March Madness in April

Yesterday was Lisanne Miller's rug hooking event called March Madness in April.  It had all the great elements of a great rug hooking event:  beautiful rugs, laughter, food, shopping, hooking and old friends and new friends.  The rug in the photograph was one of my favorites.

This bunny is just screaming spring.  Would love for him to live at my house and help me welcome spring each year.

Isn't this whale just the cutest thing?  The lady who designed this has a whole nativity and menagerie of animals.  

This is Tam's rug--she called it her winter project.

The theme and challenge of this years event was sheep.  This sweet Mother and baby were a stand up and beautifully hooked.  Wish I had gotten pictures of the other sheep.

Carmen is making great progress on her fox.

A finished project from a previous class and hooking event.

Lisanne and Ron made a big announcement--they are moving to Maine and have bought W. Cushing Dyes and Joan Moshimers designs/warehouse in Kennebunkport, Maine.  There was a shopping frenzy with patterns which had not seen the light of day for years.  Super excited for Lisanne and Ron and all the goodness they will bring to rug hooking.  

American Eagle

Like many of the things in my life, I have many thoughts about blogs.  I love reading them, seeing the creativity, reproducing tasty recipes, seeing growing and changing families,  people sharing the highs and lows of their life.  Blogs are time consuming.  It takes time to take photographs, download them and write a post.  I miss those who have stopped posting on their blogs and am delighted when someone reappears.  

Blogs help me to find the creative side of myself.  For example, Gail, The Middle Sister shared photographs of the home of a friend.  While enjoying the home tour, Gail had a photograph of a hooked chair pad.  My creative juices started flowing and I went searching through old issues of Primitive Quilt magazine until I found an eagle motif.  Out came the freezer paper, out came the wool bins and soon I had drawn (traced) off my own eagle for a chair pad and selected wools.

So. . .once again, reading a blog gave me an idea.  I think an American Eagle chair pad will work nicely in this chair.

Hit or Miss

It's hot!  This week Music City has had some of the highest, hottest temps for the summer.  Today it is 93 degrees, tomorrow's forecast is a high of 97 degrees and Saturday and Sunday the temps are forecast to be 99 degrees!  That's hot!  With these high temps Grandmother Bessie might ask if I had lost my good sense, working with wools during the hottest week of the summer.  I think her question would be appropriate. 

When I attended the Beat the Heat rug hooking event in Clarksville in July, I purchased a pattern called Hit or Miss.  It was designed to use up left over worms/noodles.  Waste Not, Want Not and use it up, wear it out, make do or do without are two familiar sayings in my family.  The Hit or Miss design was a great way to use up the left overs and not be wasteful!   

The rug measures 12" x 12" and will make a fun table topper for the cold winter months. Looking at my worm stash, I might have enough left overs for another Hit or Miss.

Beat the Heat

It's July, its prime time summer time, it's the South and it's hot!

What do Southern girls do to beat the heat?  They get together for a rug hooking event called Beat the Heat.  Lisanne Miller, once again arranged a wonderful rug hooking event.  

The room was filled with rugs, laughter and the excitement of current and future projects.

Dear friends and future friends joining together to share the day and stories about their rugs.  This is Pa's mule.  A dedication and remembrance of a Grandfather "Pa" who believed in  plowing his garden with a mule.  

Bed covers being hooked to drive the cold winter winds away.

Beautiful new to me techniques.

Exquisite finishes

Toss in some great shopping

One of the vendors had used this quilt as part of her display.  Great idea for a string quilt.

This is my next hooking project--it's called Hit of Miss.  A clever way to use up my left over worms.

Beat the Heat--a great way to spend a summer day--

Whale of a Tale

Does anyone remember this?

This is the whale from Liseanne Miller's Three Bags Full class (November 2013 at Montgomery Bell Bell State Park in Dickson, TN).  The class was right before the holidays and when I returned home, the whale got beached.  AppleJack says I can rationalize any project.  Shortly after the holidays, my eye blew.

Then. . .Jan came to my rescue (again).  My coping mechanism for stress is pulling weeds, Jan's coping mechanism is (rug) hooking.  Jan is the primary caregiver for her aging parents and in-laws and (rug)hooking is her outlet!  Lucky me!

Jan needed an outlet and an irritated eye and wool fuzz are not a great combination.  It was a win win for both of us.  Thank you Jan for coming to my rescue and bringing the whale to life.  Isn't the swirling water awesome?

Liseanne is having a one day hooking event in Clarksville in July called Beat the Heat.  I need another project like I need a hole in the head.  My eye is still recovering from surgery #2 and I am still debating about signing up for the class.  It is motivating to see others projects to feel the energy and excitement of a new class project, to share some giggles and laughs and eat some delicious food.  While I decide about attending Beat the Heat, I will be thankful for Jan and enjoy the whale swimming in the ocean blue.

The conclusion of Three Bags Full

Yesterday was the conclusion of the Three Bags Full rug hooking retreat.  It was wonderful!  Isn't this Santa beautiful?

Here is Lisanne teaching/demonstrating "how to hook an eye."  Did you know eyes are oval not round and eyes have glint?

The colors! The whimsy! The fun!

Corn for fall 2014

Tone on tone 

Progress 

You never know who is going to drop in at a retreat.

And then there was this guy!  Be Bob, the Bobcat, isn't he beautiful?

Remember the retreat was held at Montgomery Bell State Park.  One of the many things the Wildlife Agency does is teach.  

Be Bob is a rescue Bobcat and a member of the Tennessee Wildlife Agency, he is  part of the teaching team.

Be Bob is still a kitten, he weighs about 25 lbs and will be about 50 lbs when fully grown.

His coat and bobbed tail and playful, youthful personality made him an instant hit with the hookers.

Three bags full was everything and more I hoped it would be!  Learning, sharing, laughter, inspiration, new friends and parting words of "see you at the next event."  Today it's back to reality--raking leaves. Mother Nature and the local weatherman have forecast storms.  Maybe Mother Nature will blow the leaves into the neighbors yard and I will be forced to stay inside and hook.  (he he)

Three Bags Full Day One

Three bags full is all about choosing color.  Aren't these colors yummy?

Being surrounded by beautiful colors with values, tones and textures the creative juices begin to flow.

Design selected, colors selected let the hooking begin!

The introductions have been made, the room is filled with sounds of laughter and talk about the latest project completed, the project in the works and projects to come.

Completed projects to share.

This rug hooker knows her colors!

Rugs full of color and whimsey.

Rugs emerging.

More fun and hooking and laughter in store for tomorrow.

Three Bags Full

I'm so excited!  This weekend my partner in crime aka Carmen and are are going to our first rug hooking retreat!  The name of the retreat is three bags full.  Lisanne Miller is teaching the class, we will be learning to use textures and shades with just three colors.  Each student will bring three bags, each bag will be filled with a different color of wool (all different shades of that particular color of wool).  Our rug will be hooked using just three colors.

I started this project by looking in books and magazines.  Oh Pinterest, I love you, so many lovelies to see.  The choices are endless and overwhelming.  I finally settled on a Edyth O'Neill rug called the New Bedford Hearth rug--it's a whale.  I choose this rug because Edyth's rug is hooked with three colors--three beautiful shades of colors.  

 I think a whale rug will be a nice addition to these pieces of needlework in Grandmother Bessie's room, don't you?

The retreat is at Montgomery Bell State Park, one of Tennessee's beautiful parks.  If the wind doesn't blow all the leaves off the trees there should be some lovely fall colors.  The temps dropped last night to the 20's--perfect hooking weather!  A weekend filled with fiber, fun and food!  I can already feel the creativity.