Shadow is Settled In

I've just finished stitching Shadow's resting place together to make a rectangular coverlet.  As mentioned previously, after she passed the artist was no longer around to make a box for her ashes.  Each day I'd walk past Shadow's ashes would make a promise to her for a suitable cover.

When Shadow was alive we (uh, I) said she was meant to be a wide cut girl.  And so she was.  Here is a picture of her profile hooked in #8 and the cover for her ashes box.  The Shadow Memorial profile is hanging in this computer room so took a picture with the ashes box in here too.  However, Shadow rests in my bedroom.  Paw prints were hooked on the other 3 sides of the cover.  Rest in peace Shadow....miss you.

I'm slowly working on my son's Man Cave rug (to be a Christmas gift) and may show you an update tomorrow.  Have pulled about half yard of wool to over dye and add to what has been scrounged up and married to make a background for that rug.  I was determined to have a dirty blue wool background.  Time will tell if my plans work or not...so stay tuned.

And THEN...... MUST start working on a rug for mama....Moi, to keep me happy.  It will be a Magdalena design ~ dear Magdalena.  If she only knew when she was alive just how much inspiration for primitive rugs she gave so many who love her designs.

Welcome to my new followers, it makes my heart happy when I see someone join.  IF anyone has requests on something you'd like to see me post about, has a question, hey, all newbies have questions because I WAS a newbie.  So to contact me just click on the profile link and my e-mail address is there.  Or, to make it easier tonight, you can click HERE. 

Have a great evening everyone.  There are signs of spring all over my yard so spring really is on it's way.

Saundra

Hooked Some Loops In.....

....Pulled Some Loops Out, Hooked some in again and looked it all about.  Sounds like I'm singing the Hokey Pokey, right?  In this case it is the HOOKEY Pokey and it is still unfinished so it is a SLOW Pokey. 

Sadly I think the periwinkle wool won't make it and will need to dye up a tad more.  Was sure that the half yard of that wool would be enough but don't think so.  That was the last half yard of that particular wool so if I do dye more will have to pull out some loops randomly on the left side, fill in with the new wool in places and as Tim Gunn would say, "make it work".

Here is what Shadow looks like right now.

This is what she looked like before pulling out some wool and replacing on her.  Not sure if you'll even notice the difference because it was very subtle; but I pulled out a couple dark brown rows on her cheek near the muzzle and replaced the light strip at her temple between the ear and eye.  In person it looks better but in this picture it doesn't look like there wasn't any change at all ~ guess it is the flash.

Even tho I worked on the fold of the ear to the left as you look at Shadow in the picture it looks like it still needs a little defining. 

It has been frustrating going from looking at the picture of the pose I wanted (below) with the washed out colors due to the flash of the camera.

And using her other picture for her more true colors. 

Due to the size of the piece (20 x 23) I should have been done with this by now as it was started September 15th.  I'm really getting anxious to have this off the frame and on the wall so I can start something else. 

Have a grand Sunday and hope the rain is disappearing for those of you who have been under the rain cloud all week like I have. 

Saundra

I Know,I Know, ......

...... you love me so much you wonder where the heck I've been...right?  Just kidding. 

But to fill you in, one day my conscience held me hostage until I finally started my fall cleaning in my living room where all the wool dust is, took the curtains down, washed and ironed them, washed the windows ~ well you know the story.

So the next day decided to dye some wool for Shadow's background. As I was stressing about hooking her to achieve a likeness I needed a break and concentrate on background as a release.  This is how my girl looks now.

So here's the story about background color ~ I told Diane Stoffel (my teacher) that I'd intended to hook the background with the same soft green used for my Rottie Memorial.  She suggested a periwinkle color for Shadow and pulled off a piece of wool from the teacher's shelf.  I took a picture of that wool sampling, gave it back and upon coming home tried to replicate that color from the picture.  BTW, that is yet another blog post coming soon.

And, this is a picture of the wool originally planned for the background.  Yes, it would have been okay and soft, would have been a nice duo with the other wonderful companions who passed.  But that periwinkle (which looks tame by itself) really makes Shadow POP.  And, in looking at her face many thoughts have come to mind that I'd like to share in a future post.  Things about my girl I miss.

In all honesty I'm still stressed over hooking her chest since the hair moves in different directions with the flesh foldovers and natural change of hair direction.  But I'm sure my girl will help guide me with color even tho my mentor and teacher Diane isn't here.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Saundra

My Wide Cut Shadow Girl

Oh my, it is taking me a long time to hook this mere 20 x 24 hooked piece.  Reason is that I'm too close to the subject matter (my dearly departed girl Shadow) and can only take the angst for short periods of time.  I mean, rug hooking is supposed to be fun, right?  So I would hook on Shadow in the early morning when I'm fresh and then put it aside to hook on my comforting antique adaptation Lollipop Bouquet in the afternoon and evening. 

Well, my comfort rug is all hooked and I've nothing else comforting to hook in the evening. Guess that will force me to rather enjoy binding a rug as comfort instead of the dread.

Anyway here is what my girl looks like now and needed to take her off the frame to look at her on the computer to see what loops I feel the need to take out now.  This is a picture without a flash

And the same picture with a flash.  To me the neck under the chin really needs to be reigned in.  It looks like a goiter instead of a neck.... but then in looking at the photo I'm not sure what the problem is.

This is Shadow as she looked when we had the rug show on Thursday afternoon and similar when I returned home from camp.  And while there I hooked on Shadow during class and my trusty primitive antique adaptation at night for comfort.  That is why there doesn't seem to be much done on her from 5 days of camp.

 

But between those photos I've removed the darkest wool from under the eye on the right, and a few other minor details which bugged me. 

Adding to the self-induced stress I had these two photos I've been working with and have spent a lot of time flipping between checking real color and the position of my girl.  I wanted to capture the shape of Shadow listening to me and twisting her head.  She was adorable when she did that and I'd always burst out in laughter.  But the flash of my camera is altering her true colors.

But then here is a picture of her true colors.  In the printed picture taken at camp the colors showed up even darker. 

For those of you who may have missed my previous post about Shadow, I am hooking her in #8 strips.  I've hooked my departed Rotties in #3 and achieved a great likeness to them but did not want to hook in #3 again.  So believe me when I say that hooking Shadow in #3 would have only added to my stress level. 

For sure I'll be pleased to have a hooked piece of my girl when I'm done.  She and I talked at length (uh, I talked at length) that she was going to be a 'wide cut' sorta gal just like her mum.

My Cape May Project ~ Shadow's Portrait

There really are more rugs from the Cape May show to post on my blog but thought I'd give you a reprieve from that to present the project I started at camp.  That would be my sweet, departed Shadow.  After hooking my two Rotties in #3 in 2006 told my teacher Diane Stoffel that Shadow was going to be hooked in #8.  Well I know now that any kind of realistic hooking isn't fun, even if it is my sweet girl and even if she is being hooked with 1/4" strips.

There was a time at camp that I wasn't sure I'd even continue hooking the rug once I got home as I found it stressful.  It was a self-induced stress as there were certain expectations I'd placed on myself to get the realism and capture the spirit of my girl.  Part of me had wished that I'd taken a primitive rug to hook as it would have been 5 days of pure fun.    I would work on Shadow in class and at night I'd pull out my comforting and forgiving Magdalena Lollipop rug and hook on that for relaxation.

This is what I'd accomplished at rug camp on my girl Shadow, it measures 20 x 24.

And returning home this past Friday I finally put Shadow back on the frame Monday.  I looked at my hooking calmly and critically and replaced a few strips.  The left eye looked okay but on the right it appeared too dark just under the eye so removed that dark wool and used something a tad softer.  Also the right side of the forehead appeared too dark and harsh so replaced that wool.  A few other places here and there I reverse hooked and feel a little better about it.  This is what she looks like now.

I might very well make a few more changes along the way as I hook and will be very glad when it is done and hanging on my wall.

Thanks for dropping by and visiting.

Saundra