Rug Show From Star Of Texas-Tyler

Here are just a few of the many rugs that were on display at the rug show at Star of Texas-Tyler.  Sit back, relax and enjoy!

 This is Hilda's Noah's Ark rug.  It is a Susan Quicksall design. 

 The water and the waves are just fabulous!

 Emma's Garden (my design), hooked by Laurie Hannan.

Martha Lowry hooked this Emma Lou design.

Wow!  I love this shaped horse, hooked by Diane Stoffel.

I have always admired this design by Tish Murphy.  Hooked by Kathleen Bennett.

 Linda Long hooked these fun two Halloween rugs.  Both are Notforgotten Farm designs adapted by Spruce Ridge Studios.

Another great Halloween rug hooked by Marguerite Evans.  A Star Rug Company/Maria Barton design.

This is a Star Rug Company pattern too...hooked by Linda Long.  Great soft Easter colors!

 Here's another design I have always loved!  This is a Karen Kahle pattern.  I'm sorry that I cut off the tag and I don't know who hooked it.

 A beautiful Bea Brock design hooked by Janet Griffith.

 Mr. Iggy by Star Rug Company.  Again, I cut off the maker's name...sorry!

A Sally Kallin pattern hooked by Janie Featherston. What a great red background!  I love how the turquoise star just glows against it.

 A fantastic mola design by Norma Batastini and hooked by Debra I.

 This rug was hooked by Dianne Tutt.  It is Annie's Wandering Scroll by Cindi Gay.

 Another Sally Kallin design hooked by Marj Miller.

 This is one huge rug hooked by Paula Fenter.  She told me she had started hooking it in January...and here it is finished and bound by June!!!

Another fabulous rug!  It is a Barb Carroll design, hooked by Cynthia Norwood.  The bird is hooked in different paisleys.  I love the graceful feeling of this rug.

Be On The Look-Out...

I am just disgusted and heart-sick when I hear about stuff like this.  Maybe you can help find these two stolen rugs:

 This is the e-mail I received with all the details:
~~~~~

 Dear Rug Hookers,

Last week I was teaching a workshop in Ohio for a small group in a local church.  Two rugs were stolen from the church sometime after class on Tuesday and before class began Wednesday morning.  The room was filled with wool, hooking equipment including frames and cutters, other rugs and a digital projector.  None of those items were touched.  Please forward this email on to your rug hooking guilds and groups.  If you are a frequent follower of Ebay, Craigslist or any other internet site that sells things I would appreciate it if you would be on the look out for the rugs.  I am offering a reward for information leading to the return of the rugs.

Rug #1 is my Crocodile Mola design.  It was featured in the November/December 2011 issue of Rug Hooking Magazine.  It was exhibited at the ATHA Biennial exhibit in Lancaster, PA in October 2011 and at the Green Mountain Rug Hooking Guild exhibit at the Shelburne Museum in November 2011.  The rug is 36 x 48. 

Rug #2 is my Pumpkins and Leaves design.  It was hooked by Linda Woodbury and has been exhibited at many local shows in New Jersey.  The rug is 28 x 40.

I have attached photos below.

If you have any info please contact me or Linda.

Thank you,

Norma

~~~~~

Let's all do our part to help recover these kidnapped rugs!  If you see them, get the details, etc., then contact me and I'll get in touch with Norma.

Thanks for your help!  Kris 

An Extraordinary Day!

Thank you to all the happy shoppers who attended the Spruce Ridge Studios Open House and Tent Sale.  It was very good to see so many friends and new faces too.  I met several enthusiastic beginners and I must say that I am always tickled and inspired by their eagerness to start hooking!

We really did have an extraordinary day...that started about 20 minutes before all the shoppers arrived.  My town of Howell hosts an annual hot air balloon festival every year in June, and it is taking place this week-end.  This morning was exceptionally calm and clear, and they were able to get the balloons launched.  We are in the flight path for many of the hot air balloons during their evening launch but this year, the balloons came sailing over our house in the morning as we were setting out the wares for the tent sale. Not just a few balloons.  I counted at least 25 beautiful, colorful balloons high in the sky.  What a sight!  As we continued to work, I heard a loud WHOOSH, which I recognized as the sound of the gas jets of a balloon.  When I looked up and to the south, a low flying balloon came drifting over our marsh.

 As he drifted closer, one of the pilots waved to me.

 And then he called out "Is your llama afraid of the balloon?"  (apparently it's hard to tell an alpaca from a llama at his altitude *wink*)  I replied "No" and just as I said that, Emma let out a big BAAAA.  The pilot said "It's OK, it's alright."  All the while the balloon was drifting closer and closer to our house.

 "Are you going to land in our yard" I yelled up to the pilot.  I have always had this goofy desire to have a hot air balloon land in my yard.

"I don't think we can" he yelled back.

"Too bad you can't come back at ten o'clock when I'm having people over" I yelled up again.

"I'll see what I can do" he replied.

In no time at all, he was sailing past our pine tree, nearly hitting the branches as he floated along. 

 A minute or two later, he actually hit some branches of my next door neighbor's tree and we could see him pushing away branches as he skimmed by.  My heart jumped into my throat!

 As Ken and I raced to the road, we noticed he was clear of the trees.  Their recovery vehicle was parked on the road and two grounds crew men were standing on the grassy shoulder.  "Drop it now!" they yelled up to the pilots.

And just like that, the balloon sank smoothly to the ground.  The grounds crew caught the basket and helped ease it to the grass.

Wow!  I love when stuff like this happens.  I couldn't stop thinking about it all day!

A Wonderful Week!

Last week I was teaching at the Star of Texas Rug Camp in Tyler.  Wow!  I can't even begin to tell you what a fantastic week it turned out to be.  Maria Barton (Star Rug Company) and I drove there...it took two days each way with a stop-over in Nashville to visit my sister overnight.  We did lots of talking, country music listening, and Maria even got some rug hooking done while I drove.  It was a long trip with some sore butts, but we got to see parts of the USA that we had never seen before...like a rice field in Arkansas!

Here is a picture of my fabulous class.

A great group of gals!  They were so talented that it made my job as a teacher very easy.  Emma's Garden was being hooked by three different ladies.  As you know, this pattern is near and dear to my heart because it is inspired by my beloved Wensleydale sheep, Emma.

 The first one is being hooked by Beverly R.  She is a fairly new rug hooker but she is doing a great job!

 This is Judy C.'s version of Emma.  Judy brought some very light gray roving for Emma's body and I think it looks perfect with the light gray face and legs.

 Paula F. is hooking this Emma.  Paula was my student 2 years ago at Tyler and her hooking technique is exquisite.

 Cora M. is hooking Give Ye Thanks.  I love Cora's cabin and the soft old colors she is using in the rest of the rug.

Dianne T. wanted a customized version of Goat Hill.  We added the date that she moved into her current house and her last name on the hill.  I love the combination of red, gold, and turquoise.

 Queen Anne's Welcome is being hooked by Sherry V.  I love the combo of deep warm red and soft light yellow, which Sherry says will match the decor in one of the rooms of her house.

We also had two Herb Angels in our class!

 The first angel belongs to Dorothy D.  Dorothy also hooked little American flag pins for everyone in our class in honor of Flag Day!  How nice is that?!?

 Gwynna W. is hooking the second angel.  Gwynna's colors are so soft and lovely.  She has since finished her hooking and is getting ready to bind her rug.  Wow!  That was fast!

One more note I want to make about these two rugs:  One of my demos in class was how to hook a primitive eye.  Both of these girls have really done a fabulous job on the eyes.  I think hooking eyes are very important because once you get it right, your whole rug will have a personality.  And both these angels have a beautiful personality!

 Ginger J. is hooking Bewitched.  This rug has a lot of eyes done with different techniques.  Ginger has done a fabulous job!!!

While Ginger was waiting for me to get around to her, she was working on this little gem of a rug, designed by Maria Barton.  Need I say that Ginger is a prolific rug hooker?!?

 Jeannine is hooking this wonderful chicken (design by Mary Johnson).  I love how she hooked the feathers directionally.  She even added some strips of paisley!

 This wonderful Kris Kringle pattern (Woolley Fox/Barb Carroll) is being hooked by Joan H.  If you click on the picture, you can see the fabulous beard she hooked using Wensleydale curls.  To keep it from become too thick, she first hooked Santa's beard with a light colored textured wool and then pulled up strands of curls in between the rows of hooking.  Perfection!

 This beautiful version of Harvest Goode Things is by Linda L.  Wow!  I love the soft old blue house, the sun flowers and the lettering.  Linda really gets things done and she was working on the border when I packed up my wool on Thursday.  I'm sure she got the whole rug completed before she left camp.

 And last but not least, this beauty of a rug, Goode Witch With Alphabet, hooked by Pati W.  I love the witch's green skin...and if you click on the picture, you will see that Pati needle felted a little wart on the chin (and added a "hair" made of thread)!  A little extra touch that really makes you smile!

There was also an excellent rug show on Wednesday.  I have a few pictures of the rugs that were there and will post them soon.  I am still frantically gathering items for my tent sale...only two more days to get ready!  Yikes!

Don't Forget!

Don't forget the Spruce Ridge Studios Open House and Tent Sale!

Saturday June 23, 2012

10 am (sharp) to 2 pm

Rain or shine...although it looks like we'll have a nice day.

(no early sales, please...we will be setting up until 10 am!)

All sales items are under the tents (come around to the back of my house).  Also my studio will be open for your regular rug hooking shopping needs.

I've been digging through my wool closet and finding some great overdyed and as-is finds that will be bargain priced.  There are discounted patterns and sundries too (books and supplies). Some sewing fabrics, buttons, knitting yarns, and other craft-related products.

I'm also selling a few wonderful vintage finds from my travels...a hand-sewn quilt top from Mississippi (all hand stitches), an 1800's sampler (framed), and more!   I'm still searching/cleaning so I imagine there will be many more treasures to tempt you.

Kindly contact me for directions.

PS:  Howell will be having their annual Michigan Challenge Balloon Fest this week-end, so why don't you combine both events and make a fun day for you and your family or friends?!?!!  For more information, click here.

Wool (deal) of the Week

Wool, wool, wool, can anyone ever have too much wool?

I've been rummaging around in my wool closet...and maybe I have just a little more than I can store right now....so during the summer months, I will be posting a Wool Deal of the Week.

Here's how it works:  The Wool Deal prices will be good for one week only, from the time of my blog post.  I will post when the deal ends. The wool will be unwashed, off the bolt, and shipping is not included in the price.  Quantities are limited so first-come, first-served.  Just give me a call during normal business hours with your Visa, Master Card, or Discover numbers.

Here's the first Wool of the Week:

Green-on-green windowpane plaid!  Who couldn't use some more green?  Trees. Leaves. Frogs. Fish. Borders. This would also dye up wonderfully with a wash of golden yellow (making it a softer yellow-green).

$15.50 per yard

This deal expires Thursday June 7, 2012!

Learn To Rug Hook This Summer!

I love the Michigan Fiber Festival.  I have gone to it for many years as a shopper, being a knitter, spinner, and a plain old fiber nut.  I love visiting the sheep and seeing the Angora goat show and just being in the creative vibes with all of that wool and all those textures and colors.  Now it's equally as fun for me being a vendor because I get to immerse myself for 3 days in all that wooly happiness.  I get 3 glorious days to talk about rug hooking all day to anyone and everyone I meet.

Now I get to share my knowledge with you too!

Last year, I had many people visit my booth and I would hear :

"I've always wanted to do this"

"My mother (aunt, grandma) used to do this and I wish I knew how"

"I'd like to buy a kit but I need some lessons"

Well, now is your chance!

I will be teaching a beginning rug hooking class at the Michigan Fiber Festival on Friday, August 17, 2012.  It is an all-day class from 9 am to 4 pm.  You will have the opportunity to learn the art of rug hooking from me...and it's not only for beginners but if you need a refresher, this would be a great class for you!  And if you sign up for the workshop before July 1st, you will save $5.00 off the workshop fee.

Click here for the Festival Workshop Schedule.  You can register on-line or print off a mailable form. 

If you need anything more to tempt you...admission to the Festival is free on Friday with a limited amount of vendors open to sell their products...so you could shop during lunch or following my workshop and beat the crowds on Saturday!
Correction!  I just received my Fiberline magazine and it lists a $3.00 admission fee on Friday (includes parking)...however this is still less than the $5.00 admission fee for Saturday or Sunday!

Mark Your Calendar...We're Doing It Again!

Spruce Ridge Studios

Open House and Tent Sale

Saturday June 23, 2012

10 am to 2 pm

(sale starts at 10 am sharp-no early sales please!)

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

All sale items will be under the tent in my back yard.

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

Visa, Master Card, and Discover accepted.

Please contact me for directions.

 

Join Me For A Wooly Good Time

This is what I brought back from the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival last year!  She is a Finn sheep and her name is Sukka, which means "sock" in Finnish (you can see one of her little white "socks" in the photo).  She is the sweetest little thing you could ever meet.  She loves to be petted and hugged and I am so happy that she is part of my flock.

Now, I'm not suggesting that you buy a sheep there (!) but I do want to remind you that the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival is coming up in one week...

Saturday May 5th  (9 am to 6 pm) and Sunday May 6th (9 am to 5 pm)

Admission is FREE!

The festival is held at the Howard County Fairground, W. Friendship, MD.

My booth will be located in Barn 5, Space 8.

Last year was the first year I attended and let me say WOWZA!  This is Wool Heaven, folks!   We enjoyed every minute we were there!  There is certainly something for everyone....visit the animals in the barns, shop the well-stocked vendors, and see demonstrations.  There are lots of great food vendors too...even though I would not eat lamb, they do serve it there...you will not be sorry you came!  Personally, I am going to try to stay out of the sheep barn this year.....

 

Rug of the Day-Hit and Miss

During my travels last week, I saw this little runner in an antique store.

It was in rough shape and a little pricey for the size, otherwise I would have bought it.  The more I looked at it, the more I realized that this little orphan was a wonderful example of hit and miss.  First of all, I love that there are bright colors mixed in with black, navy and dark gray.  There are also a fair amount of light values mixed in (note the off-white, light yellow, and ecru).  All together, they make this rug sing!  Secondly, this little mat seems to be hooked in fairly straight lines.  However, on closer inspection, you will see that some of the rows take a turn and run into another row.  It's just enough to break up the monotony of everything being straight.

 I took a close-up of the back of the rug to remind myself of how some of the rows were hooked.  In my mind, this is the perfect hit or miss!  A wonderful thing for using up left-over strips....I can't wait to try this myself!

Are You A Copy Cat?

By now, you have probably heard the turmoil going on in the needlework world about the illegal downloading of artwork and charts. If you haven't, I will refer you to Lori Brechlin's blog to read more about it, since she explains it so well.

I do not normally get up on my soap box on my blog, but I find this trend of copying quite disturbing.  So I'd like to address something that is going on in the rug hooking world as well.

Illegal pattern sharing.

Yes, that's right. Did you know that when you purchase a pattern that is already drawn out on foundation cloth, you CAN NOT copy or retrace another one of that pattern?  Not for your own use, not for your friend's use.  If you want to have two copies of a particular pattern, you need to BUY two patterns.  It is not my rule, it is COPYRIGHT LAW.  It has been brought to my attention that certain guilds, groups, and even individuals will purchase a pattern or catalog of patterns, and then redraw a pattern again and again to share.  This is illegal and it is stealing!  So many people say, "well, it won't matter, I'm just doing it for myself and no one will find out."

How would you feel if, on payday, part of your check was missing, or your paycheck was stolen?  Pretty outrageous, right?  That's exactly what happens when you copy another designer's work without paying for it.  Many designers (myself included) are self-employed and depend on the sale of patterns to help pay the bills and buy groceries.  When you copy a pattern, you are virtually denying them the sale of a pattern....another words, stealing from that person.

You wouldn't take $40.00 out of my purse, would you?  Then why would you copy my pattern?  In my eyes, it's the same thing.

You can make a difference by becoming the solution and not the problem!  If you know someone who is copying patterns, let them know it is wrong (or let me know!).  Do not involve yourself with guilds and groups who routinely copy other's works.  Educate and inform individuals who don't know the "rules."

Let's all make a difference!

PS:  for more information about copyright, go to the US Copyright Office website

Rug of the Day-April 12th

I can't promise a rug picture every day but I thought this was worthy of sharing today.  This is September Squirrel, one of my newer rug hooking patterns, adapted from Prairie Schooler Designs and hooked by Emily Leavitt.  Emily says that she made this mat for a squirrel-loving friend.  I love how she made the tail darker than the squirrel body...something I probably would not have thought of but it works beautifully and looks very natural.  I love acorns and oak leaves and Emily's colors are so perfect for creating a fall feeling.

Hooking With Maggie Bonanomi

Last week I attended the Ohio Rug Camp at Punderson State Park.  I was excited to be a student of Maggie Bonanomi!  She has written 5 wonderful books of various stitchery techniques which includes a couple of rug hooking projects too.  I am a huge fan of her style and thought how fortunate I was to have her teach at a rug camp close to me. It was also fun for me to be a student and to be able to hook all day and half of the night!  Here are a few classmates who were hooking after dinner.

Here is Maggie, holding up one of the student's rugs and giving a little talk about the lamb tongue's border.

 In her little demo, she was showing us about using soft browns and neutrals in the tongues.

 I love how she has stacked the browns from light to dark value.  Yummy!

 It seems like I am always somewhere without my camera (!) so I snapped this photo of one of her rugs with my smart phone.  It doesn't come close to capturing the beauty of this antique look-alike.  I swear that if I saw this rug in an antique store, I would have thought it was really old.  Seriously.  She talked about how we can hook wonky to make our rugs look old too.  For those of you who know me (I hook w-a-y too even), I'd have to be alone in a dark room with a glass of wine... but, yes, I will definitely struggle practice hooking this way!

 I don't have any pictures of my rug in progress but I think it is coming along beautifully. Since I have so much going on right now, it may take me a while to complete, but I will post pictures when I do finally finish. Instead, I am posting a picture of a Maggie B. design that I helped color plan when I taught a workshop in St. Louis a few years ago.  This was hooked by Deborah Holden.

Have you visited Spruce Ridge lately?

Have you visited the Spruce Ridge Studios website lately?  It's been refreshed and remodeled and easier to navigate!  I've added lots of new patterns...from Keith Kemmer, Ann Willey, Prairie Schooler, Cindi Gay, and my own original patterns...and there's a couple of new products in the Accessories Section.  Oh! And did I mention that there are 5 brand spankin' new patterns by Lori Brechlin/Notforgotten Farm?!?  Take a peek!

In the coming weeks, I'll be adding more inspirational sample rug pictures to the pattern section, so visit often to see what's new!

Daylight Savings Time Begins!

Isn't this a great clock?  I saw this at a museum in Helsinki when I traveled there in 2006.  I have always loved the whimsy and humor in the design. It made me laugh out loud when I came across it in a room full of clocks and furniture pieces. The Finns have a great heritage of design and innovation.

I so wish that I had a clock like this!  Maybe a rug design???

Enjoy your extra hour of daylight tomorrow!

"Spring Forward" Special!

It's time to "spring ahead" on Sunday and turn our clocks back to Daylight Savings Time.  I, for one, will be happy to gain an extra hour of daylight in the evening.  Somehow it feels like Spring is just around the corner....

to get that Spring feeling started, I am offering a special price on two textured woolens.  They are regularly priced at $20.00 per yard (unwashed), but for a limited time, I will be slashing the price to $15.00 per yard.

I love the versatility of this check!  It is reversible and while one side is brighter, the other side is more muted.  I've used this to hook stars but this would also be great for borders, flowers, wonky houses or chickens.

 This is another great texture with olive green and fushia.  Another perfect wool for flowers, borders, leaves....how about some really funky cats?!?!

Remember, these to Spring Special woolens are $15.00 per yard for a limited time!  Call or e-mail me if you are interested!