Playing in the Dye Pots

Well that is not something I do very often! But I needed some purple wool.....yeah, Kelley, I said purple wool, so I had to dye some today as I have none. I'm rather pleased with the wonderful colors I achieved. One batch did turn out as planned. As you can see it is a little too blue but I'll still use it. Aljo and cushing dyes were in the dye pots. Now why do I need purple wool you ask? Well, think purple, orange, green and maybe some black.....hmmmm, nice colors for a fall rug! Yeah, I'm working on a huge Halloween rug that I hope will turn out really cool and very whimsical......I'll post some pics in progress.....or maybe I'll keep it a surprise til I'm done. Maria

Creative Bliss while in France

I just wanted to share with you the Bayeux Tapestry which is located in Bayeux, Normandy. When the leader of our group told us we were going to go see a tapestry, I was not thrilled. What kind of tapestry would be worth traipsing 27 kids to see? Well, boy was I wrong. As I was unable to take my rug hooking or needlepunch with me on the trip, this visit to see the Bayeux Tapestry filled my creative void that I was definitely feeling.

The Tapestry, which is one of the most famous tapestries in the world, was most amazing. The Tapestry, made of a long piece of linen, stretches 231 feet long and about 20 inches wide. It is embroidered with eight colors of woolen thread. The colors are so wonderfully primitive. The embroidery looks more like needlepunch to me and was incredible because of the colors and the way they manipulated them. The maker of the tapestry also gave depth to the embroidery by embroidering in different directions within a figure (horse) to give it such depth. Studying the tapestry certainly would provide creative ideas for rug hooking.

The tapestry has 72 individual scenes,including more than 1500 figures, of the Norman Conquest. The tapestry depicts the consequences of Harold’s failure to honor the oath, he gave at Bayeux recognizing his cousin William’s right to succeed Edward the Confessor. The tapestry was more than likely made in England soon after the conquest. It was first displayed in public around 1476, Bayeux Cathedral Bayeux. The Bayeux Cathedral is only a short distance from the D-Day invasion beaches of Omaha and Gold and luckily was not bombarded during the historic invasion.
Here are a couple of pictures to whet your appetite.



I've included a link for you to view individual pictures of the tapestry. For some reason, I can't put the link in so you will just have to cut and paste. Sorry about that. After viewing this tapestry, I was one happy gal as it filled my creative void while on vacation. Enjoy the pictures.

http://www.hastings1066.com/baythumb.shtml
Here is another link to read all about the tapestry.
http://www.bayeuxtapestry.org.uk/

NEW RUG~HAPPY JACK

Well, I just love this rug. He makes me happy everytime I look at him hence the name Happy Jack. Don't you just love the orange wool? All those colors from just one piece of wool...Oh, and the grass...also from the same piece of wool. It is the best wool. Can you tell I love it? This pattern is available for sale if you are interested. The pattern is actually larger than it looks here. It measures 16 x 20 and sells for $40.00 on linen. Right now I'm working on a really big Halloween rug that I am so excited about. It will take me a while to finish but will post when done.
Had some fun with my photo editing program. This one is the cartoon. The coloring book program is fun as well.
On another note, check out these cute charms for rug hookers. I just have to have one. My pay Bren made these and they are just the cutest. You can purchase them on her blog which is listed in my favorites.

More Pictures from Paris

The first picture is of the Eiffel Tower at night. Isn't it pretty? You just can't believe how big it is until you are standing underneath it.
The next picture is a view of Paris from the second level of the tower. I was not daring enough to go any higher. My knees were knocking at this height. Isn't the city wonderful?
And finally, this a picture(at night)of the tower from underneath. Isn't it just awesome? I just bought a new camera for the trip and am so pleased with the photos. These pictures are straight from the camera. I didn't have to retouch them at all.
On the rug hooking front, I've been busy hooking a few new designs. I just finished up a pumpkin rug and used some wool from Rebecca at the Wool Studio. It was such fun wool to use in this rug. When I post the rug, I'll take a picture of the wool. Have a great week. Maria

I recently had the pleasure of chaperoning a High School French class's trip to France and will be adding pictures of the trip. What a treat it was to see France through the eyes of high school kids. The kids were in awe of the sights, culture and people. The teacher who planned this trip is amazing and gave the kids (27), not to mention the chaperones, a trip of a lifetime. Here are a few pictures of some of the beautiful flowers that were in bloom while we were in France.




I bought a new camera for the trip and am pleased with the results. With my old camera, I had to adjust all the pictures before posting. Not with this camera. This is the picture without any adjustments! I'm hoping my rug photos will turn out as well. Maria

I'm Back!

After several months of "no Posts", I'm finally back in the swing of things and hope to be posting more regularly. I've recently started hooking again and hooked up this little blue bird the other night using all scraps of wool. You wouldn't have believed the huge pile of worms I had accumulated over the years. So I sorted them into color groups and decided to hook a rug using only scraps. I could probably hook 10 more of these little mats. I am offering this pattern for sale if any of you are interested. It is 9.5 x 14 and sells for $22.00.

And I also punched this sweet little Sheep Guy over Christmas break. Sometimes, I'll punch one of my rug designs before I hook it. That way I can color plan my rug before I hook it. I can't wait to hook this one up for you. Maybe over the next couple of weeks.

I'm trying very hard to hook rugs with different colors (rather than my dark background that I always use) and I have a doozy on the frame right now. I can't wait for you to see it. It should be ready in a week or so. Maria