My Wednesday ~

Wednesday started off great.  There is a new ATHA guild on the west side of Cleveland, Crooked River Rug Hookers.  That morning we had our third meeting and already have close to 40 members.  That evening I had plans to drive about an hour to a stitching guild meeting where my friend Melinda of Merry Wind Farm was the guest speaker.

 

Now let me go back to Tuesday.  On my morning walk, without warning, I was suddenly leaning against a tree and if the tree hadn't been there I'm sure I would have fallen to the ground.  I was talking on the phone and totally lucid, but just couldn't stand on my own.  This lasted for maybe 30 seconds, then I was fine and continued on my walk.  It scared me enough that the next day (Wednesday), I agreed to have DSO take me to the Cleveland Clinic express clinic.  Well . . . based on what I told the physician's assistant, I was told I needed to go to the ER and would I like to go by ambulance since it could have been a mini stroke or bleeding?  I was nervous before, but now I am totally freaked.  Long story short, the ER did an EKG and the heart was fine.  Bloodwork came back fine.  Doctor suspects my blood sugar dropped and caused the symptoms.  Nothing neurological.  What a relief, but I did not get home in time to go to the stitching guild :(

 

Since we were close we stopped by a field of sunflowers, Maria's Field of Hope.  More than a million sunflower seeds were planted in the 35-acre field this spring.  This year marks the fourth year of the field.  The field is planted in memory of Maria McNamara, who died of a rare brain cancer called brain stem glioma in 2007. Her parents, Ed and Megan McNamara, started the Prayers From Maria Children's Glioma Cancer Foundation, in honor of their seven-year-old daughter.  The foundation's mission is to raise awareness for the need to cure childhood brain cancers.

 

Since 2010 the foundation has raised more than $1 million to fund childhood cancer research.  You can read more about it here.  We really must count our blessings. 

Thanks so much for stopping by.
Pug hugs :)
Lauren

 

Something Old ~ Something New

Saturday I headed to the antique/primitive show, In the Spirit of Friends, at Malabar Farm.  Nestled in the Ohio hills of Pleasant Valley, Malabar Farm was built in 1939 by Pulitzer Prize winning author Louis Bromfield and was his home until his death in 1956. On May 21, 1945, Bromfield hosted Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall's wedding and honeymoon at the farm.

 

My purchase of the day was this hanging wallbox with drawer.  Though I doubt it's technically an "antique" (100 + years old), it is sweet nonetheless and with a little rearranging, found a great spot on the stairway wall.

 

 

{I see a bare spot that needs a little something.}

 

 

Here's a closer picture with the sweetest little sock kitty ever hiding in the sunflowers.  I just purchased him from Julie over at My Primitive Heart.

 

 

Julie's work is always perfection.  Isn't he just too cute?

 

 

I am busy trying to get things made for my upcoming shows.  Here are strawberries in various stages of completion.

 

 

Sadly there is nothing on my frame :( and probably won't be for a while until more show stuff is done.  A necessary evil to help support my two bad {read expensive} habits ~ hooking and antiques.

 

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Pug hugs :)
Lauren

Whew!

Another week has flown by.  Summer has ended (boo hoo) and fall has begun.  This week we are having the weather we should have had in August.  I'd love fall if spring came after it :)

 

My house still isn't totally done.  The siding guy probably has about 10 minutes worth of work left to do.  Now I need to stop dragging my feet and get busy.  I need to paint around the front door (decorative trim that I did not want sided), paint the front door and get a new storm door.  Plus look for new light fixtures and a mailbox.  I am vending at Hooked in the Valley in Wooster, OH in a few weeks so have been trying to get things made for that.  It is supposed to be more than just a hook in, so I am trying to get some finished goods made.  I have been concentrating on little hooked pieces.  Here are the sunflowers almost done.  I just need to add the old bed spring. 

 

FRONT

 

BACK

 

Pumpkins hooked with hand torn strips that need their "Betsy style" patchwork backs put on.  I wasn't thinking when I drew out the small pumpkin on the bottom.  I did not leave enough room to hook a border around it, so I will need to just add a wool back to it.

 

Pumpkin mats.  I still need to add a couple rows to make this a rectangle.

 

 

I like the beaded edge on the first little pumpkin but I sure don't enjoy doing it.

 

A little crow mat.  I decided I had enough pumpkins.

 

 

One just never knows what will sell, so I've got my fingers crossed I'm making things people will want to buy.

 

Thanks so much for stopping by. 

Pug hugs :)
Lauren

A Perfect Day ~

 

Yesterday the weather was just perfect.  An absolutely wonderful day to spend hooking on the shores of Lake Erie.  A hook in was held at the Catawba Island Club.  A first class hook in hosted by hooker Rita Thomas.  Thanks Rita for a little piece of hooker's heaven :)

Here's a fun finish to my chicken rug.  I turned the linen forward as if I was going to whip it with wool yarn or wool strips.

 

 

I then tore a piece of wool to cover the linen that was showing.  The piece was twice as wide as the exposed linen so that it would cover the front and back.

 

I then whipped it with cotton string (?) purchased from Cee Rafuse, Early Style Penny Rugs.  I'm not sure how durable the rug would be if placed in a high traffic area on the floor, but I do like the finished look and I got many questions at the hook in on how I did it. 

 

 

 

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Pug hugs :)
Lauren

 

 

A Handy Dandy Hooking Tip ~

Ever have a piece of linen that just isn't quite big enough to attach to your frame?  Need a little extra room in order to hook that last row or two?  I know you can sew a piece of fabric to your linen to allow you to use it, but if you don't want to drag your sewing machine out, this is the perfect solution.  Head to your lingerie drawer and find an old knee high nylon or pair of pantyhose.  Cut it up like this.

 

Attach it to your linen every couple inches and then to your gripper strips.  Voila :)  You would not believe how taut it will hold your backing fabric.  Thanks, Connie Bradley ~ Wool Yankers ~ for this tip.  And the best part, just remove them from the linen to use again and again.

 

 

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Pug hugs :)
Lauren

Rug Show and a Correction ~

 

First of all if you were one of the first to read my last post, I need to correct who hooked this rug.  It was not Elinor, but Nola Heidbreder.

 

 

There was a small rug show at the Woolkeepers hook in, and some of the pictures I took did not come out.  Please enjoy those that came out ok :)

 

 

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Pug hugs :)
Lauren

 

NEVER FORGET ~

 

 ~ God Bless America ~

Woolkeeper's Hook In ~

 

Two friends and I drove to Danville, IN, for the Woolkeeper's Hook In, a first for us.  685 miles in two days but so worth it.  It's amazing to go almost 350 miles from home and know so many people :)  Excellent vendors.  Wool heaven.  Here are a few of the vendor booths.

 

Red Barn Rugs

Pure and Simple Woolens
gorgeous overdyed wools

 

Black Sheep Wool Designs

 

 

I love the name of this rug ~ El Stinko.  There was even a poem to go with it :)

 

 

Folk for All Seasons

 

The Old Tattered Flag

 

Heavens to Betsy

 

 

Whispering Pines Designs

 

I took a fun class with Elinor Barrett of Black Sheep Wool Designs, called "start with a heart".  There were many choices of hearts and templates to work with and from there we designed a "Magdalena style" rug.  Here is what I came up with.  I think it has the Ernestine seal of approval.

 

 

A heart hooked by Elinor.  I just love this!  Elinor let me know this was hooked by Nola Heidbreder.  Sorry, Nola.

 

 

I really was pretty good.  I bought some wool (how could I not?) and a couple patterns.  I will add them to my ever growing pattern stash.

 

 

 

A picture of Ernestine today ~ just because she is so darn cute.

 

 

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Pug hugs :)
Lauren