Rug camps not only provide camaraderie with like minds who are wool/hooking crazy but a great time to see what tools people are using and selling. Also a time to try out those frames, hooks, etc. as all rug hookers are willing to let a fellow hooker try something before they jump to buy.
As you know I've been working on Lititz Hens and using as many woolie worms (noodles) as possible. But sometimes need to cut strips of a certain color or size. This is a great tool to see what size you have in your stash or what size you need to cut.
This was is a metal Wool Strip Gauge purchased from Cammie Bruce one year at Cape May. It is far more reliable than the plastic coated paper or other products which will bend or tear. This baby won't give.
Most times I just grab whatever random strip size is available in the color I want. But sometimes I wonder if one #8.5 would work in a space or if two #8 strips fit better.
The wool strip gauge costs $15 and can be purchased HERE . While there check out Cammie's other items.
Meanwhile..... that rug in the photo is one hooked in Cammie's class. It is a design by Bev Conway called "On the Loose"
Have a great evening and when I hear anything back from Cammie I'll let ya'll know.
Saundra
The 'gathering' has begun and it is being collected in my office near the garage door.
Haven't packed my suitcase yet as I wanted to print out the 10-Day Weather Forecast for Cape May to see what will be needed. It looks to be a good week. I almost feel guilty for being thankful Florence didn't come upwards along the east coast. Poor folks and animals in North and South Carolina are being battered, some deaths, and will take a while for them to recover.
Okay, moving on to lighter topics.....
I weighed myself this morning before breakfast and am 125 pounds. Always want to see how much weight I gain at camp and then upon coming home work at getting back to that weight again. I do love the food there but choose to not eat the red meat or pork. My favorites are fish (particularly the salmon) and chicken if it is baked ~ no fried chicken even tho I hear it is delicious. Also yummy is their corn pudding and delicious homemade yogurt.
In the photo above you can see 9 rugs rolled up, that is the number of rugs completed since last year's Cape May camp. I'm not done with Lady the Donkey yet so she isn't among the rolled up rugs. But will take her to work on until Lucille gets to me.
Last year at Cape May I started On the Loose with Cammie Bruce, a design by Bev Conway.
When it was finished I drew and hooked an adaptation of a dog who I named Spike. I'm hoping my friend Evelyn will take hers as she started hooking it at Cape May last year.
Also hooked a smaller version of Magdalena's Goat. The first larger one true to the original size was hooked similar to Magdalena's. But the second smaller one thought I'd show folks a different color palate.
At Cape May last year I was lucky enough to purchase 1909 Horse pattern (by Emma Lou Lais) at a great price. It seemed to hook fast since it takes no time to finish a block and before you realize it the whole rug is hooked.
At Ocean City, MD last November I started Primitive Horse which is a pattern by Lib Callaway that I'd had for some time. That pattern seems to be the rage now so decided to pull mine out and hook it.
In an April class with Eric Sandberg I hooked this Nola Heidbreder's Flower Power design.
Next, itching to replicate an antique chose a design from the Kopp book which I named Radiant Flower.
With Cape May looming closer, was feeling the pressure to hook the "Sheep at the Beach". It was a pattern so generously given to each student at last year's Cape May rug camp. This is the design drawn on Monk's cloth, except there were no exterior lines. I drew those to not exceed beyond that to ensure room for binding.
This what I designed. It will be fun to see how others hooked their pieces and will take pictures of all of them to share with you.
And the last rug completed since last September is Stars and Diamonds antique adaptation. I hooked the sheep in short spurts while concentrating on the adaptation.
Will have my iPad with me so I'm only an email away. Not sure how successful I will be posting newly created blog posts while I'm gone but will try.
Saundra
Yup, finally completed the binding of the two rugs and just two weeks before Ocean City rug camp. So there are other priorities now... like house cleaning and pulling wool for the next rug.
Above is my grandson's favorite soccer team and he is a great soccer player himself. I put in a sleeve on the back for hanging it but he can choose to use it however he wishes.
Soon there will be two labels on the back of this Christmas gift and will bore you again when that part is accomplished.
The other finally bound rug was On the Loose which was started at Cape May camp last month. It is a design by Bev Conway and I hooked it in a class with Cammie Bruce.
Now to clean a bit (I hope), organize my wool room and get ready for the next camp. Unfortunately this is only my second camp this year as I missed camp with Barb Carroll in May. So am definitely ready to have a good time with like minded folks and see Betsy Reed once again.
Saundra
Yippee... just pulled the last loop on the rug named "On the Loose", a design by Bev Conway. Those of you who have followed me for a while know I'm notorious for making changes to patterns. The original design was just fine but I wanted snow, didn't want the border and added the moon.
Above is a photo with natural lighting and no flash. The night sky was wool purchased from Cammie Bruce. Below is a photo taken with a flash and the colors show up much lighter and washed out than in person.
Now it needs to be steamed and bound but the binding will wait and will the be first in the pile. Next priority is to finish hooking my grandson's Christmas gift; the lion rug I started will just have to wait.
FYI, the finished size of On the Loose is 17 1/2 X 27.
Happy Saturday.
Saundra
It would be this one. It is a design by Bev Conway called "On the Loose" and Bev said she IS still doing patterns. Contact her if you wish to have this or another of her patterns.
Once again I took some creative (?) license to the pattern. I added the moon, the snow on the ground and trees. Below is what the trees looked like before class.... no snow marks. But I WANTED snow.
Ya know how I reverse hook, doubt myself and tell the world about it? That is what poor Cammie had to deal with when I first started hooking snow in class. Sweet calm Cammie said, 'looks great...go with it". The wool for the 'dark sky' was over dyed and purchased from Cammie.
First photo is what it looks like now and wish she was here having a glass of wine with me so I could get her opinion on what I did the with ground snow.
For sure I'd take another class with Cammie who has a fantastic sense of humor and great color sense. OH!! not to mention a memorable class on "primitive".
Saundra
