The Twelve Days of Christmas Rugs - Day 12

Glad tidings we bring, to you and your kin; glad tidings for Christmas and a happy New Year!

Glad Tidings

Design by Lori Brechlin/Notforgotten Farm and adapted by Spruce Ridge Studios

Hooked by Deb Nees, Maryland

I love how Deb hooked this pattern...it's actually more spectacular if you see it in person.  The sheep curls are perfect for Santa's beard and she used a bit of glittery yarn for the jacket buttons and the strap of the horn.

Thanks for following along on this twelve day rug hooking journey.  It's been great fun for me to post and comment on these beautiful rugs!

Merry Christmas to you!  

The Twelve Days of Christmas Rugs - Day 11

Jolly old St. Nicholas,

Lean your ear this way.

Don't you tell a single soul

What I'm going to say.

Christmas Eve is coming soon.

Now, you dear old man,

Whisper what you'll bring to me.

Tell me if you can

---Emily Huntington Miller

Merry Christmastime

Designed and hooked by Keith Kemmer

Pattern available through Spruce Ridge Studios

Keith has perfectly captured the essence of Christmas in his sweet little mat. I love the candy cane "C" and the lighted candle in the corner.  I also love that the snow on the ground is hooked in a bluish-purple hue, just as it would look on a starry, cold night!

The Twelve Days of Christmas Rugs - Day 10

Soon our stockings will be hung by the chimney with care.....

The Stocking Was Hung

Design by Lori Brechlin/Adapted by SpruceRidge Studios

Hooked by Rebecca Erb

  This pattern can be hooked in so many different color choices...traditional Christmas colors or soft neutrals.  I love Rebecca's choice of soft coral red and turquoise. This is a great Christmas rug that isn't too "Christmasy." For a fun embellishment, you could sew a real skeleton key to the rug instead of hooking it.

My childhood Christmas stocking is still placed next to the fireplace every Christmas Eve.  The little tab for hanging ripped off long ago and it's just big enough for an orange and a piece of candy and a small trinket.

The Twelve Days of Christmas Rugs - Day 9

Dashing through the snow!

Dashing

Design by Lori Brechlin/Notforgotten Farm adapted by Spruce Ridge Studios

Hooked by Julie Neumiller

Julie hooked this in a workshop I taught in Sebastapol, California in November 2015.  She changed the pattern just a bit to personalize it: she changed the donkey to a reindeer and put her family name in the word bubble.   She wanted  to create a rug to put under her Christmas tree and she had a vision for how she wanted this rug to look. This is another rug that hits it out of the ballpark!

Putting a halo around all the objects really makes this rug a winner because it gently lifts everything off the background. The tree literally glows!

The Twelve Days of Christmas Rugs - Day 8

Wish Upon A Star

Pattern adapted from the artwork of PJ Rankin-Hults by Spruce Ridge Studios

Hooked by Kris Miller

The first time I saw this design, I knew I wanted to hook it.  I love the snuggly stocking cap on the snowman!  I used roving to hook the pom-pom on the top of the hat.  The basket was hooked in a red/gold/green texture that I hooked vertically to give it the effect of being woven.  It was a little bit thready but definitely worth the effort.  A nice maroon and navy plaid made the perfect border to tie everything together.

The Twelve Days of Christmas Rugs - Day 7

Old Saint Nick

Designed and hooked by Kris Miller

This rug was originally designed as a project for the book Designs For Primitive Rug Hookers by Jenny Rupp and Lisa Yeago.  I believe the book is out of print now but I still sell the pattern on my website.  Santa's beard is hooked with roving from a Lincoln sheep.  The roving is hairy and has a beautiful luster which is perfect for Santa.  I hooked a burnished gold herringbone wool in my border because it reminded me of the rich gold borders around vintage Christmas postcards. This design was indeed inspired by those lovely old postcards.

Here is a little Santa trivia for you today:  did you know that many people believe that Santa Claus lives at the arctic circle in Finland?  The Finnish name for Santa is Joulupukki, which literally translates to Christmas Goat!

The Twelve Days of Christmas Rugs - Day 6

Ho, Ho, Ho!

St. Nick
Adapted from the artwork of Lori Brechlin/Notforgotten Farm
Hooked by Sue Clark ~ Adrian, Missouri

I think Sue Clark hit this one out of the ball park!  I have always loved this pattern and wanted to hook it, but how can you do any better than this?  Total perfection!

My son and I were talking the other day and he reminded me of something I did when both my sons were just "tweens."  I used to tell them that if they helped me clean the house and get ready for Christmas, on Christmas Day they could do anything they wanted.  Anything.  Now, this could have gone really bad but it didn't.  "Like....not change our underwear, or stay in our pajamas, or play video games all day?" they would ask in astonishment.  My oldest son loves cranberry sauce, so one year he told me that his free pass would be to eat the whole can of cranberry sauce.  And he did.  He reminded me the other day that eating all the cranberry sauce was really gross....and that I only fooled them for a year or two and then they realized that mom had gotten the better deal over the years.

The Twelve Days of Christmas Rugs - Day 5

It's a snowy day in Michigan...today's rug is more of a winter rug  (rather than Christmas) and it's certainly appropriate for today.  But, hey!  We could pretend that someone is snuggled in that warm little cabin and they are baking Christmas cookies or preparing their Christmas ham.

Boy Scout

Designed/adapted and hooked by Kris Miller

I know I've told the story of this design before...I saw this old rug at an antique market when I was still a beginner rug hooker.  Not being able to spend the money to purchase the rug, I asked the antique dealer if I could take a picture and he agreed.  It took me a couple of years before I had the courage to hook it.  I painstakingly tried to replicate the colors and I think I came close.  But I just couldn't create the wonky, uneven stitches that the maker had done.  It was sort of an "ah-ha" moment for me.  I realized that I had to embrace and accept the way I hooked (even loops) because that was my style and I had to be happy with what I created.

The Twelve Days of Christmas Rugs - Day 4

Santa will soon be on his way!

Holly & Ewe

Designed and hooked by Kris Miller 

I designed this rug for a workshop a few years ago and included several fun techniques:  sculpting (holly berries and pom pom on Santa's hat), hooking realistic primitive eyes, hooking with roving, and  binding a crochet edge with wool strips.  My inspiration for the design came from old Christmas postcards and of course, my love of sheep.

 One year when I was a kid, Santa left a sooty boot print on the hearth in front of our fireplace. That was all the proof I needed that Santa had really and truly visited our house sometime during the night.  I don't even remember what he left for us...I just remember that boot print!

The Twelve Days of Christmas Rugs - Day 3

Brrr...it's really cold outside today...let's have some Cocoa and Cookies!

Cocoa and Cookies Alphabet Sampler

A Notforgotten Farm adaptation by Spruce Ridge Studios

Hooked by Kris Miller

This is another rug that was so much fun to hook.  I believe it was the first rug I had ever hooked a lot of letters or script.  Since the plaid background has a teeny reddish purple line in it, I hooked the letters in similar colors.  I mixed up the colors just a bit so it gave variety and interest to the whole rug.  Just like the Midnight Clear rug, I used a taupe/cream plaid for the ground so it looks like dirty snow.  I gave the snowman a red ware plate and cup but I know some people have hooked the plate like a cookie instead, and I think that is a cute idea.  

What makes me smile is the cute little chin on the snowman...how many snowmen actually have a chin???  Charming!!!

Oops!  If you look closely enough, you will see I haven't done a binding on this rug yet.   I hooked this years ago and couldn't decide on how to finish the edges.  I think I will crochet around the edges with matching wool strips and call it good.  A perfect "cold weather" project to do before the end of the year!

The Twelve Days of Christmas Rugs - Day 2

There's no denying that Midnight Clear is one of my favorite rugs!

This is a Notforgotten Farm design and was hooked by me.  What a joy it was to hook!  I love Old World Santas and I loved bringing this Santa to life.  One of my favorite parts of this rug was hooking the little patch pocket with the snowman peeking out.  It's this type of whimsical detail that makes us love Lori Brechlin's designs so much!

I was very humbled and honored when this rug won an honorable mention a few years ago in an issue of the Celebration Of Hand-Hooked Rugs Magazine.

The Twelve Days Of Christmas Rugs - Day 1

Well, let's see if I can actually do this! 

 I am going to post 12 Christmas or winter-themed rugs each and every day.  The last rug should be posted on Christmas Eve.  

Meet Tomte The Elf! 
Designed and hooked by Kris Miller (c) 2013

A tomte (Swedish) or a tonttu (Finnish) is a small elf-like man. In Nordic folklore, he was the guardian in care of protecting a farmer's house and barn and often did his work at night when everyone was asleep. In modern times, a tomte traditionally has a white beard, wears a red cap and delivers packages to children on Christmas Eve.