Miscellaneous Finishes ~

I finished putting the backs on my hooked hearts.  They can either be used as bowl fillers or tucked in to an old bed spring.

Funny story.  Last night I got the hearts out so I could take pictures this morning.  I could not find the large hearts.  I spent at least a half hour looking for them on my main living level, upstairs, basement . . . where is the he** could I have put them?  I got up this morning and looked some more.  No luck.  Finally later in the morning while showering, it finally dawned on me.  They were in the freezer.  WTH you ask?  I stuff my hearts with bits of wool.  Last week at guild there were some pieces of wool being given away.  Some of the pieces looked like they had been around for a while, and I always worry about moth eggs in old wool, so a solution is to put the wool in the freezer for a number of days to kill any eggs that may have been laid.  I had stuffed the hearts . . . so put the hooked hearts in the freezer.  DUH 😲

I also finished some hook pouches.  The paisley one are partly machine sewn but the ones from antique coverlets are completely hand sewn.  I am so glad to have those done!

Thanks so much for stopping by.
Pug hugs 😊
Lauren

Penny Marshall ~

 

Penny Marshall (of Laverne & Shirley fame) was a rug hooker and hooked rug collector.  Here is a great article written by Kathy Wright.  Kathy is the director at Rug Hooking Week at Sauder Village and the co-author of several books pertaining to rug hooking.  Enjoy!

Thanks so much for stopping by.
Pug hugs 😊
Lauren

Spinning My Wheels ~

Do you ever feel that way?  I am busy all the time.  I never sit and do nothing.  Sometimes I think I don't know how to relax.  When I retired (6.5 yrs ago!!!) I imagined I would have so much free time.  HA!  Hasn't happened yet.  The list of things I wanted to make in March for the October show . . . well here it is May and only one or two things have been crossed off the list.  (I do think I've complained about this in the past . . . sigh.  Some things never change.)

Anywho . . . here is what has been accomplished recently.

I finished the binding on these two little hooked mats.  Still no label 😖  The color of the pumpkin is pretty good . . . but the clamshells on the bunny rug are not accurate.

Pinkeeps are totally done.  The colors are so washed out.

I bought the large tintype recently because the facial hair reminds me of my younger son.  I don't think he was amused 😁

I am working on putting the backing on my hooked hearts and also hook pouches made from antique coverlets and paisley.

Last week DSO and I went to the Apple store for an iPhone photography class.  I wanted to learn how to get better color when photographing my rugs and such.  Sadly, no real answer.  A suggestion was to build a lightbox.  Not what I want to do.

Enough whining for today.

Thanks so much for stopping by.
Pug hugs 😊
Lauren
 

Little Lost Puppy ~ (Edited)

So the other day I am headed to the post office.  A block from my house I see a little white dog at the intersection.  I live in a relatively quiet neighborhood, but many drivers do not even slow down at this four way stop 😡.  I got out of the car to check on the little furbaby.  At first, it ran, but then hunched down and lunged like a puppy wanting to play, and immediately let me pick it up.  I figured it would be easy to find the owner of the little cutie, who after checking, I determined the pronoun to use is she/her 😁  She is not wearing a collar so I carried her around a several block radius of where she was found, knocking on doors and asking everyone who was outside (it was a pretty good weather day) if they knew who her owner might be.  She must have weighed all of 8 pounds.  She looked like a bichon and had been clipped recently so I felt certain she had wandered off.  Sadly not one person recognized her.

I took her home waiting for the local vet office to reopen, hoping and praying she was chipped.  Thankfully I had a collar that fit her.  She was just the sweetest, most friendly little pup.  Sadly she was not chipped so I made the heart wrenching decision to call the police and have her taken to the county animal kennel.  I thought that was her best chance of being reunited with her family.  I did not post to social media.  Being so darn cute, I was afraid many would come forward claiming she was theirs.

Yesterday I saw this on the kennel Facebook page.  I cried tears of joy.  The posting has not been updated and I am hoping and praying her family did come and get her.  I left the kennel a message, but have not heard back from them.  I just checked the FB page and she has been reunited with her family.  Oh how I love a happy ending 💘

Please, folks, if you have a pet, be sure to have them chipped . . . and be sure to register the chip and keep the information updated!!!

Thanks so much for stopping by.
Pug hugs 😊
Lauren

Monday Happenings ~

I have been working on odds and ends for weeks.  Trying to make things for the show where I will be vending in October.  I am trying so hard not to be my usual procrastinating self.

Binding is nearly complete on these two little designs.  This sweet bunny pattern is by My Winter Cottage and the pdf be found in her Etsy shop.  I enlarged her design by 50% and added the clamshells.

A quick fall pattern I have hooked a couple times already.  The free pattern can be found here along with a few other fall freebies.

These hearts will have a wool backing and be lightly stuffed with wool snippets.  They can be used as bowl fillers or tucked in to an old bedspring.  Two larger ones are at the top of the picture.

And finally, I sewed up these pinkeeps.  They just need to be stuffed and have a rusty pin and old buttons put on.

Even though I have had a Cricut for over a year, I am still Cricut stupid.  I know the most basic of the basics.  I just don't take the time to learn.  I prefer to be shown.  Today I was finally able to attend a class at our local library.  (They fill up so quickly and I have never been able to get in.)  Well, the librarian teaching the class didn't even know she was to teach it until it was class time.  She knew about as much about the Cricut as I do, which as I said, isn't much.  It was to be basic class . . . make a monogram for your phone case.  She really hadn't a clue and I learned absolutely nothing.  That is an hour and a half of my life I will never get back . . . sigh.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Pug hugs 😊

Lauren

Are You an Aldi's Shopper?

This week (starting today) they have these totes for only $9.99.  (Is the same ad used nation wide?  I don't know.)  Last year when they had them I bought a couple.  They are well made (and I think comparable to the much pricier ones that are sold through home parties) and great for hauling wool and hooking supplies.  I bought the one in the ad.  I like it because it does not say scream ALDI'S and only has their logo.  They had a couple other fabrics, too.  I usually use one to hold the wool of my current hooking project.  It is nice because unlike tall tote bags, you don't have to remove wool to see what is on the bottom.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Pug hugs 😊
Lauren

Kris Miller Class ~

Saundra can attest to the fact that a class with Kris Miller of Spruce Ridge Studios is both fun and informative.  Sadly I forgot to get a picture of Kris or her finished rugs, but did get pictures of the rugs being worked on.  This is the third class I have had with Kris over the years and I would not hesitate to take another given the opportunity! 

Two of our overachievers were hooking a pattern titled Hurky Jerky Turkey.

Two were hooking a sweet snowman pattern offered by Kris.

Another fun pattern, offered by Kris, was being hooked by two.

Other rugs being hooked.  I hope I did not miss anyone 😁

And finally . . . my progress on the antique adaptation I am calling Treetop Birds.  I am not hooking it like the antique.  Totally different colors.  I had seen two other hooked versions and did not want to copy one of those even though they were both great interpretations.  (And of course I just can't get the correct colors of the wool 😖)  I better be a hooking fool before my next class in a month because I have chosen an even bigger antique adaptation from my pattern stash.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Hugs 😊
Lauren