Some great hooked projects!

First of all, let me just say that the Spruce Ridge Studios Open House and Tent Sale will be held rain or shine!  I know the weather looks a little "iffy" for this week-end but we will still go ahead with our plans...even if we have to move it inside!  We are praying that the rain holds off until later in the afternoon so that we can put out all the glorious stuff that the shoppers will be looking for.

~~~~

This spring, I had a wonderful group of ladies come to my studio for rug hooking classes.  They were eager to learn and quickly applied their new techniques to their hooking projects.  Here are a few of the things they hooked:

This is Pat's project, the Honey Bee Chair Pad from Notforgotten Farm (through Spruce Ridge Studios).  After showing how to sculpt loops, Pat went home and came back to the next week's class with this!  The bee's head and body are sculpted.  You might be able to see this better if you click on the photo.  Truly amazing!  The bee's eyes are quillie circles.  I love the little stinger that Pat added too.

Sue M. hooked and prodded this purse.  The Proddy Sunflowers Mat comes in a kit that I sell (not on my website but if you are interested in purchasing one, please send me an e-mail).  When she finished the mat, she sewed it into a little purse!  I think what makes the whole thing  is that she found those fun and funky leather purse handles!  Another excellent job and oh so creative!

Sue E. hooked my Farmhouse Geometric pattern.  She used a black reversible striped wool, which makes the border look so old and faded.  She also finished the edges with a crochet finish using wool fabric strips.

~~~~

Just another FYI about the tent sale....I have more than 32 different textured woolens on bolts (not full bolts but still a substantial amount) that will be clearance-priced.  I know that many of you are a long distance away and cannot attend the sale.  Following the sale and as time allows, I will post the left overs on my blog.  They will be sold "first come, first served" so stay tuned!

Spruce Ridge Studios Annual Open House and Tent Sale

Just two weeks away!  Always a fun day!

Spruce Ridge Studios Annual Open House & Tent Sale

Saturday June 1, 2013

10 am to 2 pm 

(sale starts at 10 am sharp - NO EARLY SALES will be allowed.  We will be organizing and setting up right until 10 am)

The emphasis of this year's sale is beautiful textured wool on the bolt at wholesale prices.  Also a selection of rug hooking patterns at 50% off!

There will be wool, rug hooking patterns, knitting yarns, and craft-related products at reduced prices.  Also vintage, one of a kind, and antique treasures.  

All sale items will be under the tent.

For your regular shopping needs, my studio will be open during the sale.

Visa, Master Card, and Discover accepted.

Please message me for directions.

Texture Inspirations

When I am traveling, I sometimes see the most interesting and inspiring objects that have amazing texture.  I often choose random things that catch my attention at the moment.  I'm glad that I have a camera on my phone because you never know when inspiration is going to hit.  I've decided that I'm going to make a "texture inspiration" file on my computer so when I am in stuck  or have a creative block, I can go back and look at these amazing wonders.

Here are a few of my snapshots that inspire me:

Here is some broccoli that I saw at the Pike Street Market in Seattle.  I love the bright green color and really unusual texture.

A window box of plants in Annapolis.  I love the variety of green shades and the mixture of leaf shapes.

I am sort of a "stone" aficionado.  Here are some stones on a wall in Annapolis. I love the little stones set into the mortar.

More stones from a cobblestone street in Helsinki, Finland.  It is amazing to see all the wonderful colors in stones....blues and pinks in this example.

A cobblestone street in Dent, England.  I love the colors in these stones too...blues, red-oranges and peach.

A stone wall in the North Yorkshire Dales, England.  Lots more yummy colors in these stones...taupe, yellow green, peachy pink!

OK, don't laugh at me...this is the carpeting in my doctor's exam room!  I took one look at it and thought it looked like a hit or miss pattern!  I love the nubbiness of the weave. It reminds me of this:

An old and well-worn hit or miss rug seen in an antique shop in Ohio.  I love the use of bright colors with the black and neutral.

~~~

I hope your week-end is full of color, texture and inspiration!

Little By Little

I had a spare moment to lay my rug down and photograph the progress of the hit and miss border.  When you are working on a big piece, it is always helpful to lay it out every once in a while and step back and take a good look at it.  I am very happy with the way the border is turning out and I don't see anything that needs adjusting so I am going to keep hooking!

I love the way the small stripes have given this design a lively twist.  The colors also pull your eye out to the edge of the rug.  For the mix of colors, I used all the colors that were used in the center design, plus added a few more that weren't used at all but blend nicely with the overall color plan.

I look forward to sitting down at my frame every night and working on the border...I always want to see what the next color will look like as I hook in the stripes.

A Happy Day And New Patterns!

Thanks to all of you who came out for the BSSG Market Day & Fiber Fair in Bowling Green Ohio yesterday.  We had a really fun day and it was great to see familiar faces and new shoppers.  At one point during the day, I looked up and saw quite a crowd of people and overheard someone say "looks like the recession is over!"  Despite the cool weather, the sun was shining and I think that is enough to raise one's spirits.

If you haven't been to my website recently, I do want to tell you that there are a few new patterns added.  The Notforgotten Farm collection has three delightful new patterns.  You can see them at the top of the page.  I love all of them but I just wanted to point out that the Daisy pattern is a really wonderful pattern for all you "wide-cut and primitive" fans out there.

Also added is 6 new magical and dreamy adaptations from Ann Willey's designs.  The new patterns are again listed at the top of the page.  There are some great animal designs (check out Little Fox!) and two "girl" patterns that can be embellished in so many ways.  I immediately thought of some colorful Sari ribbon (did you know that Spruce Ridge Studios carries a beautiful selection of Sari ribbon all the time?) and I think some funky yarns or quillie circles would work too.

Lastly, there are a few delightful patterns in The Cooperage section.  There's a really cute Gingerbread Men pattern that can be hooked as a small bag or a square mat.  I'm not sure that I've seen any Gingerbread Men rug hooking patterns out there so I think this one is really special.

~~~

I have been working more on my hit and miss border.  It is quite a long runner but I almost up to the third corner.  I will post an update as soon as I can get a new photo.

Fiber Show This Week-End!

Just a reminder that I will be vending in Bowling Green, Ohio this week-end!

Saturday March 23, 2013   9 am to 4 pm

Black Swamp Spinners Guild 28^th Annual Market Day & Fiber Fair

Junior Fair Building, Wood County Fairgrounds

13800 W. Poe Road

Bowling Green, OH  43402

$1.00 Admission

Quality fiber-related products such as rug hooking supplies, yarns, roving, fleeces, spinning and weaving supplies, handcrafted items, books, dyes, and more. Door prizes and lunch is available.

http://bssgmarketday.tripod.com

It's my first show of the year and I've got lots and lots of wonderful treasures just waiting for someone to buy!  It may be chilly outside but the warm fuzzy fiber will make you feel good on the inside.  This is a cute little show just crammed with all kinds of unique products for the fiber lover and artist.

I'll have new patterns by Notforgotten Farm, Hickety Pickety, Ann Willey,  The Cooperage and more (just wait until you see them...you are going to love them like crazy!!!)

~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you for all your kind words about Sequoia.  I feel better today and I know he is reunited with his brothers in the green pastures of heaven.

Goodbye to my sweet friend...

On Saturday, I lost one of my dearest friends, Sequoia.  He was part of the original three goats that started me out on this wonderful farm journey.  He was 13 years old and was very frail in the last few weeks of his life.  I pampered him and babied him and I know he had the best life possible here.  My heart is so sad but also so grateful for the good times, laughs, and companionship he provided.  

One winter, my son made a snow goat for Sequoia!

After a Spring shearing

In his own little "puppy" house that Ken built just for him

~~~

He was big and strong and loved to play.  He loved apples and frosted mini-wheats and knew how to shake hands.  He always wanted to be the first goat to be sheared and one year, when we didn't choose him first, he pried the boards off of the gate with his big, thick horns. (Yes, that's true...just ask my husband.  He had to fix the gate!)

Oh, how these woolly kids get wrapped around my heart!

What's On My Frame?

What's on my frame?  The answer is an adaptation of an antique runner.  

I am crazy in love with the colors of the original, so I have tried to work up the same color plan.  Yowza!  Nothing is better to me than the turquoise blue and coral colors!  As you can see, I only have one small corner portion to finish up and then I will be moving on to the border.  The wide hit-and-miss border will pull all the colors from the main design out to the edges...plus I will be adding just a few other soft old colors and a bit more brown out there too.

I started this rug at the beginning of the year and have put it aside several times to work on some smaller projects.  I find that this is one of those rugs that practically hooks itself and when I am not working on it, it calls to me to sit down and pull up a few loops.  Have you ever had a rug do that to you?

It's quite a long runner...I had to stand on my sofa to get both ends in the picture!

I'll be adding this pattern to my pattern line once it is completed.  It's a very fun design to hook!

New Pattern Line!

I am pleased to announce the addition of a new pattern line here at Spruce Ridge Studios....

Welcome Hickety Pickety!

There are 11 new patterns based on the wonderful, wacky, primitive art work of Sonja Sandell.  I find Sonja's designs a perfect match for rug hooking patterns and I'm so proud to offer them to you! 

Stay tuned!  In the coming months, there will be more new patterns from Hickety Pickety, as well as new Notforgotten Farm designs. 

If you haven't checked out the Spruce Ridge website recently, you may want to go visit again.  There are a couple new foot stool patterns from Cindi Gay and two antique adaptations from me.

Another Great Rug Finish!

Here is another beautiful finished rug that was shared with me.  This is 

Hex & Frex, a Notforgotten Farms adaptation, hooked by Rhonda Thomas of My Glory Stars.  What a wonderful example of a neutral rug!  It looks so soft and warm...just makes you want to say "aahhhhh".  I recognize most of the wools that Rhonda used and they are on my list of all-time favorites.

A great job, Rhonda!  Thanks for sharing!

A Witch's Walk

I love when you share your finished rugs with me.  Here is a wonderful example that was sent to me the other day.

Pat Cross from Charlottesville, Virginia hooked this beauty, A Witch's Walk.  This is a Notforgotten Farm/Lori Brechlin adaptation.  Pat calls her little witch "Gertie" which I think suits her just fine.  I love Pat's choice of colors, just perfection for a Halloween rug.  Don't you just love the combination of purple and green?  I also love the houses on the hill.  The roof tops look like rusty old metal.  Another thing to love?  The way Pat hooked similar values and textures to create movement in her night sky.

Thanks for sharing your hooking talents Pat!

Color On The Wall

Registration for the 2013 ATHA Biennial in Long Beach, California has begun! I am teaching Color On The Wall on Saturday, September 28th. This is going to be a fun workshop full of creativity! Create a wall pocket/hanging cone. You may design your own or you may hook one of my designs (there will be more than just a Santa design). The class kit comes with a pattern and all the wool you need. We'll also discuss how to sew up your cone and add the hanger. Use sheep curls, roving, felted baubles, sari ribbon. Explore quilling and needle felting on your hooking...plus much more!
Wouldn't this Santa cone look great hanging on your mantel next Christmas?  You could also fill it with candy and give it as a gift to someone special.  Make a Halloween cone to fill with bittersweet vines, or a Spring cone to fill with chocolate eggs or your favorite flowers.  The possibilities are endless!
Sign up, get creative and join the fun! There are still openings available.
Go to www.ATHArugs.com and click on the Biennial tab at the top of the page for more information and registration.

Meet the (Farm) Family

A recent comment from my friend Saundra made me think that I'd like to write about my wooly family here at Spruce Ridge Studios.  She asked if the picture posted on 1/24/13 was "Stinky."  No, Saundra, that is actually Emma peeking out from the back of the livestock trailer as she was taken to be sheared one spring morn.  She really looked like she was saying "Woe is me!" 

~~~

Since Saundra has given me this idea, my first "Meet the Family" post is about Stinky.

Stinky's real name is Sampson.  We named him Sampson because he is one of the hairiest Angora goats I have ever seen.  Sometimes he grows little curls right on the edges of his ears.  While most goats have their own unique "goat smell", Stinky earned his nickname because he is...well...just really more funky smelling than all the other goats.  I have been told that in the goat world, the smelliest boys are also the sexiest boys and the girl goats love that.  The only thing I can say is that it must be true because the two youngest girl goats follow him everywhere like a harem of beckoning maidens.  Somehow they haven't figured out that he is neutered. I guess he is like a rock star to them! 

Stinky is sort of small for a boy.  He is the only goat in my herd that will bite at the other goats if he gets annoyed, not typical for a goat.  When he was younger, he used to sit like a dog, which is another non-typical goat behavior.  Here he is, caught in the act:

Here's another picture of Stinky in the spring, before shearing.  Poor guy can barely see out of all that hair! You can see what a totally hairy guy he is!

We just love Stinky.  He is actually very friendly, good natured and loves to be cuddled...if you can put up with his "natural cologne!"  That ain't Polo he's wearin', honey!

Great News!

The Spruce Ridge Studios web site is back up and running!  Thanks for your patience while the bugs were worked out.  

Woe Is Me!

Yes, that's right...woe is me!  The Spruce Ridge Studios web site is having major technical problems.  My peeps are working on it but it could be several days before it will show up again.  In the meantime, please contact me if you have any questions about patterns, supplies, schedule, etc.  You can also stay tuned right here to my blog and the Spruce Ridge Studios Facebook page for any additional updates.

Thanks!

The Full Monty

I want to share a comment from my last blog post that didn't show up in the comment section.  It is from my friend Saundra who wrote:

"Kris, you're a big tease and can't wait to see the "full monty." 

 Well, Saundra, here is the full monty!

This is my Boy Scout rug.  It is an adaptation from an antique rug that I saw years and years ago on a trip to an antique market in the Adirondack Mountains.  Way back then, I was just a newbie rug hooker and couldn't afford to buy the real thing.  My husband and I asked permission to photograph the rug and the seller agreed. I have always wanted to hook my own version of this rug.  I love the simple charm of the design.  A cabin in the woods in winter.  Perfect.  I started hooking the road and fence line.  It was easy because it was all straight-line hooking.  Then my poor design sat for years because I became frustrated with trying to reproduce the lovely wonkiness of the rest of the rug.  In December, I had time to hook and decided that this neglected project deserved to be finished.  I am delighted that it came out looking fairly similar to the antique rug.  It's been a long journey.

PS:  I swear if I ever run into the old antique Boy Scout rug again, I will buy it on the spot!  But what are the odds of that???

A sneak peek and an FYI

Here is a peek of the rug that just came off my frame.  It is an adaptation of an old rug that I saw years ago at an antique market in the Adirondacks.  It has been a long journey to get it done.  It still needs to be steamed and bound.  Never one to be idle for very long, I have already started on my third adaptation rug, and I am so excited about the colors!  With all the snow we will get tonight, I should make lots of progress.

Just an FYI to all my customers out there:  Pattern prices will be increasing as of January 1, 2013.  It has been 5 years since I last had an increase, and over that period I absorbed the increased prices of the backings and shipping.  Unfortunately now I will have to make adjustments.  The good news is that you have one week left to take advantage of the prices before they go up!

Also, if you were not already aware, Cushing is raising the prices of their acid dye packets from $2.95 to $3.25 on January 1, 2013.  Spruce Ridge Studios carries the full line of Cushing dyes for all your wool dyeing needs!

What Just Came Off My Frame

This is my favorite time of year.  I enjoy all the hustle and bustle of preparing for the holidays.  I love our little family traditions - baking and decorating and fixing Christmas Eve dinner.  We get out my Christmas dishes and every meal we eat seems a little more grand and festive.  But the best part for me is that I actually have time to do some rug hooking for myself.
I have been concentrating lately on hooking some antique adaptations.  I have several on my drawing board so far and this is the first to be completed:

 It sort of reminds me of a Christmas design, probably because of the red and faded green.  It has been steam-pressed and I'm ready to finish with a crochet edge.  I have a lot of antique black strips left over and what a better way to use them up.
This little mat is 24" square and hooked up pretty quick.  The most time consuming part was hooking those 20 little round circles!
I've already got another adaptation on my frame which has proved to be much more of a challenge.....

Cyber Monday Sale

To thank my loyal customers for another wonderful year here at Spruce Ridge Studios, I am having a Cyber Monday sale.

Monday November 26, 2012  ~~ 12 noon to 5 pm 
Eastern Standard Time

Just 5 little hours to save BIG!  25 % off all patterns on 
the Spruce Ridge Studios website. 

Just give me a ring and use your Visa, Master Card, or Discover.

It's my biggest sale of the year!

Happy shopping!

Rugs From The Northwest Workshop

Last month I taught a rug hooking class in Bothell, Washington at the Northwest Rug Hooking Workshop, organized by Diane Eaton and Beth Kovich.  All I can say is WOWZA!  Diane and Beth put on a successful camp and a fantastic time was had by all!  Today I thought I'd share with  you some pictures of the rugs that were on display at the rug show, even though I had only taken pictures of just a fraction of what was brought.  I believe there were about 30 students but there were over 75 rugs on display!  Talk about eye candy...the room was literally a visual feast for the eyes. 

First let me show you this mind-blowing piece by Rita Vail:

 She was inspired by an article on quilling and used the concept to create a colorful flower garden.  Rita's technique and color choices are superb. This rug just sings with joy!

 Here is a close-up of her quillie flowers.

 Look at the clouds in the sky...incredible!

~~~

The next three rugs are hooked by Betsy Lanning:

 A Karen Kahle design...

 A Maggie Bonanomi design...

 And a Notforgotten Farm design!  You can find Lori's Flower Basket on my website.  I love the happy colors in this version...maybe because Betsy used some turquoise (my favorite color)!

~~~~~

I love the next three portrait rugs.  They are full of personality and are simply wonderful.

 These two are hooked by Carol Fegles.

This one is hooked by Pat Rees.

A fun heart rug by Sue Remington.
~~~~
I do not know the names of the gals who hooked the next few rugs...

 Love the directional hooking on this one.

 

 Wonderful primitive colors.

 I love the way the background is hooked in this one.  A very antique-looking rug.

A cute chair pad and tree skirts.

Love, love, love the colors in this rug!!!

Another lovely primitive rug...

This is For The Birds, a Rebecca Erb pattern and you can find this one on my website too.

Here is a Pris Buttler design hooked by Lianne Anderson.  What I loved about this rug is that the cotton was hooked with either yarn or roving, giving a great dimension to the design.
~~~~
The last two rugs are hooked by Karen Soltys:

This is Hen Party, designed by Bonnie Smith.  You can find this pattern on my website.  Karen eliminated the "corn" around the edge and added some spots.

Karen hooked this Maggie Bonanomi design.  I love how the wiggly lines change colors.

I will have more pictures of the Northwest Rug Workshop in my next post.
Happy Thanksgiving!