By Special Request

Rug hooker friend and blog follower (Lisa) asked me to post pictures of rugs I've hooked.  Since all of us had to crawl before we could walk think I should start from the beginning.  

With cheap hook, burlap and re-purposed wool clothing I began practicing pulling loops using a round wooden embroidery hoop.  No design in mind, just practicing to see if I could actually form loops without them falling back down.

I'd purchased a Kindred Spirits booklet with a small pattern inside which would be my first project.  That was around 2001.  Unfortunately it was given away to a budding new hooker ~ wish I  had it back to show how uneven my loops were.  However, I made more of them and they sold well at shows.  Hmmm, maybe there is one or more of these in my future before next Christmas, they would make great gifts and I'd like to have one for me.

That same year I hooked several purses as it was a way to practice my loops and they were selling at shows. The star purse on the far left was gifted to my friend Shari.  The photo was taken in the sun and colors washed out.

The other two sold at a show so made a couple more in 2001.

Then 2002 The Wool Street Journal offered a free pattern of a cat to the first number of folks who responded.  We were to have it hooked by a certain date with photos submitted for the cover of a future issue.  Below is my submission ~ hate that awful backdrop, plus the colors are washed out on Max the cat.

Here is Max in progress back in 2002 with more true colors.

That same year I began my first rug, Sam's Hats, which is a Woolley Fox design and hooked on my own.  It was a Christmas gift to my son and wonderful daughter-in-law Cathy.  

Back then most of my time was spent making dolls and hooking smaller items to sell at shows.  

On eBay there was a Penny Circles and Crows kit which I ordered and hooked on my own.  This one remains with me on display in my sewing room.  It is a design by Jan Patek and published in a Pat Cross book named Purely Primitive.

In 2003 hooking rugs increased and even attended my very first rug camp.  At that time I felt the cost of camp was insurmountable so decided it would be my first and last camp.  Intentions were to find out what I was doing wrong and learn how to hook properly.  

My teacher was wonderful and patient Mary Lou Bleakley.  Not having the confidence to color plan myself I had Mary Lou do that.  The rug below is named Heritage, a Charco design.  It was at my front door for 13 years.  Still have it but it is rolled up and out of harm's way.

Never say 'never'.....that April rug camp was NOT my last rug camp.  A few months later I attended Rugs by the Sea rug camp in Cape May.  My teacher was the late Patsy Becker.  I hooked a design by Anne Hallet called Eat Crow.  Even attempted my very first dye experiment on the Indian Corn recipe provided in an issue of The Wool Street Journal.  That wool is in the eye of the crow, the wavy hooked line in the border and in the corn.

While in Cape May I found a Patriotic Angel kit which I hooked on my own at home and  later gave to my daughter-in-law.  Sadly the photo is washed out, it was taken in the sun on my back deck.

Notice that I'm gaining a little momentum in hooking rugs.  This same year I hooked a design by Fredericksburg Rugs.  This is also out of the way in my sewing room.  This was the first and LAST rug I will hook on monk's cloth.  

Sadly the ends of the rug are weakened, pulled apart and repaired.  Perhaps had I not shaken the rug it wouldn't have suffered.  But I have shaken rugs hooked on linen and they remain strong today.  

The above hooked pieces span a period of 3 years but future posts on my rugs may be just one year at a time.  That is IF you don't get bored.  Believe I've posted photos of my rugs before but forget there are new people joining my blog all the time who have not seen them.....Lisa is obviously one of them.  

Thanks for taking the time to visit; comments or questions are always welcome.

Saundra

Meet My Friend Shari

Shari always loved putting color together either with scrappy quilts she made in her 20's to her Santa and primitive doll business from her 40's to her 60's.  Her love of anything antique led her to discover hooked rugs. 

Shari continues....."I met Saundra at this time and coincidentally she was intrigued with hooking as well."  Like me, she struggled on her own at home teaching herself to hook.  Finally in 2003 we decided we could use the help and expertise of a teacher, to take just ONE class to get us on our way. Years later we are STILL taking classes and enjoying every moment." 

The above rug was Shari's first camp rug where we attended together. It is a pattern purchased from House of Price, neither she nor I can remember the name of the pattern but was either a Charco or a Primco design.  

Shari has been influenced by such people as Barb Carroll, Lucille Festa and Karen Kahle's rugs.  Shari likes the way Karen is able to pull soft colors together and her goal is to one day take a class with Karen. Meanwhile she will strive to perfect her color choices of soft old colors on her own.

Above is a design by Karen Kahle called Small Flowerbox which Shari hooked.  She likes to hook florals most of all so will choose soft old colors for them.  Shari likes old teal, mustards, yellow green, and soft purples can be found in many of her rugs.

Shari will often change the design to suit herself; an example of that is her rug below where she is using teal in the triangle border.

It is an adaptation of a rug (Old Chatham) she purchased from Hook Nook who carried Lib Callaway designs.

Now Lib Callaway designs are offered by New Earth Designs.  Above is the original pattern and the banana shapped basket Shari changed.

Shari said her biggest hurdle was trying to keep her business going, responsibilites of husband/home life and finding time to hook. Then since retiring from her business she can enjoy her great love of rughooking freely! 

Sadly, while keeping the business going Shari had to sell some of her precious rugs but is thankful to have had a venue to sell them to make ends meet at the time.  The General George Washington is a rug which was commissioned.

Another cherished rug she sold was an adaptation of an E.S. Frost rug. That design is offered by Woodland Junction.

Now Shari can spend her day playing in the wool to her heart's content.

Above is a foot stool she hooked last year in a Barb Carroll class.  

Last September at Cape May Shari designed and hooked the design above.  You can see the inspiration she is channeling from Karen Kahle in it's design.  

Shari's light bulb moment came when she realized an 8 and 8.5 cut enabled her to keep to the primitive style yet small enough to give the slight detail she likes her rugs to have. 

Want to thank Shari for the idea of this segment and for sharing.  If any of you wish to participate and share your rug hooking journey, you can get the questions on a previous post HERE.

Saundra

Different Hit and Miss Borders

A loyal reader asked me about hit and miss borders (thank you Kim), I was going to just send these pictures to her but realized other readers might like to read this information too.  Not that I'm any expert, but to show you what I've done in the past with those pesky hit and miss borders.

This was the very first hit and miss border done on my very first rug camp rug after learning to hook.  It is a Charco design called Heritage.  On this one I used short strips of all of the colors inside the design.

This may have been my second hit and miss border and think it works well even tho the entire rug is somewhat busy.  It is a Bev Conway design called Speckled Hens. 

Below has some blocks with hit and miss and other blocks filled in with a solid color.  That is a great way to do a hit and miss border if you'd like a little variety.  This was a free pattern insert in a former Rug Hooking Magazine named Jack and designed by Barb Carroll.

Another design by Woolley Fox named Henny Penny has the hit and miss just at the ends as you can see.

 Another hit and miss border has a couple rows hooked of the same color side by side instead of just one hooked row of a color.  Two Chicks is a design by Polly Minick.

Below is an adaptation of an antique I hooked and sold.  This one I've considered hooking again and would do those gorgeous roosters as close to this as possible but would probably do other border and background differently.  Don't think I'd make the background blotchy but a little more subtle.

This also has a hit and miss but using textures.  The rug is washed out since the picture was taken with a flash.  It is a design by, guess who..... Woolley Fox called Woodland Deer.

And finally, the circle mat I hooked which, again has the hit and miss using textures.  BTW, this was a great mat to hook which used up a LOT of worms from my baggies.

Hope some of these may help when you contemplate doing some sort of a hit and miss border.  Have a fantastic week.

Saundra