p.s.

I'm slowly making my way through my over-flowing inbox of e-mail. I've been trying to keep on top of it....but there are always some that get lost in the shuffle. I've dwindled it down today from 78 to only 14 - so if you haven't heard back from me yet, it's coming ;-) Patience is a virture - supposedly.

mare monday m.i.a.

Alternate Titles: "yes, I'm still alive", "no, I haven't been hooking", or "I need a holiday".

What does it mean when my 100th post appears after a month of sabbatical? I guess it means that I still like to blog, even though I don't always do it as often as I'd like. It would definitely be a lot easier if Bell would commit to "reducing the load" on the main line going to my place and we could finally get highspeed at home - but I'm certain I'd still have my share of lapses. February (and the first half of March) have been crazy busy. Away from home more than half of the time kind of busy. Staying late at work, not hooking, not exercising, and definitely not eating well busy. It stinks.

I finally had a bit of a break this past weekend, and laid about, watching the Tudors. I really wanted to get back to my horse, and even sat in front of the frame for at least an hour, but it just wasn't happening quickly enough - or well enough - for me. Sadly, she still looks essentially the same as the pictures below. I've got an idea for another purse percolating in my brain, and I'm half-tempted to just give in and get started on it, instead.

I'm really in need of a mini-break. I'm thinking of taking next week off - a whole week for hooking, dyeing, sleeping, reading, watching movies, going to the gym, cooking....who could ask for anything more? And hey, maybe I'll even have some interesting stuff to blog about! ;-)

mare monday #4 and #5

Okay...so just in case you haven't figured it out yet, February has been a crazy-busy month for me. Up until this weekend, I'd only been home for two full days. Consequently there was no post last MM - because I was busy, and also because there was absolutely no change from the previous week.

I happily closeted myself at home this weekend...enjoying my comfy bed, relaxing and hooking. The weather gave me a good excuse to be lazy, and this is my first chance to post online.

Progress on the horse finally resumed...and here's what it looked like yesterday (Monday) morning...

Now usually my Monday pictures have been taken before I have a chance to do any hooking for the day...but since yesterday was a holiday, I was quite productive. Here's the horse now - at the end of the day on Monday...

I am quite happy with the way it is coming. The front legs definitely need some re-hooking, and of course I've left the trickiest part for last - the head!

Wish me luck - I think I'll need it.

2nd and 3rd mare monday

A thousand apologies on the lack of post last week. I had forgotten to take a picture on Monday before I sped out the door, heading for work. On Tuesday I had the camera, the rug, and the computer - but no cable to connect them. Oh, and I didn't come back home again until last night...so that's why there was no post. Sorry.

As you will soon see, you haven't missed much. There was just a teensy bit of hooking added below the saddle for last Monday's photo...


Here is this week's update...a little more done - but there's still a long way to the finish line.

I would love to post more, but it's just another manic Monday around here....and there is just no time. I will tried to respond to e-mails and comments before I hit the road again on Wednesday morning.

1st mare monday

As promised, here's the current status of my carousel horse, as of this morning....


The plan is to post a picture every Monday until I'm done - and I'm keeping my fingers crossed there will be noticeable progress each and every week!

I knew that this project was going to be a challenge for me from the get-go....but I had no idea just how challenging it would be. Let's just say that I have definitely mastered the art of ripping out...

It's just been in the last few days that I've managed to choose the right wool, in the right cut, in the right place -- and on my first try. At least some of the time.

I will try to post more in the coming days about the nature of the project - there's a lot more to it than just my horse.

how many Bell technicians does it take to hook up highspeed?

I don't know. I wish I knew, because that might mean that highspeed was (finally!) working at my place - but it's not! After about a dozen phone calls and countless hours of being on hold, talking to people, installing filters, trying this and trying that, waiting for a new modem to arrive, making appointments and waiting for a technician to show up...we were told that we are out of the service range. It's been over 3 weeks since we were first told a technician would come if we didn't have service in the next 72 hours. Still no technician has ever come to check out the problem in person. I just don't understand how they could have sent a modem in the first place if highspeed was not available to us. I don't know why it took a dozen phone calls to Bell to find this out - does that mean that only 1 person in 12 has a clue? Or does it mean that single person was wrong? Either way, on Monday we will have had a modem for a whole month - and not even a flicker of service during this whole time. How annoying!

In other news, I have been working on my horse again - and I even have some parts that I've only hooked once! I promise pictures for "Mare Monday" Have a great weekend everyone!

good gloves

I don't know about you....but it seems like every time I dye wool, the skin around the cuticle part of my nails seems to shred. I've self-diagnosed it to be a reaction to the powder used in the disposable gloves (there is little difference whether I use latex or vinyl)...and I had accepted it as a necessary evil of dyeing. Not any more.

I was down to my last pair of gloves and when I was last at Costco, I discovered these ones...



$9.79 per box, a pretty blue colour, no powder and no raw or irritated fingers. Who could ask for anything more? (okay, so the fit is a little loose, but totally tolerable). Happy dyeing!

experiment

Years and years ago, back when I had my first bolt of wool, I dyed big swatches of all of the dye colours I had at the time. I think I used about 1/12 of a yard of each with 1/8 tsp of dye (if I had my swatches with me, I could check - since I typed that on the labels).

It was one of the best uses of my dyeing time ever. I refer to these swatches over and over again, and I don't think there have been very many dye days when they weren't referenced.

I made up sets for myself, AJ and Shellie and this used up about 1/3 of each of the pieces. I had always planned to make up the rest into swatches, but you know how things get shoved in a box, forgotten about, periodically raided, and left to collect dust?! There was no longer a complete set and I didn't realistically think that there would ever be another complete set (especially since I now have about twice as many dyes - and if any get done, it will be the newer acquisitions).

As you can imagine, some of these pure dye colours are quite bright - and not quite my style. I didn't want to spend a whole lot of time or effort in fixing them up, so I just divided them up into three piles of complements (reds with greens, blues with oranges, yellows with purples).

Each pile went into a pot with some laundry soap (more environmentally friendly Method, not Tide). There was some bleeding...but not enough in the purple/gold pot, so I added some actual Tide. I set the colours with citric acid.

The nature of the colours was preserved (except for the oranges...which went quite brown)...but the feeling that you need to put on a pair of sunglasses, before you can ever look at the wool, is gone. Here are the results (and yes, the pictures don't adequately describe either the before or the after)....

new year, new order

Once I brought all of my wool home with me, I was at a loss for where to put it all. The only way it was going to fit on my shelves was with considerable reorganization. I also wanted to make sure that I would have enough room to add more wool and that I would be able to easily see what I had on hand.

Gone are all of the books and clutter…and all that remains is most of the wool. Glorious wool.

I think the only way this will work is if I make a concerted effort to keep the shelves orderly. This includes putting everything away – in its proper place – once a project is completed. Not just shoving the whole pile on one shelf… Sorting. Every. Piece. Of. Wool.

Wish me luck!

Dye Day

I love dyeing wool. Sometimes I think that I enjoy it more than the actual hooking. There is such freedom in dyeing wool….and so much mystery at the same time. I never seem to know just exactly what I’ll be pulling out of the dryer. Oh, I have a pretty good idea, but there are always a few surprises to keep things interesting...

Dyeing wool is much like cooking food. There are many different methods and unlimited recipes. Some folks follow the recipe very carefully each and every time they create a dish, some people recreate recipes from memory, and other people pick and choose their own ingredients to create a unique version every time.
I’m definitely a pick and choose dyer. Early on in my rug hooking, I discovered that I have difficultly in choosing colours I could not see with my eyes. I tried to imagine which colours would look best together…choose some swatches I liked…and set about creating those colours. No match. The results were hideous…and I just had to dye more wool.

Now, I prefer to choose the wool for my projects off of the shelf….and I often change my mind a few times before I’m finished. I like to use lots of shades and colours in each piece of hooking, so I don’t really need big pieces of any one wool. To prepare for my big dyeing day, I rip up the wool first. In total, I riped up just over 15 yards of various wool into 1/8 yard pieces….so about 120 or so pieces of wool.

Since I only have a single sink in the kitchen, I fill a big shopping bin about ½ full with warm water and a big squirt of Jet Dry (did you know you can buy a supersize 946mL bottle at Costco for less than $10?), pick out a bunch of pieces of dry wool I want to dye first and set them to soak. While they are soaking, I set up the rest of my dye equipment: an electric wok (half full with hot water and a dash of citric acid); a deep electric frying pan (also half full with hot water and a dash of citric acid); pots for setting the colour; measuring cups; spoons; crates of dry dye….all of the usual stuff, plus a set of swatches of the basic dye colours.

Once I decide on the basic idea of the colour(s) I want to dye, I select some dry dyes and mix up some of each (the amount of dye used really depends on how much wool I plan to dye in this family). I often just take hot water out of the wok (if it’s close to boiling)….otherwise I will boil the kettle.

Depending on how concentrated I’m making the solution, the amount of water varies – usually it’s about half of a cup. I pour some of the dye into the water (some of each or just one colour), stir it around a bit and add a piece of wool to start. At any time I can pull the piece of wool out of the water – if I like it just like it is and don’t want it to change or if I hate where it’s going, I yank it out. Some of the excess water is squeezed out and I put the dyed wool into a shallow pan. Another piece of wool gets added to the wok…and maybe a bit more dye. I stir intermittently and when I like what I see, I yank the wool out. I work in both the wok and the frying pan at the same time…sometimes with a couple of pieces of wool in each one.

When things start slowing down, I add a shot of citric acid to the water. The bundles of wool in the shallow pan grows and I can see right away if they are working together or not. If some pieces need a little tweaking, I might add a mild solution of a complement. Once the shallow pan is full, the contents get put in a big pot with hot water and citric acid to “cook”.

I try to keep similar colours and values in the same pot – otherwise a rude surprise can occur (sometimes it’s a pleasant surprise…but not always ☺ )

The focus of my dye day was light and medium light values. There is definitely a shortage of such things around my place – and I’m trying to make friends with the “light side”. I also needed to dye some wool for my carousel horse (more on that very soon). Since I don’t have a washer and dryer at home….I headed out to the Laundromat with 2 bins full of sopping wet wool.

While heading out the door, I was happy to notice that my latest issue of Rug Hooking Magazine had arrived and I brought it with me to read. The wool tossed and tumbled...

...while I read. What a surprise to read Wanda Kerr’s article about values – I’d been thinking about that a lot lately (and it was my motivation for all of this dyeing!

You definitely get a few funny looks at the Laundromat when you wash your “fabric scraps”...but the results are well worth it! ;-)

happy new year!

...and best wishes for a really great 2008 ;-)

I'm looking forward to a year of new projects and lots of great posts. After all of the celebrations wound down (and I recovered from a brief encounter with the flu), I started on my de-junking and reorganizing project. I've been at it for 4 days now, and just took 2 big bags to the Sally Ann, 2 to the dumpster at work, and there are 4 big bags of recycling waiting for Tuesday to arrive. While far from finished, I think that I will try to wrap things up tonight and get back to some fun again.

I'm off to the city tomorrow for a two-day jaunt and home again in time for a dye day on Saturday. I've already got a big pile of wool waiting to be ripped and torn....along with some very scary pieces I found hiding in a corner of the closet this morning, that need to be reincarnated. Lots of pictures will follow, don't worry...

Other good news is that I should soon have highspeed at home. It was supposed to be up and running two weeks ago (around the same time I last went online - hence the lack of posts or e-mails)....but things are never simple. The most recent word is that the linemen will be resolving the problem in 72 hours (up tomorrow night). So please keep your fingers crossed.

yep, it's a new post!

Well, four visits from the same Bell guy and a couple from his friends have finally gotten our high speed up and running at work again. For how long, we're not quite sure...they aren't promising anything because we're about as far away from the tower as you can get and still have service.

Not too much else is new around here. It's still snowy and I've been busy getting ready for Christmas. The shopping is all done....and I'm hoping to get it all wrapped tonight. I love wrapping presents...choosing the paper, making the ribbons into bows, crafting the gift tags. It's all fun for me. A good wrapping job definitely adds to the gift (or at least helps to make up for a gift that's a little less than perfect).

The scarves are all knit - I'm pretty sure I have enough - and I'm going to arrange them in a basket for their first delivery/selection tomorrow. In the end there were 7 made + 1 hat (knit from the leftover dyed wool from my whipping - here is the promised picture...)


The Clapotis (free pattern from knitty.com) is complete and even blocked. I think that I will keep this one for myself. The colours in this photo are not quite right, but I was in a rush to take the pictures this morning. I used some wool from Handmaiden called "Mini Maiden" and modified the pattern accordingly. It's 50% wool and 50% silk and feels so soft and lovely. If I could, I'd like to have a sleeping bag knit from it!

Thanks to Kathy, my sewing machine is back in business and I could no longer procrastinate the stocking making. For some reason this one came together quite quickly - I started on Sunday night around 5pm and hooked until bedtime...and then just a few hours of hooking and sewing last night and it was pressed and ready for hanging. I'll be dropping it off this weekend when I'm in the city for this.

still kickin'

Life's been busy for the last while....and now I've been without internet for the last few days, too. Just popped in quickly on dial-up to say sorry for the lack of posts - I'll try to make up for it very soon....

on the newstand...

The next time you're standing in line at the grocery store, check out page 11 of the Winter 2008 issue of Canadian Home & Country magazine. The page is filled with ornaments hooked by Micheline Mann. At $32 a pop, it is refreshing to see the time and energy that goes into the creation of hooked items being reflected the price. On the rare occasion that I actually see rug hooking for sale, I typically come across prices that appear to undervalue the considerable effort and skill invested in the piece. Not only does this undervalue the creator and their work, but other hand hooking, as well.

If you click on the above link, you can also see some of Micheline's hooked rugs, too.

books

If you're anything like me, you feel as though you must own absolutely anything and everything ever written about rug hooking. When I first started rug hooking, I bought every book I could find about our craft. This wasn't too hard, since there weren't many books available. Lately though, there seem to be more and more new ones coming out all the time - which is great!

Here are a few new ones I've added to my bookshelf recently...

I met Linda Rae Coughlin at Deanne's Symposium last month, where she was one of the speakers. She features quite a few series of hooked rugs in this book, including all of Patty Yoder's Alphabet of Sheet rugs, the Art Cards, the Circus Train (I think!) and quite a few others. It is interesting to see multiple pieces hooked by the same person, or on the same theme, together in one place....something not really covered in the same way in other books I've seen.
Apparently she had too many rugs to fit in one book, so a second book was born...

I'll bet there are few rug hookers alive who haven't heard of Jesse Turbayne. She's back with another book of rugs...a companion to her book released last summer. There are quite a few Canadians featured in this volume. I was very flattered to discohttp://www2.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifver my work included in this book, too. Both the alphabet rug I hooked for my nephew Wyatt and the rug of AJ were completed early in my rug hooking adventures.

Happy hooking this weekend. Myself, I think I'll continue knitting on my clapotis...I'm probably the last person to knit one.

snap!

Wish it was mine with a snap of my fingers...
(photo shamelessly stolen from the Snap Dragon Frames site)

When I was at Dorr last week, I got the chance to see one of these frames in action. It is truly great - and I want one! If you're in the market for a new frame, I encourage you to check them out. The pictures don't really do them justice. The top section is all real wood - cherry and poplar - and beautifully finished.

You just lay your backing on the top and reach underneath to pull down each of the 4 levers - snapping them into place...and your backing is tight as a drum. To release and move your backing, just snap each of the levers back to the starting position and lift it off...no pulled loops.

I didn't let myself consider adding this frame to my collection at the time (I already have 3 frames). It was only later, when Cathy suggested that I could sell one of my other frames, that I started to get excited. I will definitely be picking up one of these babies the next time.

just in time...

This is what I woke up to see this morning. I'm so glad that we made it home before we had to deal with winter.

Believe it or not, the photo wasn't modified - it just looks like it's black & white.

beauty everywhere...

What a fabulous couple of days! Shelburne was just as expected: lots of beautiful rugs, gorgeous wool and friendly faces.

Although there were considerably fewer rugs this year (reportedly only about 450 vs. 900+ last year), the quality of the show did not suffer one little bit. There was no shortage of lovely things to look at - that's for sure ;-) The work was mounted in a more pleasing, if not artistic, display....and it seemed to me to be easier to take it all in. I took heaps of pictures - at least until the battery on my camera died (and of course, the spare was at the motel!)...and I have tried my best in the absence of Photoshop....

Imagine our surprise to discover Cathy's rug front and centre when we entered the round barn (and most deservedly so!) If you have seen her Tower & Turrets of Queen's University, you will know the picture below doesn't do it justice...

Wendie - I took pictures of your faces on display....

The weather has been great, as well. Yesterday and today were both mostly sunny days and made for some pleasant driving. We're keeping our fingers crossed that the snow waits until we're home again before it starts blowing...

We had a delicious supper last night at Pauline's. It was so yummy we decided to return there again tonight! It is definitely going to be added to the list of must-go places for my annual pilgrimage to Shelburne.

I'm in a rush to finish and head off to bed. It will be an early start tomorrow. More pictures to follow in the coming days...

we're here!

We're staying in Lebanon for the night tonight. The drive was long, but relatively uneventful. There was a little bit of snow through New York, and surprisingly more in the mountains in the south part of Vermont. We were glad to see the end of the snow once we got off the mountains.

We've been doing a little shopping so far, taking advantage of no sales tax in New Hampshire...but we're saving ourselves for Dorr tommorrow. We're planning on an early start to the day and on being the first ones in when it opens at 9 (it's about 30-40 minutes drive). So we're off to bed. Goodnight!

ready...

My bags are packed and in the car. I'll be heading out of town in about an hour. I'll be stopping along to way to visit my friend Dayle and (not so little) baby Evan, in Toronto. Then, it's off to Cathy's for supper.

I'll be bringing my laptop with me, and plan to do some posting while I'm gone. I can't wait to see all of those beautiful rugs. Oh, and some new wool will be nice, too.