Motivation Ü

OK.  I have "it" now Ü I have motivation to start getting my needlework UFO's finished. 
It's tough having that hanging over my head.  I think after Jordan was here and she's such a fireball, I decided to quit studying the stuff and just start finishing the pieces.  What a great feeling this is Ü
Since my last post... I have tried to be SO busy!! 
I jumped into that "I Do" rug, fixed the ribbon and now my tree is almost finished Ü  I even got a little bit of the background started. YAY!!!  I'm giving myself a June-ish deadline on this one...  Y'all better keep me honest!!!  LOL

I realized I am on a tight schedule from now till the end of May and I don't have a second to waste so I'd better get on it.  As I was having my pity party for not completing very much in the past 5-6 months, I decided to block the punch needle designs that I did this past year sans framing or other finishing...  as it turns out, I've been a busy cowgirl after all!!!  Woo Hoo!!!  I did all of these Punch Needle patterns this past year.  In fact, the witch on the right end, I thought I had lost.  What happened was I hid it from myself while cleaning up one day and I forgot where I put it.  The last time I saw it was when I was visiting Ashley in Switzerland.  I figured since I didn't remember seeing it after that trip that I must have lost it on the plane or something... St. Anthony came through though -- lucky me  ^i^

I've been playing around with my punch needles-- using the various brands and studying the fine differences between them.  I've also been doing a few 6-strand projects.  Pushing the needle with 6 strands is a little tougher on the hands.  I find I need to take more breaks with the 6 strands than with the 3.  The larger projects are definitely fun to do and depending on which needle you use, they can look a little clumsier and I like that rough look a lot Ü   

I made some cross-stitch samplers for my 3 daughters a while back too--  I had posted pictures of Ashley's and Jordan's samplers but not Lauren's.  I finally got hers framed earlier this month and wouldn't you know... I don't think I took a picture of it framed ;-O!!  I DO LOVE how they all turned out though!!!  I'll have to ask Lauren to send me a picture of her sampler framed.  I'll post the photo when I get it.  Now to make one for ME!!  Ü

Till next time,
Blessings to all,
Debra <3

Progess is S L O W . . . Ü

I have been really busy with company and traveling these past few weeks.  I love having people visit and us journeying off-- besides making beautiful memories, or traveling to some of my favorite places, it makes me clean my house!!  Lord knows, I need me some "house-cleaning" time!!  LOL

In fact, I took pictures of my clean house so my one daughter could see that it actually happens that I don't have rug worms, needles and thread all laying about.  She's the "minimalist" of the family and has completely empty drawers and cabinets at her house.  Who actually "lives" like that?!  It's like going to a showroom where the cabinetry are fixtures so there's nothing in them ;-O hahahaha!!!  Just kidding Dootie... I LOVE YOUR HOUSE!!!  Ü

Anywho, with all the company and traveling, that makes for less needlework time with one exception...  When Jordan (minimalist daughter) came to visit, we had a week of nothing but needlework time-- OH YEAH!!! Ü

I only got a little bit completed but I worked on a lot.
I made these table runners for Christmas gifts to my family in December but hadn't quilted them yet so they were on the top of the list.  I got 3 out of the 5 quilted and bound that week.  They are now with their owners and out of my hair.  I'll post a picture of the other two when they are completed.
The lighting is bad on these and didn't really capture the colors very well ;-(
They are really pretty cute!!

At the end of March, I got to attend the Virginia Rugfest in Mechanicsville, VA.  It was fun and the displayed rugs were total "eye candy" Ü
I took a few photos of the ones I liked.  I was drawn to the primitive style of them Ü  Enjoy!!

A little background information on this sampler rug...  It's inspired by a Dear Jane quilt but it's a RUG!!!  My "Yahookers" rug group members took this project on.  Rug Hooking Magazine even did an article on the group Ü  They signed on to do it and complete by a certain date.  The design of the blocks and the border was strictly up to the hooker as well as the color-way.  So far, from the completed rugs I have seen, they are all different and BEAUTIFUL!!! Ü  Such creativity in that group.  This rug is gorgeous!!!!

I loved the stone wall on this one Ü

My prim faves...

I LOVE anything Karen Kahle!!!  Ü

These handbags are fantastic!!  I NEED to make one of these for me!!!  Ü

Last one...

As for my hooking...

I'm still at the same place on my "I Do" rug but I love how it's looking so far Ü  I've gone out of my box for the color-way-- I hope you like it too Ü
I accidently hooked a place on it in green that was supposed to be tan so I'll need to do some "reverse hooking" on this one before I proceed any further ;-(
I'll keep posting my progress on this one as I go...

Quilting!!! 

While Jordan was here we had some quilting fun!!!  This is her "Jelly Roll".  She combined all the fabrics herself from pieces she had purchased individually.  I LOVE her color sense!!  

  Her Jelly Roll became this "Jelly Roll 1600" quilt-- this was so much fun to do!!!

 She likes "Modern" quilting and I've always been more of a "Traditional" quilter but she's tugging at me and I'm strongly leaning to the dark (Modern) side Ü.

I love mixing and matching these bold prints together!!!  I bought this bunch of fabric while she was here and I'm excited to see what comes out of it Ü

Punch Needle

I'm almost done with this large project-- it measures 5 3/4" X 9".  I think I'll go back to some smaller Punch Needle projects Ü  This has taken me forever to do.  I think maybe because I'm doing it with 6 strands might be the reason.  It's way more tedious getting the 6 strands of floss punched through as opposed to 3 strands or fewer.  I only have the grass to do now and wa la... it's finito!!!

My last bit o' news is...

This week I treated myself to a dyeing class from Karen Rose, a beautiful wool dyer in my rug guild (Colonial Rug Hookers of Northern Virginia).  There were 10 of us in the class and we all did a different type of dyeing with a 1/2 yard of wool.  At the end of the all day session, we cut the wool into 10 pieces and traded with one another so everyone had a piece of everyone's dyed wool.  

It was a GREAT class and I learned so much.  Karen is an amazing teacher and a gracious hostess to boot!!  Here are some pictures of the dyeing in process, some finished samples of our wool.  

This was my piece Ü  I loved all of the movement and texture in this piece--

 These are the pieces I came home with--

Karen presoaks her wool in these extra large white detergent buckets.  They are the perfect container for yards of wool and today I went to Home Depot to find some big white buckets of my own so I can get started here at home Ü  They are 5 gallon buckets and I can't wait to get started.  The only thing holding me back now is...  I need some dye.  

Till next time-- Ciao baby!!!

Blessings,

Debra <3

Innocence Lost

I will try to keep my blog to my handwork tales but for now, real life is taking over my needlework life…

Today was the day.  Today was the day I learned an ugly truth. 

I’m not talking about my innocence.  I’m talking about my daughter Lauren and her innocence lost.  To witness it and hear it is brutal beyond measure. 

Yesterday she learned her best friend’s husband had been killed while serving in Afghanistan. 

As much as we try to shield our children from the horrors of the world there are some that get past us. 

The strange thing is, when did it change from us protecting them to them protecting us?  It happened under my nose and it seems I totally missed it.

I still see my girls as my “little girls”.  I guess they will forever be frozen in time that way for me even though they are all three adults now with families and loves all their own.  They have lost friends through accidents at home, in the car, school, etc., but never in war.  War is the grown-up place to go.

My kids have been surrounded by war for a long time.  Their dad (my husband) was a career Air Force officer as well as other family members.  My girls’ families are directly affected by it because Lauren’s husband Juan, is an active-duty Army officer (Capt.) and has served a tour in Iraq, returning a year ago.  Jordan’s sister-in-law, Alison (Maj. USA), and two brothers-in-law, Jeremiah (Maj. USMC) and Tim (Maj. USA) all active-duty, with all being deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan multiple times.  They also have classmates serving since 9-11.  I’m proud beyond words of their choice to serve their country and all that goes with it.  They are doing it because our country was attacked and they believe in fighting for the ideals our country stands for and to be clear, they do it out of CHOICE, to keep and make our freedoms better…  NOT because they’ll "get a college education out of it" and NOT because "they are too poor to do anything else". 

People have been dying in wars since the beginning of time.  Sadly, it goes with the territory.  My heart always goes out to any family that loses a son, a daughter, a husband/wife, brother/sister, friend, a dad or a mother while serving our country.  We’ve been fortunate in that it’s rarely been someone close to us. 

Yesterday that changed and now for my “innocent” daughter, her world has changed forever too just like the life of her best friend, Susan. 

This isn’t something I can kiss and make go away.  I can’t cover it with a band-aid or drink it away with a glass of water.  This is the kind of hurt that comes from a place thankfully most of us will never have to connect with, relate to, or acknowledge that there even is such a place. 

I don't’ have the words to comfort her pain or that of her best friend.  There just aren’t any.  God has to speak to them for me because he’s the only one fluent in the language of this kind of compassion and grief.

So, when I spoke to Lauren today to see if she was doing ok, that’s when I realized she had changed.  It was the first time she had a crisis and she didn’t call to ask me what to do.  She called to tell me what happened, was comforting to me, and she was going about the motions to do her part in helping to support her friend. 

She understands in a very personal way now that our soldiers don’t always come back to us.  Sometimes they go back to God.

Although she’s still and will always be my little girl, I see she accepts and understands what she needs to do to hold things together and stand up,  being the strong place for Susan and her children to go.  And even though I know there isn’t such a place to cushion this kind of fall, the point is, if there were one, Susan would know Lauren is by her side, supporting her in any way she’s needed, not as my “innocent” child but as my little girl with a woman’s heart.

Rest in peace Bruce Kevin Clark.

You are dearly missed.

I tried to stay on point so forgive me if I rambled a bit…

Blessings,

Debra <3

I know Susan and her girls are the primary reason for my blog today but I have sent her a personal message and didn't want to disclose that message here.  Please understand this was my release for a ramification of what happened as I witnessed it. 

And also, please if you will, offer a prayer for Susan and their daughters, that God wraps his arms around them and comforts them as only he can.  I thank you all in advance.  ^i^

Tis Spring ???

Spring is here!!!!  The grass is greening up, the birds are singing, the trees are blooming!!!  My neighbor across the street has the most beautiful floral action going on Ü  I think it's a Northern Magnolia (?) and so far it's the only tree on my street blooming.  It really is a treat to wake up to this sight!!

Well, January and February came and went...  in fact, they went by so fast they are both a blur... Ü 
I hope that is a good thing and I'm not forgetting anything major milestones except for the one beautiful event---  wait for it....

... Ok, here goes--  my daughter Ashley is now engaged to be married!!!  YAY!!!  We LOVE her fiance` David, and could not be happier that they have (finally) decided to be together forever...  it's soooo romantic Ü  I can't find the picture of her engagement ring...  might be in my phone...  Just between you and me, it's BEAUTIFUL!!!
No word yet on when or where the ceremony will be.  They have major logistics to consider...  Ash lives in Basel, Switzerland, David lives in London, UK, his family lives in Yorkshire, UK, Casey and I live in Washington DC, our middle daughter, Lauren, and her family live at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri (ARMY) and then Jordan, our youngest daughter and her family, live in San Antonio,Texas.  Finally, the rest of our extended families live in Austin, Texas and San Diego, CA.  We are spread out EVERYWHERE!!!
I have a kazillion Martha Stewart Wedding magazines from when Lauren and Jordan got married years ago to peruse through for ideas...  YIKES!!!  Does that make me a MSW magazine hoarder since I've never thrown them out? 

What else is new on my end you ask????
In January I decided to learn how to knit.  I thought my class would consist of making a scarf.  No such luck.  We HAD to make a sweater!!!!!  (below)

It took me morning, noon, and night, ALL of 5 weeks and I finished all of my components-- a front with a center cable, a back, and two sleeves.  YAY!!!  I didn't do the ribbing on mine though.  I did a garter stitch in place of the ribbing.  Now I'm waiting to assemble the pieces and then BE DONE WITH IT!!  I am not a knitter.  I just wanted to make a scarf or two Ü  The good thing is, if I ever need to make a sweater, now I can.  hee hee Ü 

The election season is upon us and I am noticing a resurgence on sales of my Crawford Ranch Quilt pattern--must be because quilters are feeling a little more patriotic than usual Ü  You can visit the quilt on my web site on the "Quilts" page.  The funny thing is, as I'm noticing more of those patterns going out my door, in my email today I received a photo from one of the CRQ quiltmakers and she was writing to share with me a photo of one of her blocks.  Bev changed it because her husband couldn't go with the basket and stars representing "...and the Rockets Red Glare" block-- LOL
She gave me permission to post her photo on here-- I LOVE IT!!!  WAY TO GO BEV!!!
I think she did a fantastic job on her block and may have a future in designing quilts Ü  The more, the merrier!!!

On a similar note, one of my customers showed me how she changed my "Bless Our Home" rug.  Instead of my prairie of hearts, she hooked a prairie of sheep!!  Isn't it adorable Ü  I won't make it to my guild meeting this month but hope to see it finished at the next one!!

I have been back on my own hooking journey Ü   I had taken the month of December off from hooking for the most part.  Now I am working on a re-do of my "I Do" rug and then on to a "fresh" design.  Here is my beginning and where I am now...

ok...  I'm Sooooo  S  L  O  W  sometimes Ü  But don't forget my "knitting" time (ALL of January and part of February) is factored in there too so in my defense, I'm not a total slug!!!  Ü

My ATHA rug may never be finished...  I think I'm going to have to do the "10 minute" rule on this rug just to finish it up-- you know, where you hook on a project for "10 minutes a day"-- eventually it's DONE!!  I'll start the 10 minute thingy on that one next week.  I can't let myself have two rugs in progress-- it's too expensive to go that route and plus...  I refuse to have hooking UFO's the way I have quilting UFO's...  just sayin'...
Isn't this the same as the last picture I posted?  OY!!!

And finally, this brings me to my "ugly sky" on a swap mat I did.  I don't have the heart to send it out as it is...  I need to either re-do the sky or re-do the blossoms...  Your thoughts?

Laura, I'm STILL working on it!!!!  Ü  Be patient with me please!!!!

Till next time,
Blessings,
Debra <3

I Love December

 YAY!!!  I love December!!!  I love all the Christmas lights, the Manger scenes, the Santa's, the cooler weather, the feeling that I get when I'm working on a gift for someone special...  I LOVE IT!!!
Today we had frost on the grass when I woke up.  It was beautiful and made me excited for the snow that will surely come soon...  Then I'll really have a pretty picture to post!!

Our lights are up outside, thanks to Case ;-)  He does all that honey-do stuff without too much fuss.  Am I lucky or what????  And now on to the decorating inside...  by myself ;-(
Casey will help me get the lights on the trees but from then on, it's all on me.  I miss having our girls and their families with us to do this.  Nothing would make me happier than to see all of the trees decorated right at the grandkids eye level if you get my drift ;-)  When our girls were little, our trees only had decorations at the 3-4 foot high level for years on end-- only as high as they could reach and it was ADORABLE!!

I joined a Seasonal Swap with my on-line rug hooking group and this is the mat I made for my "Winter" partner.  It's 8" square and I hooked it in a size 8.5.  The background is supposed to be a whiteout with snowflakes falling.  The snowflakes are wound strips of white wool that I sewed in from the back of the canvas to secure them.  They don't scream at you but you know they're there ;-) 
This was a fun project.  It went quick and I'm thinking I'd like to do one for me too so this will be my January quickie. 
The next swap is a Spring theme and I'm thinking of doing a _ _ _ _ _ _ _.  I can't tell because I don't want to give it away in case my new swap partner is reading this ;-0!!!
As for this little mat, I decided this would be a great "Beginner" class project.  Since I plan to start teaching again after the first of the year, this little bird is going to come in handy ;-)

So, ok...  on to my other projects--  Here is the progress on my ATHA rug.  I did the house a while back.  I did the windows first and now I don't like them.  I'll assess it again when it's all done and see if I need to take them out and re-do or not.  I really don't like "un-hooking"!!
As I was hooking this house I decided to leave a light on upstairs.  This house reminds me of a house we lived in a while back and our bedroom was upstairs but on the opposite side.  Since I had already made the upper left window black before I decided this represented our old house, the right window light is the one that's on instead now.  Shhh...  Only you and I will know that little secret.  *wink

In this picture the windows show up pretty good actually, but when I look at it without a flash on it, they don't.  Email me your opinion or leave a message for me on here.  I'll take another consensus.   You know how I love those feedback comments!!  Really, I do.  I listen and I learn ;-)))
BTW, I still need to name this one so keep those ideas coming ;-)

I've been busy in between the hooking and the punching, doing a little "Modern" quilting.  Here are some of the fabrics that I'm working with...  Oh, and don't worry, they won't be side by side like this.  I haven't arranged them all how I want them yet.  I've only cut pieces out of the fabrics I want to use.  I haven't cut the solids out yet either.  Looks like Sunday will be the day to start working on this project.  I have a lot to work with so I think my projects are going to be FUN!!!  And the pattern I've designed is E A S Y ! ! !  I hope the girls like their presents ;-)

And last, but not least, I also made "retreat" ironing boards for a couple of close friends that I like to get together and sew with.  The boards are 2' X 2' and a fat quarter fits on them perfectly, so they aren't too big or too small.  I have a couple of 4' X 2' boards that I use here at home and they really are fabulous to work on.  You can also pin into them for applique` blocks or to actually block things with steam such as punch needle projects and finally, it's so incredible to block rugs with!!!)  I don't know what I do without them-- finishing my work would be WAY harder, I know that ;-(

So, I'd love to hear all about what presents y'all are making.  I am constantly amazed at how creative people are and I am inspired by so many of you ;-)

Christmas Blessings,
Debra <3

In Progress...

I have the whole top half of this rug completed now-- YAY!!!!


I have not been able to work on this everyday like I thought I would.  I had told myself, "a motif and 1/2 hour of background per day.  I'd like to move on to the #7 and the tree on the left side next but as it turns out, I'm only able to get to this every few days so it's going to be more hit and miss, at least until after Christmas.  I have to say that initially, I wasn't thrilled with the background colors but they have really grown on me and now I'm loving the different colors ;-)
I already am a "texture" person but don't usually do grey too much and rarely that color of green.  The other really different thing about this rug is the style of hooking.  The whole top half is hooked in straight vertical lines with the exception of a few places on the numbers and the tree branches but even some of each number is hooked in the straight vertical fashion.  All of the bottom half background will go horizontal.  Some of the motifs will be vertical (numbers), but the tree and the house will be horizontal too.  I need to pull the two vertical rows of hooking that I've done so far on the house out so I can hook it horizontal instead.  I know I won't like it vertical.  So far, this is coming together nicely for me ;-)

What is taking me away from finishing that darn rug is, I'm busy working on Christmas pretties for my girls ;-)  These aren't the "big" gifts so hopefully they're doable in the time I have left.  I know I'm starting late but I do pretty well under pressure-- hahaha!  Who am I kidding?!

Here are my blocks so far-- they won't be set this way and they don't all go together but this gives you an idea of what I'm working with-- really simple stuff  ;-)
Some of the blocks I can already see aren't working good together so there's some re-do's in there but that's ok.  I did one all the way through already though so I know about any changes that I need to make on the others.  Also, it gave me an idea about how much time it will take to complete them and it turns out I can do all three in an afternoon so it's all good ;-)   I LOVE FAST AND EASY!!!

This past Sunday I went to my Rug Guild meeting, The Colonial Rug Hookers of Northern Virginia.  One of my friends in the guild purchased one of my canvases (Friendship's Offering) at a recent meeting and she's completed it already except for the binding and some additional embellishments she is adding.  She's adding fuzzy yarn on the wings and will be adding bugle beads to the heart and flowers-- I LOVE how she's doing it!!!  Boo, thank you for such a beautiful interpretation!!!

Woo Hoo!!!
It's past my bedtime...

Blessings,
Debra <3