NEWLY FOUND OLD RUGS

Hope you enjoy the show and inspires you to brush the dust off your hook.  The last group of rugs had many hooked horses so I'll start with this one ~  Blue eyed horse hooked 1900 with blotchy background (32 x 42).

Wondering where the blue eyes are, you can see it more clearly in the picture of the back of the rug.  Also those blotchy backgrounds occur with fading as you can tell it looks mostly very dark in the original colors shown from the back view.

A straighted background with horses, hearts and stars.  No date was provided but it looks of legal age to me and measures 32 x 46.

A sweet rug but in need of repair is the roosters rug with block style border.  Starting bid was $15 and someone saw something special in it and bid.  Am sure they will do what they can to salvage it.

Here is a view of the back.

An early hooked rug of a building and faintly visible trees in the background.  Sure wish the auction houses would give a suspected dateline of all rugs but perhaps they avoid that so people will contact them.  

February and Valentines Day will be here soon.  Wish I was in the mood to hook this antique but at the moment it doesn't make my wheels spin.  This antique hearts rug measures 41 x 34 dated 1875 and from New York State.   

Is the central design below a giant snowflake or conjoined scrolls?  Dated between 1910-20 but no dimensions provided.

Another horse rug but with leaves and checkerboard background.  Dimensions of 39 x 39.5 but no date.  Appears to have a large repair spot on the horse.

Described as "a wild cat" the rug was found in Ontario, measures 29.5 x 40.5 and said to be hooked early 20th century.

Happy hooking.

Saundra

www.woodlandjunctionprimitives.weebly.com

CHECKING STAG COLORS

Yes, the stag rug still looks rather stagnant (no pun untended).  I've tried different colors under the stag to see which closely resembles the antique.  Tried a brighter color between the stags back legs thinking the one under the belly was too dark.  Hmm, I think I prefer the darker color.  BUT will peruse my wool room to see if there is something more suitable than either of these tomorrow.

Well damn, the color chosen for the ground behind the stag doesn't suit me either ~ so back to the wool stash for that too.

At first I was going to outline the stag like the antique but have changed my mind.  There's a big value difference anyway so not really needed to define it from the background.  Sometimes I don't make good project choices but it won't go into a UFO pile.  If the Forever Floral didn't end up there surely this one won't.

Perhaps I just need to hook the stag, not refer to the antique colors at all and just go with my gut.  Bet you're all wanting to see how far off my choices were, lol.  Here's the antique.

Last night it rained AGAIN.  Today I was in the yard and each step taken I could hear and feel the water rising above the bottom of the shoe. Further into the backyard where the shed is the water is puddled above ground all across the back and sides.  At this rate the water will still be here until summer.

Saundra

www.woodlandjunctionprimitives.weebly.com

THIS and THAT

This is an antique adaptation hooked by Lisa Halverson.  It is called Geometric with Horse and measures 27 x 29.  She did a wonderful job making it look like the original.  Kudos Lisa. 

Last Friday it was snowing and today is a heatwave.  This morning at 8 a.m. decided to take a photo of the steamed windows of the back door.  Temps were probably record high, not sure but on the news other towns in this area beat the record from previous years.

Sorry the next photo is blurry but the photo was taken without a flash.  Just before noon the temperature outside was 71, higher than I keep my thermostat during the winter.  Yeah, I know that's chilly but I wear sweats and turtlenecks during the winter to conserve.  

Not only are the animals confused but so are the plants.  Believe it or not the crocus is blooming in January.

Over coffee I did my normal search for antique rugs but came across a very interesting quilt circa 1900.  Now talk about "making do", look at the large pieces of clothing to maximize the use of fabric and size of the quilt.

Yes the maker could have cut those into pieces and have a more labor intensive project but obviously function was needed more than fanciful.

I've drawn and shipped two different patterns this week.  Today did some work in the yard picking up pine cones and limbs but there is lots more to do.  So very little hooking took place on my stag.  Weather permitting before the rain and cool weather returns this weekend will do more as time permits tomorrow.

It's a little premature maybe, but me thinks me has my next rug plan in the works.  Thanks go to the 'mother lode' spoken about in the previous post.  Hope you have a few days of rest, relaxation and hooking in your future.

Saundra

www.woodlandjunctionprimitives.weebly.com

THE RUG LOTTERY

After a long dry spell of finding rugs I hit the mother lode of antique rugs on an auction site today.  Most came from the same person's collection, and not all are being posted at this time.

The first one is a yarn sewn footstool cover, circa 1840 and measures 8.5 x 14.  Always enjoy seeing the thick ripple effect of the yarn sewn rugs.

A bird and berries rug hooked late 19th century.  Dimensions are 31 x 35.5.

Circles wool on burlap dated 1898 from Mildmay, Ontario.  Size is 26 x 36.5 and I wondered if those circles could be configured to be hearts?  Would mean enlarging the design and perhaps eliminating the date, but it's an idea that crossed my mind.

I thought this "spring chicken" rug was a hoot.  Auction house said it was circa 1910 but it sure is in very good shape for that date.  Measures 39.5 x 48.

There were several horse rugs in this mother lode but I'll give you a break and only show you one.  Horses & horseshoes with hit and miss background.  Circa 1900 size is 36 x 42.  I've sent this to Evelyn to inquire if she thinks it's a Magdalena.

Here's a photo of the back of the horse rug.

There was one rug which had a story and was a little sad.  This is a WWI memorial to a loved one designed and hooked by Mrs. Sinnot circa 1918.  The story goes that Mrs. Sinnot sold the rug for groceries in 1930.

This is the label stitched to the back, Milleville, New Brunswick.

Hooking is going quite slowly on my stag rug but plan to do a little hooking this evening, along with binding the sheep.  Have a great evening.

Saundra

www.woodlandjunctionprimitives.weely.com

Lone Stag Update

The first photo is the original antique Canadian rug hooked late 19th or early 20th century.  Notice all the different blocks of color there are in the background.  I think that makes the rug more interesting.  I'm going to attempt to get close but don't plan on any dyeing or buying to get those exact colors.  I'll use something from my stash and just 'make do'.  Which means my colors won't be spot on.

I jumped around the pattern hooking different colors to audition them and see how they play with one another.  Just took a photo so let's see what changes are in my future.

All I can say is mine looks pale in comparison to the rich colors of the original.  Oh well.  Good thing I'll be taking my time on this project because there's nothing interesting in queue for the next one.  Or I'll be reduced to identifying the salvaged photos on the flash drive and trolling thru those.  

OH, recently I saw someone's adaptation of this antique and she did a magnificent job on it.  Wish now I'd saved a photo of her work and her name.  Happy hooking everyone and hope you are warm.

                                   

Saundra

www.woodlandjunctionprimitives.weebly.com

YOUR DAILY DOSE OF FIBER

Starting with a blank flash drive and saving rugs as I see them.  This rooster below was a new listing but they provided no other information except the starting bid.  Perhaps if I'd inquired they would have given the info to me but I wasn't planning on buying.

A central horse which is hard to see, with diamond border hooked 1870's found in the New England area measures 40 x 75.

This hit and miss geometric is dated 1912 in the corner.  Dimensions are 44 x 55.

The Minute Man rug, circa 1900 is 20 x 34.5.

I love the winter scene below but have no information as to date or size.  Someone recently posted a photo of their progress hooking this design on FB and she is doing a fabulous job.

This stag rug was hooked in Waldoboro style but no other info.  

Only info gleaned about the winter cabin below is that it is from Quebec, Canada.

A woman baking bread in an outdoor oven, hooked in the 1900s measures 19.5 x 23.5.  

I became interested in learning about such a thing of the past and found this photo of a woman baking bread in Quebec.  Interesting the historical things I've learned thru rug hooking.

Snow is in my forecast, just another form of water.  Stay warm and happy hooking.

Saundra

www.woodlandjunctionprimitives.weebly.com

ON THE FRAME

Did anyone take bets as to which antique rug I'd choose to hook next?  If you chose the Lone Deer you'd take home the winnings.  After printing out the first paper pattern I thought it looked too big.  Then eventually decided on 23 x 25.  But I extended my pattern a tad longer but only by an inch, so mine measures 23 x 26.

Not a whole lot accomplished so far but slow and steady wins the race, right Julia?.  At least I've something to keep me entertained during this cold weather.  Yesterday it snowed and stuck to the ground except where there was water.  And right now MORE WATER in the form of rain is occurring.  At this rate there will be standing water (aka the lake) on my property until summer.

Happy hooking.

Saundra

www.woodlandjunctionprimitives.weebly.com

MORE CHIT CHAT

I'm calling the sheep DONE!  This picture was taken before steaming.  See the ripples?  If not, click on the photo to enlarge it.

Wasn't fond of the hooked coat of the sheep as my vision was for it to be more like the antique.  So after ripping out the sheep wool strips could see the linen had stretched.  I tried rubbing the foundation to remove the hooked holes and smooth out the linen.  But as you could see in the above photo, the ripples remained.

Was hoping steaming would take care of that situation so steamed it several  times and think it will be okay.  The rug hasn't been moved since steaming so hope once it is picked up, foundation trimmed and ready for binding it will still look okay. 

Remember all the rain I've written about?  As it is winter and colder days ahead I went to check the propane level to see if I needed to order more.  This is what I saw ~ my tank was filled with rainwater because the water table is so damn high now.

I wondered  if this might cause a gas leak, or worse, an explosion.  So called the propane company to inquire and explain this situation.  Was told I should scoop out the water because with upcoming freezing temperatures there could be problems if the regulator was under water.

Went outside with a ladle and scooped out water to fill the bucket half full 4 times then pulled it on a cart to the meadow to dump.  Don't know how many gallons it would be will filled to top but even halfway it was hard for me to carry.  Uh, and I'm still having back pain as I sit here with a heating pad.

Anyway, each time I returned from dumping water it seemed to be a tad higher.  After 4 half-filled buckets were removed the tank looked like this.

Didn't know which metal working part was the regulator but figured I was in the safe zone so went inside to rest my back.  An hour later went back to check on the water level to see if it had filled back up as I'd expected it would, here it is .... again.  And would eventually fill all the way back up to the water line as the water table here has increased due to all the rain.  There is a dome metal top and you can see a part of it on the top left of the photo below.

Went back inside and called the propane company, got an email address and sent them the pictures.   Was told that as long as the RED regulator wasn't under water I was safe.  Thankfully, that is positioned above ground so chances of that being under water are slim.  However I will keep an eye on it always, since I know what the regulator looks like.

Here is the local weather forecast and the wet stuff just keeps coming.  

Keep your hands busy during this cold, wet, white winter with whatever makes you happy.

Saundra

www.woodlandjunctionprimitives.weebly.com

RUG SHOW

I feel the need to do a post, and the sheep rug still isn't finished so thought I'd provide a rug show for you.  

Wonderful oval landscape, 23 x 46 and hooked early 20th century.

Horse hooked late 19th or early 20th century, dimensions are 21 x 40.

Lion said to be hooked 1900 measures 23 x 47.5.

A recumbent dog also dated 1900, 22.5 x 38 with a bold hit and miss background.

No date on the geometric star rug, 39 x 44.  Good use of those worms.

This cat was said to be from 20th century.  Seems the photo doesn't show the entire rug as it measures 18.5 x 31.5.  So is hard to say if it had a border, was an oval or what shape.  Must say whoever hooked it did a great job making the rug look like a braided one.  

Subtle colors, primitive scrolls in corner.

A quite stained whale hunt rug hooked early 20th century, 24 x 36. 

For true colors before staining, here is a photo of the back.

Lots going on in this home hearth scene.  Hooked by Minnie (Nissley) Stehman in 1930 from Ephrata, PA, size is 38 x 68.

The rugs shown above were from another but full flash drive. Several years ago I saved all my photos on the computer and then one day my computer crashed.  Poof.  There went all the antique rug photos, rug camp photos taken with a digital camera, all gone.  That is when I purchased flash drives and made separate folders with subject:  antique hooked rugs, Cape May rug camp, Woolley Fox camp, etc. and accessing what I wanted to post was a piece of cake.

Now to my recent nightmare!  I printed out enlarged pages for my next project but thought it was too big.  Decided to print another pattern a tad smaller so put the flash drive back into the USB port.  A pop-up said: "unable to open drive needs formatting".  WHAT???  Couldn't believe my eyes to pulled the flash drive out and inserted again with the same response.  My 32GB flash drive had crashed!  Hundreds of photos gone.

I wondered if it was possible for the photos to be recovered so took it to a local computer shop.  The next day the computer tech called me saying he would be able to recover the photos and started describing them.  I acknowledged him and stated they were all named and in separate folders.  His reply was, not now.  But at least the photos survived and were put on another flash drive.  

So now this is what I see when opening up the drive.  There are 3 folders of recovered pictures and of course this is only the viewing of a portion of one folder.  No description, no longer in separate folders and frankly don't plan to do the hours and hours of work required to organize them again.  But at least if there is something I must have can probably find it now.  Only file I might make would be my pattern line drawings.

Oh, and now that I know  just one flash drive still isn't safe I will back it up on a terabyte drive known as "My Passport".  

Back to force feeding the sheep again awaiting more inclement weather and high winds.  Happy hooking.

Saundra

www.woodlandjunctionprimitives.weebly.com