More Computer Issues ~

Just a quick hello to let you know I haven't forgotten about you :).  I was going to post the rest of the hook in pictures yesterday, but my new computer would not connect to the Internet.  I had Wifi, but no internet on the computer.  I spent 25 minutes on the phone with tech support before our call was disconnected.  So annoying and by that time it was too late to try calling again.  Today the computer won't even turn on.  Of course I've had it a whopping 32 days so it cannot be returned, and depending on the problem, may not be covered under warranty.  WTH???  To say I'm frustrated is an understatement.  Then to add insult to injury, I can't figure out how to add a photo to this post using my iPad.

I'm still trying to finish things up for From Our Hands.  I should know better than to wait until the last minute, but I'm a slow learner . . . lol.  Hopefully I will have lots to share ~ when I have a computer that works!

Thanks for listening to me whine ~ and thanks for the visit.

Pug hugs :)

Lauren

Southeast Michigan Hook In ~

I should be out doing more yard work (already did some clean up and mowed the lawn), but wanted to share some pictures from yesterday's Southeast Michigan Hook In.  This is just a sampling of the rugs displayed.  I will share more in my next post.

I did no hooking, but did work on binding my sheep challenge rug and finished it last night.  Except for a few pumpkins (which don't count . . . lol), I am caught up on binding rugs.  It's not often I can say that :) 

Of course I can't go to a hook in without buying some wool.  I must be crazy, but bought lots of small pieces of wool from Anne Bond, Visions of Ewe.  She has the most beautiful wools.  Her colors are to dye for.  As is always the case, these wools are much more muted/drabby in person.  Many other vendors had beautiful wools, too, but I tried to restrain myself.

One piece of paisley came home with me, too.  You can't see in the picture, but the light grey looking shades showing on my monitor are actually a gorgeous teal color.

Must get back to some yard work.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Pug hugs :)
Lauren

Good Bye :( Hello :) Good Bye :(

So many changes going on here in blogland.  Many have quit their blogs or post rarely.  I understand lives get busy and things change.  

Millie's Mats is no more :(  BUT . . . the good news . . . no, the GREAT NEWS, is that you can find her new blog here.  I'm sure we will be still entertained with her irreverent sense of humor and the joys of raising a puppy.  Please stop by, become a follower and let her know we still love her.

Blogland is losing a dear friend.  Julia, the hardest working woman on the planet, will no longer be blogging.  Oh, how I will miss Of Petals and Wool.  I hope she has time to enjoy life to the fullest doing what she loves most.  Good bye, dear friend.  You will be missed but not forgotten.

Nothing crafty to show.  I've finally started cleaning up the gardens and that will consume much of my time.  I am getting ready to bind my sheep challenge rug so I will be done before the deadline.  I've pulled a few loops on Daisy ~ very few.  I'm two months behind on my Rebekah Smith mystery stitch along and soon to be three. 

Some exciting news ~ Friend Melissa and I have been asked to vend at From Our Hands at the end of the month.  I have been trying to get things made but of course not nearly as much as I would like.  Most of my stamped necklaces are "hooker" related, so I'm trying to broaden my horizons.  Any ideas for a catchy phrase to stamp on a necklace?

Saturday Melissa and I are off to Ann Arbor, MI for their hook in.  Sadly it conflicts with the "Amish" hook in here in Ohio.  Both are such a good time!  I'm sorry we had to chose just one.

Please keep a dear friend in your prayers.  She has suffered an unspeakable loss and my heart just breaks for her.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Pug hugs :)
Lauren

All Done ~

It is a beautiful day on Ohio's north coast - finally - but being so close to the lake the air still has a bite to it.  The sun is shining, spring flowers are blooming and I even did a little yard work.  Though the winter was mild, I welcome spring.

I've pulled the last loop on my sheep challenge rug.  I was hoping I'd be done with it last weekend since hooking mostly with an 8.5 cut goes quickly, but as usual the day job and life often get in the way.  I may have to do a little tweaking.  Often, after I post a picture on the blog, I see something that needs changing ~ and sometimes I say the heck with it and let it be :)

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Happy Saturday to you  ~
Pug hugs :)
Lauren

Getting Close ~

Has anyone else had a terrible time adjusting to Windows 10?  I am just about ready to pull my hair out.  We are just NOT getting along :(  NOT-AT-ALL.

Nothing much to blog about, but here's my progress on the Out of Hand Rug Hooker Facebook challenge, with a big shout out to Kelley for designing the pattern.  I thought I would finish it last weekend, but I just don't know where my time goes and that darn day job cuts in to my play time.  Hopefully I will be done soon.  It's about 16 12" x 21 1/2".  I don't remember if I mentioned the tulips were hooked with antique paisley.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Pug hugs :)
Lauren

UGG

I should not have to get out my Uggs in April.  Don't you agree?  Thankfully we did not get the 8" of snow predicted ~ maybe 2-3".  Spring snows are always a winter wonderland ~ that wet, heavy stuff that clings to everything.  There were so many pictures on Facebook that I failed to take any of my own.  I hesitated heading an hour and a half away to the Gathered Treasures show in Mansfield, Ohio, since more snow was predicted, but since the sun was shining and the roads were just wet, I decided to chance it.  (Ever since I crashed on ice a few years ago I've become a weenie.)  I did encounter near blizzard-like conditions for about 15 minutes but arrived safe and sound.  I'm happy I did and met friend Sheila there.

Isn't it ironic that Friday I went to eat Lake Erie perch (YUM) at a local ethnic club and there were probably 150 people there and I didn't know a soul?  I drive an hour and a half away and I see people I know from Pennsylvania, Michigan and from all corners of Ohio.  Like minds travel parallel paths :)

I heard a few dealers say the crowd was smaller because of the weather but I hope their sales did not suffer too much.  I only bought a couple things.  I should be purging, not buying . . . lol.  I got this wonderful penny rug . . . 

. . . in beautiful primitive colors . . .

a small piece of paisley from Alice that I thought was green but is brown . . .

. . . and an old leather bound engineering book dated 1898 for my sweetie and a small birthday gift for a friend.  

There was lots of great stuff, but nothing else that screamed "BUY ME", at least at prices I was willing to pay.  I guess I'm getting cheap in my old age ~ or maybe I just have too much stuff :)  Sheila did buy a wonderful trencher for a super price and a small tobacco basket.  She did good.

A couple weeks ago I ordered a velveteen rabbit from Julie (Primitive Heartstrings) and he arrived this week.  Isn't he sweet?  Her work is perfection.

I love the little Xs on his belly . . .

. . . and the vintage key around his neck.

I finally started working on my taxes.  Every year I swear I won't procrastinate, but always do.  They are not difficult.  I use a tax program . . . sigh.  Maybe next year I'll do better :)

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend.  I always say a bad weekend at home is better than a good week at work.
Thanks so much for stopping by.
Pug hugs :)
Lauren

How Does One Say Thank You?

I have received many cards and emails regarding my Ellie and I tear up with each one.  You have no idea how much they mean to me.  Dear Saundra sent a generous donation that is being given to Multiple Breed Rescue, the rescue where my friend Judy adopted her from.  If you don't know how Ellie came to be mine, you can read about it here.  This also came in the mail and I must say I sobbed when I opened it.  Kim had a friend of hers do a watercolor of Ellie.  He truly captured her spirit.  It takes my breath away and it is something I will treasure always.  Thank you so much, dear Kim.  It will hang in my bedroom because Ellie spent every night there (under the covers) with me.  The artist is Ben Pitman and you can find him here on Etsy.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Hugs :)
Lauren

Wool Yankers Hook In ~

Yesterday I had the privilege of vending at Connie Bradley's Wool Yankers hook in in Wellington, Ohio.  A great time was had by all.  As usual I only snapped a few pictures.

The well lit room is perfect for hooking.

My booth looking toward Melissa's.  That's Bobbie doing more chatting than hooking, though she was off to a good start on an antique reproduction pattern from the Old Tattered Flag :)

Connie is a most generous and giving person, and all proceeds from the hook in are being donated to The Daughter Project.  The Daughter Project is a 501c3 non-profit operating Ohio's first licensed group home for girls who have been rescued from sex traffickers.   How sad.  I had no idea it was such a problem in Ohio.

What is Human Trafficking

• Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery where people profit from the control and exploitation of others.
• Victims are forced, defrauded, or coerced into trafficking. Even if victims initially offer consent, that consent is rendered meaningless by the actions of the traffickers to exploit them for labor, services, or commercial sex.
• The most common age in Ohio for children to become victims of trafficking is 13 years old, and the number of Ohio children who become victims of human trafficking each year could fill a large high school.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

They say if you don't like the weather in Ohio, stick around for a day and it will change.  Yesterday it snowed but thankfully most of it did not stick.  My poor daffs and hyacinth were not too happy this morning.  Thankfully today's sunshine perked them up.

I am finally working on my sheep challenge rug ~ a pattern that Kelley Belfast so generously offered to us on Facebook. 

I purchased this wool several years ago thinking it would hook a perfect sheep, and it did.  I looked through my Betsy and Rebecca samples trying to find whose wool it is, but was unsuccessful.  It is sort of like a boucle.  It's hard to tell from the picture, but the uncut wool used for the sheep is on the left.

My progress so far.  

Kelley's pattern had daffodils covering the hills, but that is the one thing we could change.  I am taking the easy way out and just hooking a couple big tulips.  The tulip is hooked with antique paisley ~ a first for me.  I just could not get a crisp picture.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Pug hugs :)
Lauren