bits & pieces of my first ever rug hooking project - a beginner mat of paisley & dots
hooked ? oh, oh
In fairness it's early days yet so it's possible that this new bug that appears to have bitten me might not amount to a full blown groove. Remember my goal (perhaps not a good one) was to have less grooves. My friend Deb & I went to the nearby larger town on Thursday to partake in a beginner/basic 2 hour rug hooking workshop with Deanne Fitzpatrick. I had ulterior motives: I was curious about the technique & process (I took another beginner rug hooking course years ago & remember distinctly thinking at the time that it seemed rather labour intensive & not at all for me), my friend Deb has just retired and had expressed interest in rug hooking as a possible activity to fill some of her new found free time + I would get a chance to finally meet Deanne (who I've spoken to many times on the phone & read her blog regularly) & finally check out her store/studio/workshop space.
Well ... it all exceeded my expectations & let me tell ya those are words seldom uttered by moi. My expectations for most things (people, activities & events) in life are so often tres overblown, way high up above the puffy clouds of life where the planes fly - leaving me, natch, in a state of perpetual mild disappointment. But not this time !
Not here. Deanne is wonderful (as I suspected) & so very inspiring to me. Her shop is stunning. It's in an amazing physical space, a revitalized older down-town building & it is filled with gorgeous stuff ! filled to the brim yet all displayed in that super aesthetically pleasing way with just the perfect amount of spareness. Many rugs & smaller hooked items adorn the walls & are displayed all about giving you plenty of ideas for potential projects. Patterns, books, tools and wool, wool & more wool in colours & textures that made me want to weep. Oh my, the small skeins of hottest pink gnarly wool, the limiest greens & the boldest oranges along with as complete a palette of neutrals & historic colours that anyone would ever desire.
So am I hooked ? I just may be. I will confess that since Thursday hooking has been been taking up a rather large portion of my thinking. Every evening since then, when it's time to do those breathing exercises & tone down the vibration of my day's busyness I've picked up my hooking.
So far it's been a perfect, very relaxing & fun way to wind down. The other great news is my friend Deb was bitten by the hooking bug also ... & Deanne & I are getting together again soon.
good morning! oh, how I love me some rug hooking! BUT I simply CANNOT start another craft/passion that requires me to gather more textile supplies... that said, I have hooked a couple things, taking a class with my dearest niece, and love doing it. Enjoy!
ReplyDeletebest from KB and her pack!
Hey KMRose, In my pondering taking up this hobby I've been thinking about the expense - it seems without a little ingenuity, this could be a very expensive pastime. I would have to be dying my own wool (which is OK) because I know that the colours I'd be looking for would be difficult to find in the "rug hooker" bins at many second hand stores.
ReplyDeleteI know this from my vast experience attempting clothes shopping in 2nd hand/vintage places they just don't seem to have many pinks, corals, lavenders & geranium blouses & sweaters - bummer. Most of what I find seems drab & neutral - not my colour palette most of the time.
Your photos just amaze me! Your hooked shots are stunning and OH so cozy, sweet Susan. :) Happy Sunday.
ReplyDeleteah, yes, the expense... but the more pressing reason not to add fiber to this house is SPACE. I have one entire, good-sized room filled with bins, boxes, cubbies, and a closet full of (mostly) fabric, but also all the "notions" one uses in sewing along with embellishments,yarns, beads and so on. It has truly gotten out of hand and is beginning to spill into other parts of the house!
ReplyDeleteyea - I am so happy you got bit by the hook. I love it! I got my sister hooked this summer when we visited Deanne's studio. The show was amazing in VT and the rugs were spectacular. There is nothing like dyeing a piece of wool and exploring the colours you can get it. I find the whole process relaxing. It is my therapy LOL. TTYS
ReplyDeletevery cool. Ive always wanted to learn this too - also the rag rug thing. I am making felt and stitched ornaments tomorrow for my handmade holiday show. can i sew> nope. I just do it anyway. they are..primitive. blog is beautiful all the posts..too tried to comment but liked them all - LOL the pink circle.
ReplyDelete...and what does one's feline assistant think of this? My experience is that they can't keep their paws off and see it as their right to lay on it, no matter how big or small the project.
ReplyDeleteLooks like fun Susan and another avenue for experimentation with that wonderful colour palette of yours.