HEARTS HOOK-ALONG PREVIEW

This a preview of my accomplishments, or lack thereof, of Hearts Hook-Along.  Other participants' works will be forthcoming.  Here is what I've hooked so far ~ just the top part of the border.  Think I'll then put the pattern aside to work a little more on the Farm Menagerie.  Having taken a break from it I'm anxious to work on it again.  Oh, and I'm guessing since we all determined that one critter was a fox perhaps the odd looking blob behind it is a fox hole/den?

Here's  what I've hooked so far and wish I'd been able to complete the corner but it is late in the day and want to do a blog post.

For those participating in this hook along, you can send me photos of your work to my email address.  If you don't know my email address you can use the EMAIL ME location on the right side bar of my blog.

As I'm hooking the border in a hit and miss like the original, I've loads of loose worms all over the place, which makes the switch from pattern to pattern a living nightmare.  But it will give me an opportunity to organize those worms mid-project instead of at the end when it would be worse.

Even tho I really wanted to complete that left corner, I'm looking forward to working on the Farm Menagerie after over a week.

Today I received my wool order from The Wool Studio and have a question for you who purchase from her.  Since her wool is now "TW" (tight weave) do you still wash the wool or use as is?  I've washed some previously and it came out really thick and almost coat weight.  Haven't washed this wool yet, thought I'd like to find out what other people do.  TIA.

Saundra

FARM ANIMALS UPDATE

But before I show you the update, there's a question on one of the animals.  What kind of animal do you think is circled below?  I think it looks more like a fox than a dog.  Yeah, it is bigger than the sheep to the left but dimensions don't matter in primitive hooking.

Okay, now for the update.  Haven't pulled any loops on this since starting the Hearts Hook-along October 1st and am kinda missing it now.  But it is nice to have something else to work on when boredom sets in.

Another chilly morning with inside house temps at 66 and I'm dressed in sweats.  Will be warmer and near 80 by Monday yet it won't last long as winter is inevitable.  

Happy Hooking.

Saundra

MISC. CHIT CHAT

Baby, it's chilly outside.  This morning's wake up was enough incentive for me to check the propane level in the tank for backup heat.  Right now level is good so no need to order yet.  

The nut trees on my property have dropped numerous quantities which makes me think it will be a harsh winter.  Some predictions of a heavy snowfall may be observed in lots of mushroom growth, of which I've seen mounds of about my wooded area and in view from the house.  Oh well, I don't live in Florida so will deal with winter when it gets here.  If you want to learn other signs of harsh and white winter check it out HERE.

Have found a few great old rugs ~ some wonderful and some I'm not so crazy about.  Something about this abstract pot of flowers grabbed my attention right away and I love it.  Circa 1900 and measures 37 x 41.5.

This pinwheel center designed rug is awesome too.  Was hooked mid to late 19th century.   Both of these rugs are still up for auction.

This poor rooster rug has seen lots of wear.  Wish the back side photo had been available to see it's true colors and perhaps identify other motifs.

I have nothing against beavers but they haven't been on my to hook list.  Yet I've recently seen a few beaver rugs.  This one was hooked early 20th century and hails from Quebec (21.5 x 40.5).

Plus two more.

A geometric runner hooked between 1920-30, dimensions of 20 x 39.

Dated 1889, is this lovely rug with flowers and birds in Urn.  

These ducks didn't take a very flattering photo; hooked early 20th century (46 x 60).  Wish whoever took the photo had placed it neatly on the floor instead of having ripples.

Below is a faded dog rug measuring 24 x 44.

This next hooked piece is behind glass.  Why in the world would anyone cover up beautiful work?  You can see reflections of items in the room in the glass which ruins the beauty underneath.

When I first saw the cat rug thought those were bats along the border.  But turns out they were just designs.

More for the feline lovers (specifically for Robin) I'm doubling the pleasure.  No other info on either rug.

That's it for the rug show.  In other rug hooking chit chat, Rugs by the Sea rug camp 2025 began 9/28 thru 10/3, tomorrow.  This is the first time in 22 years I've ever chosen to not attend.  What used to be a thriving and wonderful rug camp has been a total disappointment since the organizational change.  So I decided it was no longer worth my money or time to attend.  Most of the primitive hookers who used to attend have stopped attending also.  What a shame the camp has been run into it's future demise.

Guess I'll go pull a few loops on the Hearts Hook along.  Happy hooking!

Saundra

TOMORROW

Hard to believe tomorrow is October already.  Seems like the last 9 months have zipped by like when I fast forward thru TV commercials.  Yet when I was a teen it seemed like forever for an anticipated event to happen in just a week.  

Anyway, here is the hook along design a few of us will start tomorrow.  I'm looking forward to having a 'plus one' to work on and give me a break from the small critters I've been hooking of late.  Here is some yardage and cannot recall where it was purchased but had been here for years until I found it at the bottom of a shelf.  Finally used it in my reclining sheep rug and still have some left.

Went first to the worm baggie and pulled those left from the sheep rug to start with the outlines.  The dark red stripe from the plaid will be used in the hearts along with an overdyed piece you also see.  As for the rest of the color planning, that will be by the seat of my pants as it always is.

Although I drew what I saw in the original antique below, I just might change the right inside heart to make it more heart shaped.  Could still have it look a little wonky but not as much as in the photo below.  Perhaps the woman who hooked it years ago ran out of the red and filled in with what she had.  You know that old saying, "Use it up, wear it out, make do or do without".

Am looking forward to seeing color choices the other 9 participants will make.  It is always fun to see how other folks hook the same design and just how much color affects the results.  Participants are free to take creative license to make their rug one they will enjoy.

Happy hooking!! 💖

Saundra

FARM MENAGERIE UPDATE

Am still hooking on the farm menagerie rug awaiting the start date of the hook along.  If I didn't have this to work on I'd probably start Hearts and Squares early.

Some of the critters (chicks and rabbits) are so small it is hard to get a good shape hooking them.  For those I'm cutting #8.5 strips in half. Can see I've lost the shape of the horse's face, which is hooked in a wider cut.  Will try to fix that.  And what to do with the house color?  I don't want white.  Maybe a pale yellow but wanted yellow for the star.  And don't really want white for the star either.  Maybe I'll try a log cabin for the house.

After the photo was taken I pulled a few more loops but didn't bother taking another photo since it was the border.  Wasn't sure what color to hook the border with but eventually chose brown. 

Below is the original rug and at first I didn't know what the ladder or blocks were on  the left and right side of the rug.  Then decided it must be a fence.

Nothing monumental in the post, just me working my thought process through you on this format.  Hope everyone has a pleasant day....and happy hooking.

Saundra

THE NEXT RUG PROJECT

That next hooking project is going to be a hook-along.  It all started after one of my rug shows where this hearts and squares rug was among those on my blog.  Lauren emailed saying it would be a fun one to do as a hook-along, and so the idea was born.  

At first it was going to be just the two of us, then decided it would be great if there were more.  Now it is a group of ten.  The pattern may be drawn to any size; I drew mine on linen measuring 20.5 x 30.  As for the line drawing, I traced what I saw so it shows the quirks of imperfect squares and heart shapes.  But, to me, it's the quirkiness which makes old rugs endearing.  

The official start date is October 1st with the end date being Valentine's Day, February 14th.  That long duration is due to Lauren's busy and doesn't-have-time-to-hook, schedule.  Actually, that's not true, as Lauren is quite busy making items to sell when she vends at hook-ins and items for her Guild.  For sure it won't take me almost 5 months to finish it, not even the binding part.  Participants are to send me photos of their accomplishments at least once every two weeks.

I, and you readers, will enjoy seeing everyone's choice of colors and participants will have a Valentine's Day hearts rug to display just in time.  In a sense, guess this is more like a 'plus one' for me as I am still pulling loops on my farm menagerie.  Happy hooking everyone.

Saundra

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STILL LOOKING

Yes, 'tis true, I'm still looking for antique rugs to share with you and to have many choices for the next one to put on my frame.  Not that I need one for the frame now, because there's already a rug in progress and another lined up for a hook-along with friends.  Will tell you more about that one in a couple days.  So let's get the show on the road.

Great fall colors, love the color variations in the large border (aka 'blotchy').  Said to be hooked early 20th century, measures 24 x 37.

Seeing double?  Show horses and nothing more was provided but am sure it is an antique.

For those of you who love florals, here's one hooked between 1920-1929. 

An elaborate geometric with dimensions of 25 x 38 circa 1900.  Not my favorite color combinations.

This next one dated 1837 is an unusual rug and have desperately tried to decide it's theme/purpose.  A marriage rug with the date and "X" marks the spots where the couple would stand?  Or, could be she just needed a rug on the floor and drew random motifs to hook.  Dimensions of 25.5 x 60.

This next rug dated 1898 sold for $2,200, but don't know which year brought that price.  The rug measures 25 x 40.

A boy giving a horse an apple.  Sweet rug, no date or dimensions mentioned.

Found recently is the hooked elephants rug below.  To me, the one on the left looks more like an anteater than an elephant.  Hooked late 19th century.  

Also recently found is this woman sitting in a chair, hooked late 19th century.  Looks like something is cooking and steaming on the stove, a ball of yarn and needles on the window sill, along with flowers with church in background and flower in her hand.  As I'm looking at he rug began to wonder if she is counting her blessings or is thinking about all the things on her plate for the day?

While the rug above gave me pause to ponder this next one stole my heart.  What's not to love about an eagle?   The Eagle was hooked early 20th century and measures 31.5 x 57.5.

An even number of 10, and hope you enjoyed the show.  Happy hooking.

Saundra

THIS and THAT

Are you wondering how my new rug hooking tactic is going?  Ya know, the one where I bring down one bag of woolie worms at a time, return it  and grab another?  Don't think it's going to work like I'd hoped.

The first bag of green worked well and that was returned to it's storage spot after hooking all the green I desired.  Then it was time to do the barn and wanted a red barn and dark grey roof.  So brought down 2 bags.  I will need red again for the rooster and since I wanted a grey horse brought the black bag of worms to the hooking party ~  the black for the mane and tail of the horse ~ then there were three.  

So the pile is growing.  And I'll need other colors for other motifs...like yellow, white, brown, you know where I'm going with this, right?  Appears it will still be a rat's nest by the end of this project, seems there's no tidy way to hook a rug, or at least for me. 

Remember I and a few other bloggers mentioned the skyrocket increase of visitors?  I've taken screenshots of the top referrers and number of hits from each.  This is one from today which seems to show corporate interest.

Here is a snapshot from about 2 weeks ago which appears as tho it may be research done by educational and financial institutions.  

Are they researching bloggers to see if we are using AI in some way?  Or are they looking to see what they can use from us to assist them in their use of AI?

I've noticed while perusing Facebook it is obvious you can't believe what you see or read.  Heck one can't even watch or listen to the news and believe what you just heard.  And if it is true, sometimes I just want to shut off all news and watch movies or something entertaining, not world politics and other negative events.

Today I also sewed on more rug labels and finally hung The Ark on the wall in my living room.

Happy hooking.

Saundra

www.Facebook/woodlandjunctionhookedrugs.com

www.woodlandjunctionprimitives.weebly.com

ON THE FRAME

Finally something is on my hooking frame.  This was the design I enlarged then changed my mind about hooking it because I lost interest even before drawing it on linen.   And as Lauren told me ... "if you get bored enough binding you'll find something to hook".  Yup, she was right.  

So I did get bored enough, grabbed the enlarged pattern and drew it out.  I'm trying a different tactic hooking this one.  Normally I look thru my worm baggies to grab colors I'm interested in before yanking wool off the shelves to cut.  

Plus I usually start at the center then work outward and around the perimeter.  This time I'm hooking by colors ~ instead of nesting myself with several bags of color choices all at once, I'm taking one at a time and working on everything which would be that color choice.  Then return that baggie of wool and bring another color to work with.  And if more of that color is needed will cut only a little at a time. 

Will see how this works out.  Am hoping it reduces the piles of wild wooly strips piling up around me.  Would be an easier and quicker clean up at the end.

This morning I drew a pattern for someone this morning and it has shipped.  Also printed out a sheet of labels, so will stitch on labels today, hang The Ark and a whole new label list will begin again.  Which means more happy hooking in my future.

Saundra

www.woodlandjunctionprimitives.weebly.com

OLD FASHIONED RUG SHOW

It's time for another one I'd say.  And I found several Shaker rugs in my latest search.  Perhaps you've seen them somewhere but several were new to me.  But before showing those lovely Shaker rugs here is something screaming fall.  A geometric dated 1905 and measures 36 x71.

Here's another I briefly considered hooking but as fast as it was considered, it exited as fast.  A geometric with horses.  Sadly no other information was available.

This rug below is rather colorful for a Shaker rug me thinks.  No dates on any of these.

Cotton and wool sewn to a woven rag rug with corduroy back.  Now that's a mouthful but was exactly how the rug was described.  Looks like a braided edge of this one also.

Shirred and stitched onto a 'sandwich' backing of lace weave, burlap and woven rag rug.  Wish I could see the layers in person so it all makes sense.  The end result is wonderful tho.

I saw the following rug photo years ago and often wondered what it looked like.  Think it is the rug just above.

This next one was described as having a Maltese cross design, shirred strips and braided edge as all the others.

Description for this next rug said the center was  to resemble an eye.  Appears the braided edge is in need of repair.

This lovely Shaker rug below is need of repair also.

Must admit I find all of them lovely and would find it hard to decide which one to own.  But to make one?  Oh my, seems like a lot of hard work is involved with all those layers.

Happy hooking.

Saundra

THE ARK and THE DOVE

My adaptation of an antique design is all hooked and almost completely bound.   I replaced the ship of the antique design with an image of The Ark which brought my ancestors from England to America late 1633 early 1634.  That voyage was hired by Cecil Calvert to bring colonists to Maryland, one of the original Thirteen Colonies of British North America.

The Ark was accompanied by a smaller ship, The Dove. 

Below are the major ancestors travelling on the ship and who began our Green family in America.

~ Sir Thomas Green 

    Born: circa 1570, Bobbing, Kent, England 

    Wife: Lady Margaret Webb

    They produced 4 sons: Robert, Thomas, John and Jeremiah.

    

    Sir Thomas was Knighted Bachelor of the Relm, 9/5/1622 by King James, I at Windsor Castle.

~ Gov. Thomas Green (son of above)

    Born: circa 1600, Kent England

    Wife Ann Gerard Cox bore 2 sons before her death: Thomas & Leonard

    2nd Wife Winifred Seyborne bore 2 sons: Robert and Francis

Won't bore you with the other lineage.  But must admit the research my father did has some interesting stories which includes General Jesse Green (born 6/12/1766) as being a friend to General George Washington.

Am so thankful to Susan for asking me to draw the ship Rebecca for her, as I couldn't get that design out of my mind after drawing it.   So her desire to hook Rebecca to commemorate her family immigrating to America from Germany inspired me.  Below was my inspiration.

And am thankful to my father who did the research of our genealogy and even provided a healthy Bibliography to back up his information.  Yes, daddy, this thanks is long overdue.

Now to finish binding The Ark and feel an urgency to find the next project for my frame before going bonkers!

Saundra

www.woodlandjunctionprimitives.weebly.com

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MUCH BETTER

Yes, it's much better with the color change of letters at the bottom but won't be completely ready for Christmas until it gets a label.  In the beginning thought the tree green letters at the top and bottom would work.  And sorta thought hoped the bottom green letters could stay.  But as I started binding the rug and looking at it more closely realized it had to be the sky colors.  So glad I replaced them with the sky wool as it is softer and blends in better.

Below is the before.  Not a lot of difference but enough to make a difference me thinks.  

Okay, now to other news and how it has affected me.  The last couple days I've been in a sad place with the assassination of Charlie Kirk.  That plus the remembrance of September 11th.

Charlie Kirk had Christian values, loved his country and family.  He tried to inspire youth to think for themselves vs. negative indoctrination by teachers, radical politicians, media and the internet.  Many young people loved him and of course some did not.  He would offer to the audience of students... those who disagreed with him to step to the front of the line so they could talk together.

Since his death I've watched some of his interactions on the internet.  What an incredible young man he was.  I pray for his wife and 2 children as I know Charlie is safe in the Lord's house.

I'm disgusted by the refusal of Congress to have a prayer for Charlie after his assassination.  How despicable and soul-less is that?  I'm saddened how some people even celebrated his death.  How sick is that?  I did not like the 8 years of Obama nor the 4 years of Biden but I sure as hell would not celebrate their deaths.  

Am hoping I get out of this dark funk and perhaps by expressing my thoughts here I'll be on my way out of it.  Pray for Erika Kirk and children and as always I'll say a prayer for the safety of President Trump because the democrats continue to call him Hitler which incites violence.  Oh, and I will continue to say a prayer for America.

Saundra