Sunday, May 27, 2012

Denver Hook-In

I thought I had done a good job of taking pictures of the rug show at the Denver Hook-In, but after looking at what was on my camera, I see that I neglected to get quite a few. However, here are the ones that I did get. Enjoy!













Laura Pierce was there from California and I see that she has shared some pictures on her blog - so if you want to see a few more you can go here. My friend Tonia attended the Hook-in as a vendor and she has posted some pictures on her blog here.

Friday, May 25, 2012

Challenge Rugs

I hooked the challenge rug for the Denver Hook-In and entered it in the rug show - you saw it a couple of posts back. Here are pictures of the other rugs that were done - it's amazing how differently they all turned out!





 The one below was probably my favorite - it was hooked by the same gal who designed the pattern. I love that she made a runner out of it by joining three of the motifs into a row!

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Home From Denver

Hubby & I returned home from our visit to Denver on Sunday night. It was a nice trip and we really enjoyed ourselves. Highlights of the visit included a drive to Estes Park in the Rocky Mountains - just gorgeous! We did a little hiking, a little shopping, went to a movie, ate good food, sat in the hot tub, and explored during our five days there. There were lots of thrift stores, flea markets, and antique stores everywhere we went, and we stopped at quite a few of them. I'm always drawn to furniture pieces with small drawers and cubbies, so these three pieces pictured below really grabbed my attention. However, NONE of them would fit in our car so they didn't come home with us - the $2,600 price tags had nothing to do with it! LOL






I was able to visit my very first rug hooking store - The Wool Basket - in Loveland. We don't have any stores like this here in Utah so it was fun to go in and look around.




Oddly enough, the carpet in the hallway of our hotel caught my eye - these wonky squares would make a fun rug, yes?




I'll share pictures from the hook-in on my next post.

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Rug Stuff

Today I attended my monthly rug hooking meeting in SLC and while I was there I whipped the edge of the challenge rug I made for the Denver Hook-in which will be held May 19th. It just needs one more pressing and it'll be good to go! It measures 18" square.






Nancy has made quite a bit of progress on her rug since I saw it last month - she says it's so much fun to work on this because every day is a different motif & color. I love it!






Myra brought a new cabin/woods rug that she's started hooking - it will be a gift for her cousin. The bear and trees are looking great (in spite of the hassle her sons-in-law have given her) and I'm looking forward to seeing the ground and sky as they develop.






Fun day!

Friday, May 4, 2012

Random Stuff

I've never been a huge fan of Halloween, but I do love autumn & fall stuff - especially pumpkins and crows. Last October when we took the long 12 hour drive to California, I started this little stitchery by drawing a design onto muslin backed with cotton batting. I outlined it and filled in with a gazillion x's. Finally got it trimmed to an oval shape last week and attached it to a piece of orange wool using a blanket stitch - then added a backing and bound it with black fabric like a quilt. 






Now I just hope I can find it when fall comes so that I can display it in my home - I have a habit of forgetting what I have and where I put it! LOL






We had a small turnout at rug hooking earlier this week - because of sickness & travel & other reasons. Tonia was finishing up a rug that she designed - Daniel & the Lions. Isn't it cool? She has recently started blogging and is going to be selling her designs soon - you can visit her HERE at Baa Ram Ewe Designs. Her hubby is a very talented woodworker and she shows some of the things he's made for her in an earlier post - stop over and see!






I spent some time with my friend Kathy a couple days ago and got to see all her recently completed elves lined up across the top of her piano. She's named each one - and each one is sold already! When you see them in person, the detail just blows you away! She makes the faces and hands using Sculpey clay and their expressions are amazing!







She also had these darling little footprints out in her yard that I just fell in love with - need to find some rocks the right size and shape to do this myself! She found the idea on Pinterest - don't you just love that place?



Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Apronology

Apron-ology is a magazine that I enjoy looking through on occasion. In the most recent issue my attention was caught by a cute bib-type apron that was covered with rows and rows of ruffles. It was made by a talented gal named Rae who blogs HERE


This is her apron - she calls it a farmhouse apron.
The next three photos show the aprons that I made this week using hers for inspiration. The red one is for me and I used an apron I've owned for years - just added the ruffles.


The one with all the bright colors is for DD#1 -  I purchased a white apron from JoAnn Fabrics and embellished it using leftover fabrics from the quilt I made for her last summer. She has Fiestaware dishes in her kitchen, so I could've/should've gone even brighter! LOL




And this brown & white one is for DD#2 - hope the colors will work in her kitchen. I made this apron from scratch and even had to purchase the brown & white fabrics that I thought she would like.

Neither of the girls have seen these aprons in person yet - they don't even know I was making them - so if they see him here they'll be surprised! (in a good way I hope!) Hopefully, these aprons are so busy, that a stain here or there will never even be noticeable! LOL


Rae is also a rug hooker - and does other projects using wool. Plus, she has a studio that's drool-worthy. If you'd care to see these other items, go to her blog HERE and click on the Gallery link.