Wonderful Cape May

 I love September for many reasons.  One reason is because the weather starts cooling down.  But one other big reason is because once September rolls around, it's time to go to Cape May!

Look at this charming hotel!  It's the Chalfonte and it's where we stay for the week and also where the classes take place.

Many rug hookers choose to hook right out on the porch.  The weather was gorgeous this year and the porch and rocking chairs were a popular spot.

I am usually too busy teaching to take many photographs.  On Wednesday, Norma and Linda (camp directors) set up a wonderful rug show.  I must have been so enthralled with the gorgeous rugs that when I got home, I discovered I had hardly taken any photos of the rugs in the show.  Here are a few of the ones that I did take a picture:

 This incredible piece is hooked by Char Lough. She was in my class last year and when she said she wanted to hook moss, I really wasn't sure how I could help her or what the end result would look like.  We did talk a lot about sculpting wool strips and hooking with alternate materials like Ultrasuede and yarns.  I had nothing to do with how magnificent this turned out since it was all Char's ideas and hand work, but I am still mighty proud to see the end result of Char's vision.  PS:  the leaves were Char's afterthought and dropped on the piece after it was on display.  They really add to making the moss look realistic.  Bravo, Char!!!

 This rug was hooked by Kimberly Maggion and depicts her dogs.  I love this charming rug.

Jo Ann Hendrix hooked this lovely pictorial of the Chalfonte Hotel.  I love this rug because it so closely depicts the rug camp.  This rug also appears in the current issue of Celebrations (XXII).
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We always do a rug "throw-down" on Thursday afternoon. This is another favorite activity that I look forward to.  It's fun to see all the lovely rugs in progress!  The sun was really bright so there are a few pesky shadows and some of the colors might not be exactly what you would see in person.

This is Tom (Lori Brechlin adaptation through Spruce Ridge Studios) and he is being hooked by Betty Ann.  She was actually hooking a custom (larger) size and got quite a bit of hooking completed.

 Brenda Henry is hooking this mermaid rug.  You might not be able to see how soft and lovely the colors were turning out.  Very watercolor and sea-like.  Brenda also wanted a white-haired mermaid and I like how she looks.

Janet Reid is hooking this very whimsical Vermont Folk Rugs pattern.  I love the grinning orange cat!  The smile was done with "beading" which is hooking with two colors at the same time.

Here is another Tom rug, being hooked by Joanne Delaney.  It is a gift to her son who lives in Texas.  She has modified the pattern because he is a "crazy-fun" person.  I love the cowboy hat and the bright colorful feathers.  After all, everything is bigger and brighter in Texas, right???

Here is Pear Tree, a Lori Brechlin adaptation, available through Spruce Ridge Studios.  Kimberly Maggion is working on this wonderful rug.  She's using one of my favorite colors: teal!  I love to mix orange with teal.  The pears were sinking somewhat into the background, but we opted to put a pop-out line around the pears and now they look great.

Nancy Norton is hooking this antique adaptation.  I love the way her flower pot is coming out.  She used soft pink and a purple/brown texture.  The overall feeling of the rug is soft and old.

Polly Reinhart is hooking a Keith Kemmer pattern, Pineapple Scrolls.  Her colors are very old and soft.  The pineapple is spectacular in person.  She added tabs to the end of the pattern and added quillie circles inside the tabs.

Rebecca Erb was hooking Cindi Gay's Annie's Flower Power foot stool.  Wow! I love the blue green/rose/brown color combo!  Rebecca sat out on the porch and got a lot of hooking done.

Here is dapper Mr. Pumpkin Thyme, being hooked by Susan Thomas.  Great colors, and I love his cute little face!  What an expression!

Here is a picture of the rug throw-down.  There were a couple of student rugs that I did not get pictures of (much to my dismay) but you can see them at the far right of this picture.  Phyllis was working on Blue Basket Antique, which is quite a large rug, but she had gotten a good start.  Pat was working on a floral design with a colorful bird.  We were using brighter colors for both flowers and bird and it was turning out to be a very happy rug.

Here is one last picture to tantalize you...sun rise over the ocean on the beach at Cape May!  I am not an early riser but I will make an exception to get down to the beach to see this!!