Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe: Three Samplers are finished and a chart give-away!

Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe: Three Samplers are finished and a chart give-away!

Another geometric

This rug is based on Amish Quilt square designs. There are three sections, and each section is one quilt block design. It's very easy to design a rug using quilt block patterns! I chose jewel tones as that is similar to Amish colors. Since my ancestry is Pennsy Dutch those colors have always made me smile. I wasn't sure about the rose color with the magenta but it seems to be working!

Making progress...

I believe I am about halfway (or more?) completed. Actually I have completed 6 more squares since this photo was taken. This is an enjoyable project because I just grab three colors from my basket that seem to work together and hook them in. Other than that there is no color planning. I may move some 'brights" around later but for now I am just enjoying the colors play with each other.

Stalled attempt at Tangled Garden by JEH MacDonald

I started this probably four years ago - maybe five? But became unhappy with the building on the upper left, which I think I need to take out and insert skinny shadow lines between the clapboards. I hate unhooking, unpicking anything, in fact.

What do you think? It has a variety of widths of wool as well as some yarn and some gorgeous silk from Deanne Fitzpatrick.

Thanks for any comments!
Maureen

PS Here is the real thing, which I don't aspire to, but love, so thought in my newbie innocence, that it would be good to have a version of in my home.

Artist Trading Cards

Some friends coerced me into making some rug hooked trading cards. I'm sure most of you are familiar with the latest craze where you make small cards and then trade them with other people. I have never done it before and was surprised how fast they work up. I thought I'd share my first effort with you. I worked in a #3 cut and have a struggle keeping my small loops straight. I am making 3 other cards on the same backing before I cut them apart from the backing, finish the edge and put a label on the back. I'm playing more on the others and using proddy, yarn and glittery threads. It's fun! Many of you know I recently went ballooning so that was my inspiration. It's a great way to use up scrap wooly worms!

Standing Wool Rug

Chelle asked what a "standing wool rug" was so I wanted to post a picture. This one is in process and is made from a variety of wool that is torn or cut to 1/2" strips. Those strips are then rolled and secured to form the mat. I use a long thin needle and thin crochet cotton to sew it together. I sew through the center of the strips to secure it to the "base" and you don't see the threads at all. If you want I can post pictures of how I sew them together.

There are a variety of ways to create different looks, including beading (small rolls), and shirring (folding the strip on the row). This is an old pre-1850's technique (before rug hooking was popular) and creates a plush mat that is sturdy and great as a chair pad or hot plate mat. You can play and create as you go...no patterns! You can use a combination of wools from thick blanket weight to thin and thready. Great for scraps!

Swirly Sheep update

I know...I'm slow. My excuse is that I have a busy life. Don't we all? I took a lot of the wonderful advice that many of you gave me. I changed the legs and head of the sheep to tweedy gray. I added the beaded line that Michelle suggested, and like it. I still have some tweaking to do on this, and that line is one of the things to tweak. I believe I should have hooked it higher, and should have really snuggled the adjacent rows to it so it would be straighter. I was running out of black or I would have enlarged the border by a row or two, and would have added a second row of beaded border with a black line in between the beaded rows. Gene Shepherd makes beaded rows look so straight and easy!

I have a very small black half round button that I will sew on for her eye. And I am going to re-hook the hooves with the tan as they are now black and you can't see them at all. I like the background color. It is a mix of tweeds, plaids and all sorts of recycled wools tossed into a pot with Cushings Turkey red and a touch of black.

As I look at it on the monitor I wish I has added a small butterfly sitting on her back! Thanks to all my internet rug hooking friends who brainstormed and gave me advice for this project. I appreciate each one of you! Hugs from me to you!!!