Day 38 – 94 Resolving the Large Leaves & Hooking the Border

The large leaf motif is one that I did not hook in my study pieces so this was new territory. I hooked the two shown in the top image. I added two different wools around the veins just to break up the area. The fill area of the leaf was so large and the extra wool around the vein reduced the space. I did not like either solution.

Notice that I hooked a different leaf each time. I did not rip. I still have not ripped (as of Feb 2, 2019). I will correct it if it still bothers me when the rug is complete.

Next I hooked the vein close to the flower with the vein color only, no secondary color. The vein was a bit harsh. Then I decided to try just the lighter value of the wool to hook the remaining vein. This is the same wool that I am using to fill the scrolls. I like this a lot better. The dark that I tried initially was too dark on its own, but I like the look of two different values together. This is something that I might not have thought about if I had ripped out the dark when I decided I did not like it alone.

My personal rule is to not rip out until I need the spot to hook. You need to see what does not work in order to find what does work.

When I hook the next leaf, I will try the light vein with another wool. When I find something I like, then I need to decide if I want them all the same. Probably not. I will need to find a few solutions that work.

Day 44 of rug hooking: Rose improvement

The Rose — Before

I did not want to hook the rose the same way I hooked it in the stair riser, Queen Anne Rose. I did manage to hook it differently, but I did not like the results at all. Rather than ripping it out right away, I let it go and continued to hook. I hooked another one with more pronounced lights and darks, but it still did not work. Once I had a quarter of the center of the rug finished, I realized the problem was that the rose was too red.

The Rose — After

I hooked the rose again and I love the results. The rose is not as primitive but it feels right for me. There are two large roses and two small ones on this rug, and the border contains several small ones. I’m glad I found something that worked. Now I can resize the border to fit….after I figure out how big to make the hit and miss.

Day 44 Georgia loves my hooked rugs

Here’s a full shot of the progress on the rug. Whenever it is on the floor, the cats are willing to keep it company.

Day 050 Rug hooking all weekend

This weekend my husband and I rented videos and stayed home. I was able to hook for hours and hours. I got a lot done, but I am determined to get to the half-way point (of the center) before I take it off the frame.

The rug is now large enough to drape on the ground as I hook. The cats, Georgia and Gracie, now have enough room to share. Georgia is almost two years old and was a good companion to our elderly dog, Samson. When he passed away over Labor Day weekend she seemed lost, so we adopted Gracie from the shelter. They get along very well and I (almost) don’t miss having a dog around the house.

Day 65 Rug Hooking Progress

I had more done than I thought when I reviewed my last entry so here’s another picture. I’m beginning to think the hit and miss is too large. If I make it smaller, I will have to add additional borders to keep the finished size. I need to start thinking about this now because the worse thing that can happen is that I finish hooking the entire inside area and I don’t have a clue what I want to do with the borders.

Enjoying the weather in Florida

Sorry for the lack of posts. My parents were vacationing in Florida between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I decided to join them for a little more than a week in Little Torch Key. We were about 25-30 miles north of Key West. I missed the worst week of weather so far. Yeah!

We went on the ghost tour. What fun. It was dark, and the stories were great. The one that really freaked me out was a story about Robert, the doll.

Before I went home we stopped at the museum just outside the airport that “owns” Robert. I wanted to buy a t-shirt for my son, Bob. The back of the t-shirt has a picture of the doll Robert and says something like “Robert did it.” It was a slow morning at the museum and my mom chatted with the clerk about why I was buying the shirt.

The clerk looked up and smiled. “You want to go back? I won’t charge you.” OMG! Well, what the heck. I said, “Sure.”

She led me back but I noticed that my parents stayed in the lobby. So much for parental support. She pointed down the hall and said, “He’s in that case. Do you see him?”

When I turned back to answer her, she was gone, too. OMG!!!!!!

I took a quick picture and skedaddled out of there. I did ask permission (of Robert) to take the pics and my camera did not break, but once I got home I could not find the photos…

Day 94 Finally got to hook!

I finally got to hook New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. My husband, David, and I rented videos and stayed indoors. –It’s cold out there! Especially after my days in the Florida keys.

Border progress – Cat’s paw

I have always loved the Cat’s Paw rugs. I wanted to include this design in one of the minor borders, but I was afraid that it would look too modern. I decided to hook up a section. It looks great. Do you agree? I decided to make the background the darkest background value that I am using to outline the motifs in the center of the rug.

This test proves that what looks bad (or good) on paper as a black and white drawing can look very different once it is hooked. If I had not been so determined to find a way to make this design work, I would never have attempted it. On paper it looks very modern and completely out of sync with the center. But now that it is hooked, I love it.