simple

In the flurry of activity during the week before the Annual, I did manage to get the hooking finished on Simple, the tape sewn in place, a border hooked and the final finishing completed (did you read about my secret weapon yesterday? The glovers/leather needle should become your new best friend).


I think I still have a few things to learn about attaching your rug binding tape to the backing -- specifically about how to avoid undesirable waviness and buckling -- but I cannot fault the speediness of this method of finishing. As someone who already loathes the amount of time it takes to whip (I once calculated it took me an hour per foot of circumference), I think I will have a hard time convincing myself to whip my rugs in the future. Instead, I'm going to go on a quest to find more colours of twill tape to add to my collection.
Simple is one of 12 designs I've included in my newest creation: The Amazing Matrix booklet. The booklets had their debut at the Annual at the weekend, and while I sold out there, I've already got the printer making more. They should be available in the next couple of days.
P.S. If you click on any picture, it will enlarge in another window....

P.P.S. The booklets are now back in stock ;-)

flashback Friday

I think I'm pretty much posted all of the mats and pieces I made before I started blogging....so today's mats were made just a couple of months into my life as a blogger (when my posts were extremely sporadic). My sister was on my blog the other day and complained to me yesterday about the absence of pictures of her rug...so even though I first posted about them back in December 2006, I promised they would make a reappearance today.

My oldest sister, Chris, has four kids and lots of pets -- there have been many, many pets over the years, so I decided to pay tribute to the current crop of pets in this checkerboard....


I stole the idea for only using part of each pet from a previous rug I started years ago (and still only one pet or about 1/15th of the rug has been hooked). Since simplified matters, and I was on a deadline, I think it worked out well. At the time I made the mat, they had only these 10 pets....and I laughed out loud when my nephew asked me a year or two later when I was going to fix it -- and replace the departed pets with the current crop. Not a chance!

I have had to fix the mat a couple of times over the years...mostly pulled loops caused by the cat, that I've noticed while visiting. I've resorted to using a dinner fork and another time, a big needle, to pull up a couple of loops on these occasions....what different things have you used when a hook's been out of reach?

And just to keep things even (as we sisters ought to), here is the mat I made for my other older sister, Sandra's, two kids....


It's aptly called Six Feet Under, since I watched most of the series while hooking this piece....and it commemorates a particularly special day of looking for turtles with Wyatt and Sienna on my parents lake, where we saw a record number. I know there is not enough contrast in values in this piece...but my excuse is that the rug is true to nature -- it's difficult to spot turtles in real life, too.

flashback Friday

I hooked this little mat in the Fall of 2005. It was started (and mostly finished) during a 3 day workshop at Deanne's place. It was a trip full of firsts: first of many trips to Nova Scotia (this Fall will be my 5th), first time hooking with roving, fleece and yarn (thanks to Deanne and Doris Eaton), first rental car, first time rafting, and first time travelling for such a long time on my own (10 days). It was all very wonderful.

When I came home, my sister told me it was her favourite thing I've done so far. It wasn't enough to make me give it to her, though - it hangs on my wall, bringing back lots of happy memories each time I see it.

• • • • • • • • •

I'm running out of early works to share, so not quite sure how many more of these flashbacks I'll be able to post. This might be the last one....

flashback Friday

In 2006, I responded to a call for entries for "Memories of My Mother," an exhibit organized by the Bruce County Museum and Archives. This is the mat I created....

It doesn't matter what you look like, as long as you're warm • February & March 2006

And here is what I wrote at the time....

My mum, Mary Manuell, is still very much alive....and I speak with her almost every day. It was impossible to choose a single memory to be the focus of my work. Instead, I decided to incorporate several phrases and works that will serve as "seeds of my memories", prompting me to recall events from the past and present, both now and in the future. Many of the words and phrases are unique to our family and my mother in particular. My sisters and I had great fun coming up with the master list.

The rug was hooked with wool strips and slub yarns....and all of the words were needle-felted on top of the hooking, using yarn that was dyed and hand-spun by my Mum. The triple-whipped border was a major pain....but really helps to frame the piece, since it won't be going on the floor.


Here is the legend....

BATHLESS GROGGINS...when my sisters and I were dirty as children, our mother would call us bathless groggins.

DO UNTO OTHERS...We had all heard the golden rule of "do unto others as you would have done unto you" so many times, that soon we only needed the shortened reminder of "do unto others"

...SIT FOR A BIT...when my mum is whirling around getting organized for company, she inevitably wants to "just sit for a bit" and take a break when help arrives (usually in the form of one of my sisters or me)

WAWAESE...my mum has many unique word pronunciations--once we were old enough to realize this fact, and after many failed attempts at correcting her, we now attribute her inconsistencies to the fact that she grew up in Wawa.

BARNEY...in 1987 our family camped our way around Lake Superior...staying at almost every provincial park along the way. Over the weeks we added several words to our family vocabulary. A "Barney" is when two or more people are grumpy--at the same time!

TOAD IN THE HOLE...my mum has 6 grandchildren, and she often makes them "toad in the hole" when they come for sleepovers. She claims that she used to make it for us all the time when we were kids, too--but none of us remember ever eating it. Now, all unknown events or those not remembered are attributed to the days when Mum used to make us toad in the hole.

OKAY...OKAY THEN FINE...how do you know that my mum is ready to end a phone conversation? She starts saying "okay..." and follows with several "okay then, fines" before a quick "bye bye".

OH, IS THAT NEW?...you can be wearing the same sweater for a couple of years, and my Mum can still ask "Oh, is that new?". Either she thinks that I shop a lot, or she doesn't pay too much attention to what I wear most of the time...

MARY LAND...when Mum isn't firmly rooted in the present, she's off visiting "Maryland".

VOLUNTOLD...my Mum is very active in her community. All of her friends always thought that it was so nice of my sisters and I to volunteer whenever needed...but it was not so much voluntary as it was expected, so we coined the term "voluntold" to more accurately define our reluctant participation.

HUBBARD...I went through a phase where I called my Mum "Mother Hubbard", which was later shortened to "Hubbard" and eventually became "Hubbie".

HURLEYS....when I was in high school, I used to read Harlequin Romances to pass time. My mother would sometimes read them, too, when she wanted some mind candy. We referred to them as Harleys for a while...but then we thought that "hurleys" was a little more appropriate since they can be very nauseating and highly predictable.

READING HOLIDAY....once my Dad retired, my Mum became very involved with her craft business. After a busy time getting ready for a craft show and returning from the show exhausted, my Mum would go on a "reading holiday" where she did very little other than eat and read for several days.

GOING BALLY...when my Mum falls asleep in the car, she slowly starts to curl up, starting with her head falling forward, followed by her shoulders...and it looks like she is curling into a ball, hence "going bally".

E.B.D. ...once my sister learned to read and spell, my parents could no longer utter "b.e.d." between them at the appropriate time in the evening. They just inverted the letters and continued their secret code a little longer.

LET'S PLAY PIONEERS...was my Mum's solution when the grandchildren started to tire her out. They'd all trot off to the bedroom where the kids would hop on the horses (straddle the foot board), hold the reins (a scarf or tie wrapped around the cannonballs) while my Mum would ride in the wagon (lie in her bed and read!)

BLACKFOOT TRIBE...it is not uncommon for my Mum to go barefoot in the summertime--hence her claim to being a proud member of the "Blackfoot Tribe"

I CAN'T SEE ANY BLOOD....so you can't be hurt too badly!

DOG HAIR...like everyone, my Mum has had a few bad hair-dos over the years...the most famous of which was a curly perm on long hair, fondly referred to as her "Dog Hair"

flashback Friday

This is just the second piece I hooked, and the first piece I designed, back in 2000. It's a special rug to commemorate a special event - the birth of my nephew, Wyatt.

I can remember spending weeks and weeks on the drawings, trying to get them perfect before transferring them only the rug warp. I'm a little wiser now -- I know that you don't have to hook exactly as drawn and that you can easily modify the lines as you go.

I had most of the centre hooked and brought it with me to my very first class, on the Maine Coast with Jule Marie Smith. I drove over two days, staying in a Bates motel along the way....the only vacancy because it was leaf peeping season. I felt so intimidated and overwhelmed when I arrived at the camp. I didn't know about "colour plans" and there were several famous rug hooker and teachers at the camp, that I had only read about before. Needless to say, I settled in and survived...and I've taken a couple more classes with Julie (who is amazing) since then.

Since I have 6 nieces and nephews - and only one has a rug so far - I have some evening-up to do. Maybe I can wait and hook wedding rugs for the rest? ;-)

flashback Friday

My mum purchased this pattern (designed by George Kahnle) for me the first year I went to Shelburne -- AJ, my mum, my cousin Shellie and I piled into my Bosses' Buick Regal (my van was waaaaaay over it's kilometres) and headed on a road trip. We visited Dorr, the Dog Team Tavern and the show at the round barn. I remember looking back and seeing a pile of bolts stacked between the 2 passengers in the back seat -- and AJ winding down her window in the back seat to talk to the customs officer (even though she'd been given instructions to sit silently).

This moose rug was a real departure for me. It was the first time I started mixing together lots of different wools together in the same motif...and I still love it today. My favourite parts are still the eye (it looks like an olive to me, and I love the directional hooking around it), and the trees (even though they took forever to hook, and caused a delay in my progress as I avoided the last few....). It was hooked between August 2001 and April 2002 (I think I pulled it out to finish the last few trees in time to take with me the next year to share).

As much as I love it still, it also serves as a reminder to me that my hooking style is not compatible with Monk's Cloth. It's my first and (hopefully) my last project hooked on this foundation. Monk's cloth is just too stretchy - and distorts far too easily - for my liking. And, there's other backing's that work better for me, so there's really no need to compromise. I think it's important to figure out what works for you....and keep searching until you can find the tools you love. There's something for everyone.

flashback Friday

For almost as long as I can remember - or at least as far back as high school - I have been making many of my Christmas gifts. In 2003 I decided to hook a couple of little pictorials for two of my aunts. I had never hooked such a piece before....and quickly discovered that the first piece used up more than the time I had allowed for both pieces, so I simplified things a little more in the second one to get it done in time.


I can remember running leftover # 8 strips through the cutter to make them into two #4s. I just used whatever wool I could find (obviously not a very wide selection or range of values)...and I struggled to make both buildings resemble their real counterparts (AJ&UB's bunkie and AB&UR's soon-to-be sold family home). It was a real challenge....and I must say that I like them both a little better now that there is some time and distance between us.


I finished the pieces by stretching them over canvas stretcher bars (8" by 10"), trimming off the excess backing, and then attaching some slivers of cherry (harvested on my parent's property). Since the pieces were quite small, this worked rather well...and after 6 years of hanging, there is very little sag (but still there is some). If I were to mount small pieces again, I think that I would use a piece of plywood with a layer of quilt batting sandwiched between the hooking and the wood (to help absorb any stretching, sagging or seasonal changes in the wood from humidity).

one week later

I hope it's true and a picture is worth a thousand words, because it's all I've got time for.....
In spite of a busy week, with four different beds, I did manage to get quite a bit of hooking done. I'm leaving again this morning - and I still have to pack! Back soon...

P.S. 'Cause I know someone will be wondering, it's about 20 by 30"

flashback Friday

In April 2002, I had planned to attend two back-to-back classes with AJ at Hooked in the Mountains.....but a month before, AJ had a heart attack and was unable to go.

I worked on this rug in Diane Phillips Women with Attitude class...and everyone who knows AJ will agree that she's got some! ;-) It was the second rug I started that week and I finished hooking it shortly after my return home. I presented to AJ for her 75th birthday that summer (with instructions for it to be returned to me, when she no longer needs it).


The rug celebrates My Rug Hooking Mentor, complete with silver necklaces, painted toenails, Birkenstocks, and a wok full of dyed wool. There are stars for encouragement, a lightbulb for ideas, shelves full of fabric and books which she generously shared, an owl for the Owl's Nest, her puffy cat....and many other symbols hooked and hidden in the background.


What became of the rug I started in my first class? Well it consumed a lot of energy and momentum in those first three days, but as much as I loved it and tried to get back into the spirit of the rug, I was never able to recapture the energy. I tried working on it many times over the years, until I felt so smothered and bogged down by it that I finally aborted it. Yes, after almost 8 years of struggle....last Fall I hauled it down to the curb and set it out with the trash. I haven't regret it since.

Flashback Friday

I had been hooking for less than a year when our beloved Fred died and I hooked this rug as a Christmas gift for my parents. I was very happy with his body and tail at the time...but just couldn't improve the face, despite numerous attempts. It was the best that I could do in 1990. (It wasn't until long after I'd finished the rug that I noticed that he wasn't grounded...which was true in a way - he'd already gone up to heaven!)

flashback friday

Since I haven't done any hooking all week, I'm left with little news to post about today. When I was gathering up all of my work in preparation for my talk last weekend, I realized that there are quite a few rugs and other things that I made long before I started this blog. Today I'm going to share one of them....


This is the wedding rug I made for my good friend Sheri and her husband Spencer when they married in 2002. The handprints on the left are from her side of the family tree and those on the right are from his side of the family. The parents are on the top branches, the sibilings in the middle (in age order, from top to bottom), and of course, the bride and groom at the bottom making the heart.

I'd be remiss if I didn't acknowledge the inspiration for using hand prints as leaves came from one of Ann Hallett's rugs.

I also made this rug care card to present with the rug.....along with a little rug repair kit (a small lidded box filled with some of the leftover strips). So far I haven't had to make any repairs.....and the rug still looks great! ;-)

When I made this rug, I'd only been hooking for about 2 1/2 years....and when I look at it now, I notice things that I would do differently today. That makes me happy -- and I still love the rug! I can only hope that in 7 or 8 years from now I will look back on the work I've been doing lately and still be able to see new ways of doing it. Who wants to be stuck in a creative rut or max out on their learning and experimenting?

My schedule for the next while....

It is always flattering to be asked to come and teach somewhere or to be invited as a guest speaker at a rug hooking event...and I wish that I were able to say "yes" every time. As many of you know, in addition to all of my rug hooking stuff, I also have a full time job (that requires more of my attention than I'd like). I've had a few years of some crazy-busy times of trying to juggle over-commitments, and several months of knowing that I had to make some changes...and fast!

My schedule for 2010, as far as rug hooking events goes, is pretty much set. I've added a few things to On the Road (over in the sidebar)....and I will add a few more once they are finalized.

The first event of the year is a gig as the Guest Speaker at the Georgetown Rug Hooking Guild's hook-in on Saturday January 16th. It's always fun to do something different and I'm looking forward to presenting a bit of a trunk show, First Ten, sharing projects from my first 10 years of rug hooking. I'll share the stories behind the projects.....and happily answer any questions you might have. I won't have everything I've ever made, but I will get my hands on most of it and bring it with me for the day -- including my very first rug.....


Hope to see you there!

Memories of My Mother Exhibition

It's been so long since I've seen this mat that I often forget that I made it. Once day it will make its way home again....

Before the exhibit heads west around Christmastime, it is on display again at the Bruce County Museum and Cultural Centre until October 23rd, 2009.

Dear Mr. Ripley....

Believe it or not, I did some hooking this weekend! I didn't get a lot done, but at least I've started. I was really loving what was happening when I was working on it, but after I spent some time staring at it, I was a little less sure. I am going to have to change my plan, but I haven't yet decided what the solution will be.


In the meantime, I'll just be gazing at it, mulling over few options....and trying to get the rest of the boring part (the flower skeletons) hooked...

before and after

A little late is better than never...


A while back, I promised to share with you the after effects of my tweaking....and here it is. Even though the lighting is different in the pictures, it is still very easy to see what a difference the darker line makes on the finished piece -- not so much in the sky, but definitely through the water and along the bottom edge and up the sides through the land section.

I might be wrong, but I think that AJ credits Marjorie Judson with this little gem.

P.S. I am still working on the whipping post. It's a doozy! ;-)

Making Snowmen - the construction part

Just to recap quickly how the snowfolk came to be….

Last Fall when I was at Shelburne, I saw some cute snowmen in Jule Marie Smith’s booth. Shortly thereafter I noticed that she was selling a pattern to make them. I bought a starter kit and was hooking on my first snowman within 48 hours. A few weeks later I was posting my first completed snowmen here on the blog, and the questions started coming….everyone wanted to know how they were made and where they might be able to get the pattern.

So I contacted Jule Marie Smith…and since she no longer had the pattern available, she gave me permission to share it with you. The following instructions are a combination of Julie’s basic instructions and my own (I’ve looked high and low for my original instructions…to no avail). I’ve made quite a few changes from the original directions, based on my own preferences and ideas….and I encourage you to modify them however you see fit and make your own original snow folks. Of course, it goes without saying that I am providing these instructions for your personal use only.

For Part One – Hooking the Snowmen, click here.

Once you’ve hooked the snowmen fronts, press them using your regular method. (I use a warm, wet tea towel and a hot Elna press or iron). Let dry. Then it’s time to begin with the construction…


1. Zig-zag around each snow body. Sew as close as you can to your outer row of hooked loops. I recommend using the stretch zig-zag stitch (marked by a dotted line)…since it’s made up of more stitches, it will better hold your backing together when the excess is cut off.

2. Trim away excess backing


3. Fold back remaining backing and baste into place. You will need to cut the backing at each of the indents – but wait and cut each only as you come up to it when sewing (otherwise your backing can start to unravel).


4. Needle-felt carrots for the noses. Take a 4’ square of wool roving and start rolling in at one corner, needle felting it together with every turn. Once the pointy sausage is completely felted (it may need some extra poking), cut it in half to make two noses. [Optional: if you’re unfamiliar with needle felting or do not have the tools, you could probably sew little noses out of scraps of wool fabric.]



5. Make the face. Attach the nose, just below the middle of the face, using needle felting. Sew on beads or buttons for the mouth, taking care to not sew it too low on the face (or it will be covered up by the scarf) – I try to leave 2 rows of loops below the mouth. Sew beads or buttons for the eyes. If you’re using round beads, you might want to consider cutting the corner(s) off of the adjoining loop(s), so that they nestle into place. You need not worry too much about perfect spacing and keeping everything even – this will give more personality to your snowman.



6. Cut out the back, using felted wool in a coordinating natural colour. If wool has a “right side”, place it face down. Then lay hooked piece on top, face up. Cut around shapes – even with the folded edge of the linen. To help cut you way out of the indents, gently fold back the previously cut section.

Tip: If you top and tail your pieces (i.e. alternate between heads up and heads down), you will greatly reduce fabric waste.



7. Attach the back. Pin pieces together. Using thread doubled, sew sides together using blanket stitch. **DO NOT SEW THE BOTTOM SHUT** To help keep stitches even, sew in between each loop, and pull tightly after each stitch.

Tip: I always find that this type of sewing takes its toll on my hands. One thing that helps a lot is wearing a band-aid on the middle section of my ring finger….since this is where the thread pulls tightly (and eventually feels like it’s cutting me – if I’m not wearing a band-aid).

8. Stuff with filling. You might need to use a piece of dowel or thin ruler to help push the filling through the neck, into the head.


9. Prepare the base. Cut an oval out of thin cardboard, and trim until it fits into the opening at the base of the snowman. Cut a larger oval (1/4 to 1/2" on all sides) out of felted wool. Set aside cardboard.


10. Sew the base. Begin by attaching the wool to the front half (hooked portion) of the snowman, using double thread and sewing with blanket stitch. When you are half-way around, place a weight on top of the filling (I used 20 pennies in each of my folk, to help keep them upright) and then insert the piece of cardboard. Double-check to make sure that the wool oval is the right size. Trim away any excess wool, so that it fits. Sew the two pieces of wool together, using blanket stitch and aligning the cut edges (you might need to push down the cardboard a little to make it easier).

Tip: After all of this handling, you should check that the carrot nose is still secure. Needle felt as necessary, to reattach it.


11. Attach arms. Poke holes in the sides of the hooking, using a proddy tool or hook with a wide shank. Insert twig arms into holes. [I do not secure these arms in any way – they stay in place, with the help of the stuffing and the backing…yet they are easily removed for storage and/ or easily replaced when they dry out and break.]

12. Play dress-up! Add scarves, hats, shawls, purses, brooms, flowers, baskets….and play around until you’re happy with the result.


13. Take lots of photos and admire you handwork…but whatever you do, don’t show them to very many people – unless you want to be making a lot more! ;-)

Days 9, 10 and 11

Remember this? Although I hadn't been hooking on it, it wasn't forgotten.

I didn't realize until just now, when I was searching for the above link that I never did post about Day 9. If my computer is accurate, it took place at the end of July. As you can see, I didn't make a whole lot of progress that day... (and most of what little I did accomplish ended up getting pulled out later!)


No doubt frustration took over and caused me to set it aside - for 5 months! I'm not sure whether it was just time that I needed - but had I known that I could finish all of the hooking in less that 24 hours, I know I would have completed it long ago.

With the busyness of the holidays and Uncle Bob's passing, choosing to sit at home alone and hook all afternoon and evening on Friday was just what I needed.

Because it's the New Year, I feel compelled to finish off some of my outstanding projects...and this landscape was definitely near the top of my list.

The cause of the delay was the fact that I was still feeling more than a little intimidated by the trees and bushes on the right side - and it didn't help that some of my lines were incomplete. My approach was to start by hooking all the parts where I knew what I wanted to do, such as filling in most of the rest of the sky and hooking some of the small trees. (Seeing these areas hooked is so much better than imagining them hooked and trying to plan the rest of your hooking in your mind.) At the same time, I reworked some of the parts that obviously weren't working - at least those ones for which I had a better idea ;-) Once that was done, it was time to "take the plunge" and with the help of a blue sharpie I created some new shapes to hook in the remaining area.


By the time I went to bed that night, I could hardly believe how much I had hooked - and how little was left to be done.


I woke up on Saturday morning and started hooking before my first cup of coffee...and I was finished before noon - even with a few small changes to my work from the day before...



Because I know that some of you might be curious, I measured it today and it's 36" wide by 17" high. I still can't believe that all of the hooking was done in just 11 days (even though some of them were quite long ones!) Now all that's left to be done is to share it with AJ and hear any suggestions that she has for final tweaking...and then decide how I'm going to finish the edge. I'm torn between whipping it and mounting it on a piece of plywood with a narrow wooden frame. Any suggestions?

the rug in the background...

I was asked a question about the rug that appears in the background of this picture (and also in many others). Yes, I did hook it....in 2002! I can't remember the exact finished dimensions, but it's something like 50" by 83" (the squares are 5").

Here's the only picture that I could find of the whole rug....and it's a little wonky --sorry!

Day 8

Progress continues....and I am pleased with how things are shaping up - especially since this is really the first piece I have hooked in this style. Everytime I look at it, I am filled with ideas and possibilities for future work. It's a great feeling...



Obviously at least one light green #4 strip will have to come out and be replaced with something stronger...and I am keen to see what will happen on the right side.

It's amazing how much has been accomplished in only 8 days of hooking. Granted, some of those days were pretty full ones...but all the same, it's pretty speedy progress.

Days 6 and 7

When the weatherman calls for rain, it’s a good idea to stay home and hook! The weather on Friday night was nice enough for us to work at the campsite, trying to get set-up for some family camping this summer. The mosquitoes agreed. Needless to say, we had a hard time motivating ourselves to finish off the rest of the work on Saturday or Sunday. Even though we had a few patches of sun both days, I spent the bulk of my spare time hooking – and it shows.

I had a lot of fun hooking clouds on Saturday…and I had a hard time forcing myself to stop in time to get ready to go out for dinner. Luckily I managed to get some more hooking time in after I got home….and more clouds appeared in the sky.


To hook the clouds I used a mixture of slub yarn (Fleece Artist Slubbly - dyed with sections of pale sky blue, pale grey, and pale purplish blue), some wool – and mohair – roving (dyed by Heidi Wulfraat and Fleece Artist), a couple of leftover pieces of wool from this project, and much of a ball of yarn I bought from the basement at Romni a couple of years ago (I’m happy that I still have another one, but I’m wishing I had bought more!)


I began day 7 by hooking some more fluffy clouds, and adding in a bigger one. I wanted to add one earlier, but luckily I realized in time that it would have been right in the centre. I was feeling a little nervous that there would be too much contrast between the sky and the rest of the rug, so I was keen to get the sky to actually meet the top of the hill. I fiddled around with the hill, deciding to add more outlining and another narrow band of colour to the top. I was starting to get excited, but then I realized that I also needed to tweak the bottom edge of the foliage (since there was no real outlining separating it from the water). This lead me to replacing the shoreline (for likely the 6th time!).

It was right around the same time that I decided that I had to tackle the centre trees. Although I had already removed the contrasting streamers and spirals (shown in earlier pictures), I still didn’t like them enough. I began to think that another problem might be all of the outlining. I ripped out any of the outlining in between side-by-side trees to see if this might help. It did! And I decided that the easiest thing to do was to rip out the whole section (especially since I’d already decided to re-hook the trees in a #8 (previously they were hooked in #6). I couldn’t believe that I actually ripped out a whole section – and I took a picture, just to prove it! ☺


I am liking it a lot more now, but it still needs more tweaking. Hopefully I’ll have time to work on it tonight…