New Block of the Month Hooked Rug

This is a Mystery Block of the Month project by The Wool Basket of Loveland Colorado. This is a 9 month project where you purchase the wool kit each month. The design is by Cabin Creek.

This is the first block, but you will not know what the next block is until August. They are all very do-able within a month. The rug is a floral design with each block having a different flower. With the exception of next month.....but I can't tell you!

You will want to hook this in a #6 cut, I'm doing mine in a #5. But the background can be a #6, #7 or #8 cut.

If you are interested please click on the link to The Wool Basket and it will take you right to Karen's website where you can read all about it and sign up. http://thewoolbasket.com/ Even I am purchasing the kits from Karen so that I can hook along with the rest of you. I may know what the entire pattern looks like but I have no idea what Karen is going to do so it's still a surprise to me!

By the way I just finished my pansy runner this afternoon! After I block and finish the edges I'll post it.

Pansy Runner Rug in progress

This is a rug that I started at least 5 years ago in a workshop with Jeanne Benjamin. It was my second attempt at shading only this time I wanted to go with a wider cut, #6. I'm very happy with the pansies but the shaded leaves were not good. This is why it's been sitting for so long. Every so often I drag it out, try to fix the leaves, get discouraged and then put it away.

One evening while skimming Jane Olsen's Rug Hooking Bible I noticed most of the leaves in the book were shaded with dip dye. First thing next morning out came the dye pots and from my first attempt came a lovely dip dyed shade of green by combining 2 of Emma Lou's formulas. I started hooking the leaves on the left side as they were the only 4 that had not been hooked yet.

It looked so much better so I started ripping out the others and left only the leaves on the far right pansy and took a photo. They have since been ripped out and new leaves are in place!

A few more days and maybe I'll get this rug finished! If you click on the image you'll get a much better look at the leaves.

I'll post it when the time comes. By the way, the small Red/Pink Rose at the right side was my first attempt at shading....my teacher gave me an A+.

Shaded Iris

I found this a few days ago at a tag sale. It's completely hooked, just needs to be finished. I thought it was a pretty good deal, I only paid $24.00 for it. All of that work into this and what a shame that it's not finished. I'll eventually whip the edges with wool yarn. I have no idea how it was intended to be used but it needs to be finished. If you click on the image you can really get a detailed view. Written on the sides is designed by Pearl McGowan and 1952. It's 18" across.

Turkey

I guess he doesn't know it's open season right now! He hangs around here all day. He's out there gobbling as I post this. He sees his reflection in the window and thinks it's competition!

Crochet Bedspreads

Here are 3 bedspreads that my Grandmother crochet. They are so beautiful and I keep them hidden in a closet so I may as well share them here. They are so old so I'm too careful with them and should really have them out where I can enjoy them. All 3 are large and would fit a double bed. The one on the right was given to my cousin years ago, her mother would wash it in a washing machine and thus pretty well ruined it. It's starting to rot, this happens to be a good part of it. It's beyond repair, my Aunt gave it to me so now I have all 3 of them and they are well taken care of.

Prickly Pear Cactus

This is a little wall quilt I made a several years ago. It's hand appliqued and I did a little bit of hand quilting on it. Not as much as it should have, I was anxious to hang it up. Not my design but unfortunatly I can't remember who's pattern it is. I embroidered cactus stickers on it but they don't show here unless you click on the image to make it larger.

Wyoming Landscape Quilt

Quilt in progress. This is my most recent quilt project. My first attempt at a landscape quilt. This is a view in Wyoming from our driveway looking at the cross road and the backside of the mailboxes. The Big Horn Range in the background.

I took a landscape class with Regina Browne in Arizona. So far this is only tacked down with fusible web and pins but eventually I'll start stitching all the pieces down and quilt it. It still needs a LOT of work as I found a much better fabric for the forground that looks just like grasses and will save a bit of time rather than cutting greens into grass like shapes. I hand painted the sky. Colors look a little off here but it's close enough. I'll TRY to get this finished....someday! Hopefully it'll turn out okay! It's about 39" x 24" and why didn't I start out with a much smaller first time project!!!!

If you click on the image, you'll get a much better look at the details.

Lone Star

This is one of my first quilts made in about 1978. I tackled a difficult pattern right off the bat! It's machine pieced and hand quilted by me. Back when I hand quilted everything I made. I think I started this quilt first and then started the Postage Stamp Quilt at about the same time. 62" x 62". The colors came from memory of the hills from a trip out to eastern Montana. All the grass, cottonwood trees, dirt and sagebrush.

Embroidered Quilt

This is a small wall quilt. 21" x 32" I hand embroidered this and machine pieced. Made in about 1997. Not the best shot but it's winter and I can't get outside for photos. It's about 20 degrees!

Moose Runner

Moose hearth Rug. Another one of my designs. 49 1/2" x 12 1/2"


It's snowing heavily today. We are suppose to get the heaviest snowfall of the season, possibly 8" or more. It's dark and gloomy and I can't see any further than about 20 feet outside. We even had snow thunder. I'm afraid we're in for a big one! The wild turkeys are really making noise out there. Everytime it thunders, they complain!

Snowmen

It's time I add some of my hooked rugs again. One of my designs called First Heavy Snow. 49" x 12"

Time for some color, it's so dreary outside today!

Hedgehog Cactus Arizona Spring 2008

Desert Poppies Arizona Spring 2008

Snow

Woke up to a bit of snow this morning. It's pretty but I'm ready for spring.

Kitting up the jar lids

Today I'm putting together kits for the wool applique jar lids below. I dyed wool yesterday for these kits. I ran out of embroidery floss so I guess they won't get finished until tomorrow.

Create & Decorate Magazine April 2009

I’m proud to have been published in the latest issue of Create & Decorate magazine! My project, Wool Appliqué Jar Lids is featured on page 30. A huge surprise for me was that Create & Decorate also published 2 of my photos in Country Still Life on page 71. The April 2009 issue will be available in shops by February 17th. Please pick up a copy of this magazine, you’ll find plenty of projects to enjoy!

Copyright All American Crafts Publishing and Create & Decorate

Winter Snow Storm

These images are taken out the front door. It's snowing like crazy and the wild turkeys are feeding out of the bird feeder again! The second shot is looking down the driveway. Yes, we have wild turkeys, they come for cracked corn when I call turkey...turkey...turkey. They come right up to me almost within reach and wait for a hand out. Last winter we had more than 60 staying in our woods the entire winter. If I yell at them to get out of the bird feeder they just sass back with a gobble gobble gobble! A lot of fun to watch but it does smell a bit like a barnyard in the spring!

Boot Scoot

This pattern was in a Quilter's Newsletter magazine approx. 1995. I machine pieced this and it was machine quilted by Bonnie Bosma.

Bonnie quilted all kinds of interesting shapes in the white areas to add more interest that don't show up in this photo.

This is still one of my favorite quilts.

Two quilt tops still waiting to be quilted. I made both so long ago that I can't even remember.....maybe 15 years ago? Or more! It's about time they get quilted!

My first all batik quilt. I was afraid to use a lot of bright colors in a quilt but after this one....I'm addicted! Machine pieced. Machine quilted by Bonnie Bosma.

Pattern from the book Succesful Scrap Quilts.