I've had many questions about my blog challenge and my antique santa and reindeer rugs. The burning questions are 1) where did I find the felted balls that I used in my hanger for my challenge project and 2) Will I part with my dye formula for the face in the Santa and Reindeer rug?
The felted balls are from Ally Strebel of Kindred Spirits and here is her contact information....
www.alistrebeldesigns.com"
Those felted balls are the bomb...Just think of all the ways to embellish your rug hooking or sewing projects.....Top of hats, hangers (like my challenge project) or try stringing a few from the bottom of the rug to add a little whimsy. The possibilities are many!
As for the flesh colored dye formula for my santa rug.....can't give it to you because, I don't know it...BUT I do know where you can buy the wool. My pal Kris Miller sells the wool and it is just perfect for flesh toned projects. You can contact her here:
www.spruceridgestudios.com"
Inquiring minds now know!.........................Have a Merry and Joyful day! Maria
Friday, December 31, 2010
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Look What I received in the mail......
Just the sweetest little package from some of my dear buddies over at AAPG. The package came without a name on it so I had to do a little investigative work to determine who sent it to me. It wasn't too hard as these two gals are a couple of the sweetest, most giving gals I know. Ginger and PattiJane put together a little bag for all of us. Now how sweet is that?
Included in the package were some handmade Christmas Tags....aren't they adorable? Love the Candy Cane one!
Some chocolate...yum!
Some flavored tea for those cold winter nights here in the North.
The neatest little sewn pocket to store needles....
and a fun little booklet with doodles and places to keep notes.
I was delighted to receive this little gift from some of my pals.
This sweet gesture made me think....what if we all took the time and effort to create some happiness like Ginger and PattiJane did. They've inspired me to do that same. May your day be Merry and Joyful, Maria
Included in the package were some handmade Christmas Tags....aren't they adorable? Love the Candy Cane one!
Some chocolate...yum!
Some flavored tea for those cold winter nights here in the North.
The neatest little sewn pocket to store needles....
and a fun little booklet with doodles and places to keep notes.
I was delighted to receive this little gift from some of my pals.
This sweet gesture made me think....what if we all took the time and effort to create some happiness like Ginger and PattiJane did. They've inspired me to do that same. May your day be Merry and Joyful, Maria
Monday, December 27, 2010
Some Exciting News to Share.....
Early American Life Magazine did an article about rug hooking and I'm in it! The article, authored by Edyth O'Neill and Gregory LeFever, titled "Primitive Hooked Rugs" is very informative. The authors chronicle the history of the craft and explain how the craft is flourishing. I along with Barbara Carroll, Anita White, Tish Bachleda, Peggy Teich and Susie Stephenson were all interviewed and the article features each of us along with two or three of our individual rugs. Pictures of my Tyler Flower Basket and Old Thyme House were chosen for the article. Here is a picture of my rugs.
What a thrill to be included in such a great historical magazine along with some of the names listed above. If you get a chance you should pick up this magazine.....It is worth having in your collection of articles. There are 18 color photos of rugs. Below is a picture of the magazine cover.
Here is a link to Early American Life to inquire about the magazine.
http://www.ealonline.com/
May your day be joyful and merry! Maria
What a thrill to be included in such a great historical magazine along with some of the names listed above. If you get a chance you should pick up this magazine.....It is worth having in your collection of articles. There are 18 color photos of rugs. Below is a picture of the magazine cover.
Here is a link to Early American Life to inquire about the magazine.
http://www.ealonline.com/
May your day be joyful and merry! Maria
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
What I'm Working on Wednesday.......
Not much I'm sorry to report! As is par for my course, I started another rug before I finished the 20 that are in my art studio.....do any of you have the same problem? Once I have the color planning done with the rug and have hooked on the rug enough to know that the wool will work, I set it aside to start another rug. Here the latest rug on my frame.
A closeup of the face...............
It is my rendition of the antique Santa and Reindeer pattern that is so popular. As many of you know, I have an affinity for sheep so I added a cute little one into this rug. Once I get this guy hooked, it will be available as a pattern....
And of course alot of my time was focused on finishing my Creative Rug Hooking Blog Challenge. Here is a picture of the finished project. More detailed photos can be seen in a few posts back.
I made a little progress on my hit or miss snowman ( and I do mean little!)....
This is a Christmas present so I must work on this little guy pronto!
And last but not least is a cute little snow guy that is almost done......I'm hoping to find a little time to finish all three of these over the holidays.
Many Blessings to you. Maria
A closeup of the face...............
It is my rendition of the antique Santa and Reindeer pattern that is so popular. As many of you know, I have an affinity for sheep so I added a cute little one into this rug. Once I get this guy hooked, it will be available as a pattern....
And of course alot of my time was focused on finishing my Creative Rug Hooking Blog Challenge. Here is a picture of the finished project. More detailed photos can be seen in a few posts back.
I made a little progress on my hit or miss snowman ( and I do mean little!)....
This is a Christmas present so I must work on this little guy pronto!
And last but not least is a cute little snow guy that is almost done......I'm hoping to find a little time to finish all three of these over the holidays.
Many Blessings to you. Maria
Monday, December 20, 2010
The Creative Rug Hooking Blog Challenge Photos Revealed
Oh this was so much fun and challenging.... Isn't it neat seeing all the challenge projects together? I think it is interesting that we each did something a little different with our projects. If you click on the picture and it will open in another screen (a little bigger) so you can see the projects better.
Here are the links to Ali, Kris and Alices' blogs to read about how their projects were created.
http://alistrebel.blogspot.com/
http://spruceridgestudios.blogspot.com/
http://alice-folkartprimitives.blogspot.com/
As for me, I opted for doing a little mixed media and used scrap book paper collaged onto an art canvas for my background.
I hooked the snowman and attached him to the canvas. Here is a side view of the snowman.
Another side view....
In this picture, you can see that I used the wire to make arms for the snowman and to hold his tree. Can you see the glitter that I added to the scrap book paper? Kind of makes it dreamy looking. I added a red wool scarf to the snowguy.
Here is a picture of the snowman's hat. I added the irredescient pipecleaner to the brim and added more tinsel glitter to the hat. You can see the scrapbook paper that I chose. The green was also irredescient and I love the circles on it.
The red ball, star button and wire were used in the hanger. The star button was a little to harsh color wise with the scrapbook paper so I primed it and added more glitter to it. Not bad....I'm kind of liking the tinsel glitter. (thanks Martha!)
Here is a closeup of the button after I made the changes to it. Sorry the picture is a little blurry but you get the idea.
I almost forgot to mention the ribbon....I thought the ribbon was pretty and it definitely directed me to the color palette I chose. To display it, I opted to attach it across the bottom of the canvas and have a space all to its own.
Now if I were to make this snowman again, I definitely would hook my snowman with whiter wool. It is a little to primitive for the pinky red and green paper in the collage. Lately, I've been leaning toward this pastel palette.....there is something soothing to me about the softness of the colors. Plus I love glitter!
Thanks so much for stopping by and following our challenge. We are all looking forward to the next one! Maria
Here are the links to Ali, Kris and Alices' blogs to read about how their projects were created.
http://alistrebel.blogspot.com/
http://spruceridgestudios.blogspot.com/
http://alice-folkartprimitives.blogspot.com/
As for me, I opted for doing a little mixed media and used scrap book paper collaged onto an art canvas for my background.
I hooked the snowman and attached him to the canvas. Here is a side view of the snowman.
Another side view....
In this picture, you can see that I used the wire to make arms for the snowman and to hold his tree. Can you see the glitter that I added to the scrap book paper? Kind of makes it dreamy looking. I added a red wool scarf to the snowguy.
Here is a picture of the snowman's hat. I added the irredescient pipecleaner to the brim and added more tinsel glitter to the hat. You can see the scrapbook paper that I chose. The green was also irredescient and I love the circles on it.
The red ball, star button and wire were used in the hanger. The star button was a little to harsh color wise with the scrapbook paper so I primed it and added more glitter to it. Not bad....I'm kind of liking the tinsel glitter. (thanks Martha!)
Here is a closeup of the button after I made the changes to it. Sorry the picture is a little blurry but you get the idea.
I almost forgot to mention the ribbon....I thought the ribbon was pretty and it definitely directed me to the color palette I chose. To display it, I opted to attach it across the bottom of the canvas and have a space all to its own.
Now if I were to make this snowman again, I definitely would hook my snowman with whiter wool. It is a little to primitive for the pinky red and green paper in the collage. Lately, I've been leaning toward this pastel palette.....there is something soothing to me about the softness of the colors. Plus I love glitter!
Thanks so much for stopping by and following our challenge. We are all looking forward to the next one! Maria
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Look what one of my students hooked!
Cora was in my class at Star of Texas in Tyler and hooked this sweet rug. Cora ventured outside her color palette and used great colors like purple. I think the colors are just wonderful and I love this rug. Look how she hooked the hat on the diagonal...very clever. The socks are beaded which is a simple technique that adds so much to a rug. This of my patterns, Mister Snowman, and you can find him on my website. Thanks Cora for sharing your rug with us all!
Speaking of teaching, I'll be adding my teaching schedule for 2011 to the right of the page soon. Maria
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
A New Segment to my BLog
Called "What I'm Working on Wednesdays". Each Wednesday, I'll show you what I'm working on for the week. NOW....... I'm not going to guarantee, what you will see will always be finished products. Hopefully, you'll get a glimpse into what projects I have on my plate for the week. Seeing half finished rugs will also and maybe I shouldn't admit this.......show you the method behind my madness! My rugs oftentimes look like a battle field with all the reverse hooking I do.
For my first "What I'm Working on Wednesday" post, I have a snowman mat to show you.
Like I mentioned, this little mat isn't done yet...yet is the operative word as this little guy may be a Christmas present. I have a ton of worms (did you know worms multiple like rabbits!) and was trying to come up with a pattern to use them. While looking through my stash of rug hooking books, I saw a Karen Kahle pattern book that I had purchased and she hooked a sweet little sheep rug using a hit or miss background like this......so I drew the snowman out and went to town on the background. I'm pretty pleased with the results...What do you think? Like it or not?
AND yes, I am working on my challenge project.......IT WILL BE DONE!! Did you see the post by Kris Miller about the project....She was taunting us because she has her project done...done a whole 10 days ahead of schedule. It is a cute post and you can read it by clicking here. http://spruceridgestudios.blogspot.com/2010/12/one-of-reasons-i-love-michigan.html
Here is a little peak at my challenge project....
Needless to say, I have a lot more to do. WHo came up with a deadline 5 days before Christmas anyways? Enjoy your night. Maria
For my first "What I'm Working on Wednesday" post, I have a snowman mat to show you.
Like I mentioned, this little mat isn't done yet...yet is the operative word as this little guy may be a Christmas present. I have a ton of worms (did you know worms multiple like rabbits!) and was trying to come up with a pattern to use them. While looking through my stash of rug hooking books, I saw a Karen Kahle pattern book that I had purchased and she hooked a sweet little sheep rug using a hit or miss background like this......so I drew the snowman out and went to town on the background. I'm pretty pleased with the results...What do you think? Like it or not?
AND yes, I am working on my challenge project.......IT WILL BE DONE!! Did you see the post by Kris Miller about the project....She was taunting us because she has her project done...done a whole 10 days ahead of schedule. It is a cute post and you can read it by clicking here. http://spruceridgestudios.blogspot.com/2010/12/one-of-reasons-i-love-michigan.html
Here is a little peak at my challenge project....
Needless to say, I have a lot more to do. WHo came up with a deadline 5 days before Christmas anyways? Enjoy your night. Maria
Friday, December 10, 2010
Playing around in my photo editing program
And I came up with this fun Halloween Collage (a little out of season, I know, forgive me) and..... it is a little small and kind of hard to see. I'll be working on how to make it bigger.....but pretty cool for my first time playing around with this program, eh?
This weekend, I am starting a new rug that I designed and will hopefully preview on Monday.....And I probably should get cracking on my Creative Blog Challenge!
Have a good weekend. Maria
This weekend, I am starting a new rug that I designed and will hopefully preview on Monday.....And I probably should get cracking on my Creative Blog Challenge!
Have a good weekend. Maria
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Creative Rug Hooking Blog Challenge
CREATIVE RUG HOOKING BLOG CHALLENGE 2011......
Recently, I asked three of my teaching friends who also have blogs if they wanted to participate in a challenge. My thoughts behind the challenge were to make the four of us think outside the box and come up with some new ideas for classes. Below you will find the statement that each of us have posted on our blogs. The deadline is the 20th of December and I have no idea what I am going to do. I hoping this weekend my creative juices will start flowing. Maria
In an effort to expand our rug hooking creativity,
Maria Barton http://starrugcompany-maria.blogspot.com/
Alice Frazier http://alice-folkartprimitives.blogspot.com/
Kris Miller http://www.spruceridgestudios.blogspot.com/
Ali Strebel http://alistrebel.blogspot.com/
have joined together to challenge one another to come up with fresh new ideas for rug hooking projects. How the challenge works is simple. Over the next few months, one of us will take the lead and will send items to the each other to use in our rug hooking project. The only requirements are that the project involve rug hooking and all items received be used in the challenge. The leader of the challenge can designate a theme if she wishes.
We will have deadlines for the projects and will post the deadline along with the items received for the challenge on our blogs hopefully on the 20th of the month. The day of the deadline, we will post on our blogs the finished project along with links to the other participants finished projects. Our hope in this challenge, is to inspire you to think outside the box, use new materials in your rug hooking projects and to be creative. If you would like to participate in the challenge with us, you can contact the leader of the challenge to purchase the items. Thanks for allowing us to share the works of our hands with you.
Recently, I asked three of my teaching friends who also have blogs if they wanted to participate in a challenge. My thoughts behind the challenge were to make the four of us think outside the box and come up with some new ideas for classes. Below you will find the statement that each of us have posted on our blogs. The deadline is the 20th of December and I have no idea what I am going to do. I hoping this weekend my creative juices will start flowing. Maria
In an effort to expand our rug hooking creativity,
Maria Barton http://starrugcompany-maria.blogspot.com/
Alice Frazier http://alice-folkartprimitives.blogspot.com/
Kris Miller http://www.spruceridgestudios.blogspot.com/
Ali Strebel http://alistrebel.blogspot.com/
have joined together to challenge one another to come up with fresh new ideas for rug hooking projects. How the challenge works is simple. Over the next few months, one of us will take the lead and will send items to the each other to use in our rug hooking project. The only requirements are that the project involve rug hooking and all items received be used in the challenge. The leader of the challenge can designate a theme if she wishes.
We will have deadlines for the projects and will post the deadline along with the items received for the challenge on our blogs hopefully on the 20th of the month. The day of the deadline, we will post on our blogs the finished project along with links to the other participants finished projects. Our hope in this challenge, is to inspire you to think outside the box, use new materials in your rug hooking projects and to be creative. If you would like to participate in the challenge with us, you can contact the leader of the challenge to purchase the items. Thanks for allowing us to share the works of our hands with you.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
If a dog could talk.....................
We've being trying on hats and scarfs on Miss Josie in an attempt to locate the perfect look for the Christmas card. Doesn't her face just say it all? She was very obliging at first and then just wanted to play with the hats!
Hope your day is Merry! Maria
Hope your day is Merry! Maria
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Drum Roll Please.............................
And the winner of the Antique Santa and Reindeer Rug as generated by the random number generator.........................
Quaint and Plain!!
Please send me an email so I can get your address!
I want to thank everyone who participated in the giveaway by leaving comments, posting the giveaway on your blog and becoming a follower. I'm totally blown away by the response and all the kind words. It truly gives me a warm feeling knowing what you do is enjoyed by others. A big, humble thank you to all!!!
Maria