A little messy on the frame this week.  Steamy hot week with temps in the high 90's.  So it's hooking in the afternoons.  I can see some adjustments need to be made on the rose, one petal is a bit too dark.  I like hooking the background as I complete a design.  A row or two of background help to define the design, and confirms the background choice is a good one.  Plus, the rug is mostly done and only a little boring background to do at the end!

Plans are shaping up for the Spring Fiber Fling in March 2020.  Friday afternoon classes will be listed soon, just waiting for information from the teachers.  Check back soon!

Sneak preview of my current rug hooking project.  I attended the Off the Ocean Rug Camp in Jacksonville FL in January and thoroughly enjoyed a class with Sybil Osicka.  After a busy spring I am getting back to it.  More pictures to come with progress. 

We are working on details for the 2020 Spring Fiber Fling too!

Finished, finally!  Colchester Vase, available from Honey Bee Hive Rug Hooking.

I added the braid to make a border.  The first one I tried was green and yellow, trying to bring the yellow from the center to the outside.  The contrast was too sharp and all I saw was the braid, not the flowers.  Red made it look to Christmasy.  I think the final decision of three strands of green plaid for the braid is the right one.  It takes trial and error sometimes to get it right.

This is Oscar!  Anne Doucet from Titusville FL  hooked this charming sea turtle using several fun decorative stitches.  I had the pleasure of teaching the class in January in Titusville.  We focused our fiber fun on learning these stitches to add texture and interest to our rug hooking.  Thank you for inviting me to teach, and sharing the picture of your finished Oscar!

Drop Spindle spinning and knitting out in the woods during a hike on a beautiful day with my talented sister who came to visit for Christmas.  

Are you ready for 2019?  Have you set some goals?  Either to finish the UFO's, or learn a new art form?  Make a plan and get prepared and go for it!

Only two weeks until the Country Roads Quilt Show in Ocala Florida!  We all need needle cases to store our favorite needles and pins.  I will have these kits available for you at the quilt show.  A perfect size to give wool appliqué a try!  

Stop in my booth and say Hello!

I am excited to be a new vendor at the Country Road Quilt Show in Ocala Florida!  For all the important details check out their website at crqocala.com/quilt-show-2018.

I will be playing in the dye pots over the next several weeks!  Last week I dyed brilliant reds and glorious greens for Christmas projects and some outrageous oranges for pumpkins to get you started on fall.

Be sure to stop in my booth and say HI!

I will have several wool appliqué kits and patterns available also.  

Once in a while you need several values of the same color.  Santa faces anyone!

Registration is open!

Follow the Spring Fiber Fling 2019 tab on the tool bar to register.

One of my all time favorite rug patterns!  I am making some progress and enjoying each flower and leaf.  I guess I need to tackle the roses and strap leaves next.  During the summer I need extra fans to keep cool under this extreme rug!

A surprise adventure is always fun, when he said I am sure there is a spinning wheel in that barn somewhere!  We put on our boots, found our gloves, made sure our flashlights worked, long sleeves and pants for sure.  The barn was loaded, stacked pile on pile of old stuff and things.  And dark.  Then, there it was, a spinning wheel, made into a lamp.  Kind of disappointed not a treasure to take home.  Some parts were missing, and warped wheel.  I left it there for the next person with a treasure map, who needs a lamp.

I also had the pleasure of taking a weaving class from Tammy Poff, Poff Studios to learn the Log Cabin pattern on the rigid heddle loom.  This pattern has a pickup stick element in between the log cabin which adds a degree of difficulty to the weaving.  Now to wait for the cold day in January to wear it, in Florida.

Traveling in April is supposed to be, well, springy like weather, right?  A late spring blizzard made me a day late to the North Central McGown Teachers Workshop in Dubuque Iowa!  We made snow angels one night after the second storm of the week!

I am making progress on a primitive rug from a class at the workshop.  Wide cut, primitive representation taught by Valerie Bergeman.  Excellent class.

March began with the Spring Fiber Fling in Wildwood Florida!  We had a full house of rug hookers, spinners, weavers, knitters, wool appliqués!  And more!   

Are you interested in learning decorative stitches in rug hooking?  I will be teaching this pattern with all decorative stitches at the Florida Tropical Weavers Guild Annual Conference, March 15th to 18th at Lake Yale Conference Center.  Check out all the possibilities at FTWG.org!  Mini classes, vendors, 2.5 day classes, and MORE!

New hand-dyed wool from my dye pots are now listed in the website store under Specialty Dying.  These are one of a kind, 1/2 yard each.  Several different color ways to choose from, ready to be mailed to you!

Two new wool appliqué kits to make your own needle case.  Each kit comes with all  the wool to complete the project.  Finished size is approximately 4" x 4", with six pages inside to organize your needles and pins.

Find these in the Products and Services pages.

To Everyone who placed orders during the hurricane!  Thank you for your patience while we were cleaning up from Hurricane Irma!  We still have several trees to be removed (hoping tomorrow!!). We are extremely thankful that none hit the house.  The studio is reorganized, all neat and tidy for a few days anyway, 

I finished this stained glass design during the hurricane.  I used my trusty Beam N Read Light,  hang it  around your neck light when the power goes out and you can accomplish anything!  This pattern is sold by Honey Bee Hive Rug Hooking, designed by Jane Flynn.  I believe I will frame it.

Spinning when the power is out is easy!  At least during the daylight hours. At night I was able to use a power block and a LED light from the studio. This is Alpaca fiber and I am going to use it as is.  I kind of like the soft color.  I am always told MORE TWIST!  So I did, and added more twist when plying.  It was such a twisty chaotic mess and not photo worthy, not happy at all.  However, the magic happened in the soaking.  Now I am delighted with it.  The fluffy yarn is wonderfully balanced.  Can't wait to get it on the loom!

A little progress on Gainesboro this summer.  As I look at the photo I can see a couple places that need to be fixed.  A swirl that does not swirl enough, some shadows needing more depth.

A camera is a great tool to find the little things requiring a small and easy solution.  Try changing the setting to black and white to see dramatic lights and darks in your own rugs.  You will be able to  visualize any values that are too close and don't show up.

Now, on to the next scroll, and finish that rose in the middle!

Gainesboro will be my summer project - too hot to dye, too hot to be outside.  So with the AC and a fan I will be hooking this large 60 inch round pattern.  I purchased the Pearl McGown pattern drawn on burlap and transferred it to linen. Not an easy task.   Using the "Scrolls are Easy" book by LaVerne Brescia I decided to dye my wool with the formulas in the book.  Dip dye, swatches, painting.  I began hooking this with Sally Ballinger in February this year.  I hope to post weekly updates as the summer goes by.