you see different' sorta topic.

Have enjoyed these last two days of breezy and less humid weather; it's beginning to feel like fall.  But weatherman says it will be back to hotter and rainy weather beginning tomorrow night.

Have a great evening.

Saundra

Sauder Hooking Week and Lollipop Bouquet

Oh but I wish Sauder Village Hooking Week was on my list this year because there is going to be one wonderful exhibit that I'd like to see.  That would be the HOOKED ON PRESIDENTS  exhibit, be sure to click on that link to see the video on Fox news.

Had some appointments today but did manage a couple more circles hooked on the Magdalena Lollipop Bouquet.  Here is a bird's eye view of the rug and my color separated woollie worms within arms reach for this project.  Also a view of the design plus the hooker's helper with the magnet and pouch.

The colors are separated by color, not value.  Yes I have numerous bags and about 4 bags fit well in a plastic container a bit larger than a shoe box.  For some reason there are a lot of blue's.  I store the containers in my wool room on a shelf, three across and without the top on.

For those of you heading to Sauder I'm envious.  And my friend Evelyn Lawrence is teaching a Magdalena Style class there for 2 days so she will be there.  Enjoy Sauder!

Have a great Monday evening.

Saundra
 

Call Me Crazy But........

....... would you believe that I have actually enjoyed hooking the circles and can't wait to get back to them?  Frankly I wanted to continue hooking all the circles until they were done but knew that I had to start putting color between the circles and solidify a part of the rug. 

At first my plan was to hook two rows of circles and then the soft light above the red.  But then decided to hook the dark before starting the third row of circles.    I usually try to post a picture with a flash and without.  Here is the picture with a flash which, of course makes everything look brighter than it is.  Oh, and yes, that is wool between the red and the bottom row of circles, it just happens to be natural linen color.

Here is a picture without flash and as always it is a little blurry without a flash. 

So far the only wool I have cut is that for the natural background, every piece of wool other than that has been from my woollie basket and am hoping to continue with that theme.  While there are some neutral linen colored wool strips in my baggies, there is not enough to do the whole rug.  But believe me when I say that I'll cut as few strips as possible because that is another challenge of mine for this rug.

Sure didn't want to pull the rug off the frame to take a picture and post as my circles were calling me. 

Must make mention here that since Magdalena's Lollipop Bouquet is an antique in public domain I was free to draw it and hook it myself.  I do NOT sell this design but Barb Carroll does.  However, I DO sell Magdalena Briner's Domestic Zoo pattern and Barb posts my name on her web site.

Have a great Sunday evening.

Saundra

Barb Carroll and the Coverlet Museum

Mark your calendar now for a fun-filled September.  Barb is generously giving her time, organizational skills, rug hooking talent and profits to help support the Museum.  She has designed rugs inspired by the American woven coverlets which will be offered there.  All the information you need, and links to applications can be accessed below.

 

September 1 – 28, 2013

Coverlet Museum Rug Show – Bedford, Pennsylvania

During the month of September, hooked rugs from around the country will be on display alongside the coverlets at the National Museum of the American Coverlet.  The history of hooked rugs is as varied as the history of coverlets. Both were used to dress up simple decor and add a splash of color.  And both are now coveted as a true art form and symbol of American life in the late 19th century.   The museum is open Monday through Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm and Sunday from 12 pm to 4 pm.  The rug show will be available to the public through a museum admission.
Click HERE for information and the application.

September 24 – 27, 2013

Rug Workshop with Barbara Carroll

Respected primitive rug hooking instructor Barbara Carroll will conduct a three-day rug workshop at the Coverlet Museum in Bedford, Pennsylvania. Unlike any class you have ever taken from Barb, Openings are still available!!!! We are excited to offer the opportunity to hook and learn in this unique location.  Workshop dates and times are:

Tuesday, September 24th from 1 pm to 3:30 pm

Wednesday, September 25th from 9 am to 3:30 pm (lunch provided)

Thursday, September 26th from 9 am to 3:30 pm (lunch provided)

Friday, September 27th from 9 am to 12 pm (lunch provided)

Students will hook one of over fifteen new rug patterns inspired by American woven coverlets and designed by Barbara Carroll along with Keith Kemmer. These patterns will be introduced at the Coverlet Museum in conjunction with the rug show, work shop, and hook-in. 
Click HERE for information and the application.

***All net proceeds from the rug workshop and hook-in as well as Barbara’s instructor fees will be donated to the Coverlet Museum.  

In addition, all net proceeds from the coverlet inspired rug patterns will be an on going benefit for the Museum.  

 

September 27 – 28, 2013

Hook-In and Silent Auction at the Coverlet Museum, Bedford, Pennsylvania

Beginning on Friday afternoon and all day Saturday, hookers and fiber enthusiasts will come together for friendship and an opportunity to purchase a wide selection of fiber-related merchandise from a variety of vendors. Watch our web page for photos of the silent auction rugs.  The hook-in on Saturday morning starts with an 8:30 am check-in and will continue from 9:00 am until 3:30 pm. Access to the museum’s coverlet collection and rug show, lunch, and vendors is included with registration. Joining us will be Wool Studio, Rebecca Erb….with wonderful wools for your newest projects. Homespun, Kay Leisey….see photos of her shop  web page at www.picturetrail.com/homespunwoolens . Ault’s Rug Hooking Store with cutters, frames hooks and treasures. Becky Mummert Pottery…..we have loved her quirky eye and exceptional talent. and Misty Pond Primitives with lots of goodies and the best dyed wool anywhere! The newest Woolley Fox coverlet rug patterns will be unveiled….see this wonderful new project. The proceeds of these fabulous new designs will be donated to the National Museum of The American Coverlet.

Click HERE for information and the application.

Registration for the workshop with Barbara Carroll and hook-in will only be through the Woolley Fox.

www.coverletmuseum.org

www.woolleyfox.com

***All net proceeds from the rug workshop and hook-in as well as Barbara’s instructor fees will be donated to the Coverlet Museum.  

In addition, all net proceeds from the coverlet inspired rug patterns will be an on going benefit for the Museum.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Guess you all noticed the various vendors who will be at the hook-in.  Lots of happenings going on in Bedford in September and hope you didn't miss the fact that Barb is donating her instructor fees and proceeds from the coverlet inspired rug designs.   

Have a great weekend.

Saundra

 

 

Using up Woolie Worms

Some people call them 'worms' some call them 'noodles' and some call them just plain old 'leftovers'.  By whatever name you call them it is very exhilarating to use them up.  Here is what I've accomplished on Lollipop Bouquet and every strip has come out of my worm baggies. 

During this past winter I posted on my blog about taking the time to separate the worms.  Yes, it was boring, and yes even considered stopping and forgetting the whole idea since I'd much rather be hooking than separating worms.  HA, for that matter as much as I hate binding a rug think I'd even have preferred that to color separating the worms. 

But let me tell you it has been a Godsend having the task done.  Since separating them by color I have been hooking and need only a couple more inches or maybe just a couple more strips of a certain color or certain wool.  Ya know what?  I was able to find what I wanted in that color bag of wool and didn't have to cut yet even more wool to make even more worms.

As you look at the above picture you can see that I used a piece of linen which just made the dimensions needed plus a little.  This was left from a pattern drawing, was available to me and I stitched the extra distance on the edge to cover my grippers.  Like my mama used to say, "Waste not want not".

Have a great evening and thanks for dropping by.

Saundra

A Sight For Sore Eyes

This has been the longest time spent without hooking than I can remember ~ it has been 5 days.  So yes, this is a sight for sore eyes to have a pattern on my frame again.  However, 10 of my rugs managed to get a label and the rug binding caught up.

As you can see I have chosen to hook Magdalena Briner's Lollipop Bouquet.  The first loop wasn't pulled until this afternoon so there hasn't been much accomplished.  But oh does it feel good to have that Hartman in my hand again and linen on my Snapdragon.

In the foreground you can see the hooking accessory which is a magnet holding my scissors and the pouch which holds my Hartman hook (or snippets).  You can see the hook part sticking out at the top. 

In the background there are bags of worms which have been separated by color.  That was a tedious and boring task when first taking on the project but oh so worth it.  There are other bags upstairs but thought I'd work on these color sections first.

Enjoy your evening, you know what I'll be doing tonight.

Saundra

Labels and in Limbo

I feel a sense of accomplishment in sewing labels on my most recent rugs (think I've done 5 and will do 3 more tonight) yet feel in limbo.  This could well be the most days I've gone without having something on my frame even if it was a flower pin or purse.

During that label sewing time I've contemplated what should go on my frame next.  Lord knows I've plenty patterns drawn on foundation already by others AND me, some patterns in books that have held my interest, and I've had a few ideas brewing in my cranium as well.  But....... in taking time to decide what I'd really like to do think I've decided. 

HA, that said, I've been known to have a design planned and take a hard right hand turn.  Well, gals you know the story....., "a woman has a right to change her mind", right?  So the pattern hasn't been drawn yet, but this is what I THINK will be my next rug.

This is Magdalena Briner's Lollipop Bouquet.  Her design could have been a stylized Tree of Life or a primitive bouquet of flowers.  The original rug measured 35" x 45 1/2" and can tell you right now that mine will not be that big.  This will be a fantastic next rug to reduce my worms and since they have been separated according to color would make it an easy peasy project.  Sure I might need to cut something here and there but will make it my mission to use up this vast collection of woolie worms I have. 

I do not sell this pattern but Woolley Fox does.   

Enjoy your evening and please be kind to one another.

Saundra

Binding Jack and a Label

With Westmoreland Ponies hooked and bound and Jack all hooked, it was time to bind him as well.  It feels so good to have no rugs waiting for the final finish.  I used the same yarn to whip at the edge of cotton binding as I did with Westmoreland Ponies, so you can check back on that blog post to check out the whipping and colors.

Here is Jack.  As previously mentioned, this is a pattern designed by Barb Carroll and was free pattern insert in the Sept/Oct 1997 issue of Rug Hooking Magazine.  I think Jack is quite handsome and torn between keeping him myself or sharing with someone by putting him on e-bay to provide revenue to help keep me in my hooking habit.  This picture without a flash is more what he looks like in person.

This is with a flash which makes the colors appear more bright than they really are but you can see the colors in the textures.

Someone asked to see the label for the Westmoreland Ponies so here it is.  It is smaller than I'd like as it would be nice to have fabric to turn under when stitching, that is why I used my pinking shears in order to retard raveling.  So until a larger label is designed this will do and I'll just cover this one over one day with a larger and better label.

Since there is no pattern ready for my Snapdragon as of yet I've resigned myself to sewing on a few more labels to the rugs.  Seems to me there were 8 labels on the 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of fabric that I printed out.  Should have had only maybe 4 labels per sheet but now I know better.  Next up for labeling will be Oh Deer and Mother Hen.

Still don't know what I want to hook next so that is why this is a no muss no fuss, easy peasy task.  Oh, no matter how many pins I put on a label it still  moves and is never on straight.  BUT, it is labeled with all the information.

Have a great evening and catch'ya on the flip flop.

Saundra

Westmoreland Ponies

Can't remember if I posted a final picture of Westmoreland Ponies after pulling the last loop or not, but it has just been bound and am about to sew the label on. 

Try tho I may, my picture taking of rugs is the pits.  So there is no way that even if I had a Celebrations worthy rug would I be able to get a proper picture.  I even pinned it to a foam board, took it outside in natural light and still no good pictures.  Either my camera was leaning more to one side, or tiled in some way so that it was off kilter when trying to crop the photo.  And even tried different settings.  On this setting, the flash went off anyway so it appears brighter than normal.

And this setting made the picture a little darker.  And in both pictures it is hard to see the one row border around the rug, but it is there and has all the same colors in a textured wool with the same colors as throughout the rug.

Westmoreland Ponies was designed by Barb Carroll and was a free pattern insert in a 2010 issue of RHM.  Now to get ready for the binding of Jack.

Enjoy your Saturday evening.

Saundra

August Already?

Goodness time is ticking away and am sure teachers are wondering what happened to their brief summer break as schools here start August 26th.  I'm pretty sure that when I was a kid (back in the dark ages) we didn't start school until after September 1st.  Yeah, it's only a week later, but hey, that's another week of vacation to a kid and teacher.  Although I'm sure school can't come fast enough for parents.

So it is time for me to pull out my quilt square applique' and stitchery for August.  The sunflower design would be nice in a hooked hot pad or chair pad.  It is a design by Indygo Junction.

The stitchery was a design by Done My Best.  And these were done way before I became interested in hooking, otherwise I'd have had a hook in my hand instead of needle and thread.

Enjoy your Thursday and please be kind to one another.

Saundra