Heritage Rug Hookers of Saskatoon

Exhibit at the Mendel Art Gallery in Saskatoon

2012-01-30T23:05:00.002+01:00

Kai Chan: A Spider's Logic is currently showing at the Mendel Art Gallery until March 18th.

Kai Chan "Aurora" (detail) 1975. Cotton, Nylon, and Wood. Photo Credit: Cheryl O'Brien

From the Mendel site: "Using everyday materials such as branches, thread, string, toothpicks, buttons and recycled plastic objects, and applying mixed-media techniques, he mixes, heaps, wraps, weaves, braids, layers, fastens, rolls, twists and stretches them to create fascinating and ingenious installations and sculptures."

"Curator Sarah Quinton selected work from the permanent collections of the Mendel Art Gallery, Cambridge Galleries, Canadian Museum of Civilization, and the artist’s studio. A Spider’s Logic is organized and toured by the Textile Museum of Canada and the Varley Art Gallery of Markham."

"Beyond Rugs" at Farnsworth Art Museum

2012-01-18T21:21:00.002+01:00

View the online catalogue of works by contemporary hooking artists in the show, "Beyond Rugs", Farnsworth Art Museum, Rockland, Maine. -- Rita

Hooked piece by Mary Jane Andreozzi: Possession 2008

Pinterest: A Great Place to Look at Rugs!

2012-01-18T18:16:00.000+01:00

The visually stimulating site Pinterest is a great way to look for images of beautiful rugs. I've started collecting, or "pinning," images of rugs that tickle my fancy as I read through my RSS feeds.

Pinterest Logo

Good Deal: OTT Lights at Costco

2012-01-18T17:59:00.001+01:00

This goose-neck OTT light is available at Costco for $20 plus tax.--Rita

Margaret's Lemon Shortcake Bars: A Hit Item at the Christmas Luncheon

2011-12-14T21:03:00.003+01:00

image credit: Fine Cooking

Lemon Shortcake Bars (Fine Cooking, Dec 2006)

Crust:
7 oz. (14 Tbs) unsalted butter, melted and cooled to "just warm"
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp table salt
2 cups plus 2 Tbs all-purpose flour
Line a 13 x 9 inch metal or glass baking pan with foil. Lightly brush melted butter on the sides (not bottom).
Stir together first three ingredients and mix in the flour to form a stiff dough. Press the dough evenly into
the bottom of the pan and ad prick all over with a fork. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or until firm. Bake in
the centre of a 325 oven for 30 minutes or until golden and set.

Lemon Topping:
4 large eggs
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
3 Tbs. all-purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt
3/4 cup fresh lemon juice (3-4 lemons)
1 Tbs (generous) finely grated fresh lemon zest (from 2 lemons)
1 Tbs confectioners' sugar
Whisk eggs, sugar, flour, and salt together until smooth (about 1 minute). Whisk in the lemon juice and zest. Pour topping over the hot crust and return to oven, increase heat to 350 and bake for approximately 20 to 25 minutes, or until set. Cool at least one hour, then list from pan using the tin foil and place on cutting board. Pull the foil away from the sides of the bars and sprinkle with the confectioner's sugar. Cut into squares. Will keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days, but should be served at room temperature.

-from Margaret

Christmas Luncheon Fundraiser and Recipes

2011-12-14T20:44:00.003+01:00

Last weekend, we had a lovely Christmas luncheon at Margaret's. Margaret's lemon squares and Gloria's Cranberry salad were a BIG hit, and everything was so good...... Thank you Margaret for hosting this event and we very much enjoyed being in your lovely home and appreciated your hospitality.

Image: MoToMo on Flickr Creative Commons

With the donations of silent auction items, we made $136 for an African orphanage that a medical student Margaret knows, supports. Margaret is matching this amount so it is a great day today to know that this money will go to a very good cause.

We plan to print some of the recipes on our blog, once those who attended submit their dish recipes.

Have a safe and happy Christmas season for 2011, and a big "thank you" for this year's donating of auction items and time, organizing, giving presentations (schoolchildren, Dye Class), fundraising, donating to AIDSSaskatoon, driving, lending personal items for the school, and opening your homes for rughooking.

What a great group of ladies!
--Patti

Craberries. Image: TAHbKA on Flickr, Creative Commons

Gloria's Cranberry Salad

2 packages cranberry jello
2 cups boiling water
3 apples peeled and chopped
1/2 orange peeled and chopped
1/2 lb fresh cranberries chopped
1 cup sugar ( I think you could use less)
1 cup chopped celery
1cup chopped walnuts.

1. Dissolve jello in boiling water. Place in fridge for half hour until it starts to gel.
2. Mix together cranberries, orange, apples and sugar. Mix well coat fruit and dissolve sugar.
Add jello, celery and walnuts.
3. Pour in a glass bowl. Chill in fridge until firm. Can be made a day ahead.

Winter Reads & a Chance to Win Blundstone Boots

2011-12-09T18:11:00.001+01:00

Looking for some good books to read this winter? Go to Deanne's blog. She is giving away a pair of red Blundstone boots to someone who sends in a suggestion of a book that was very meaningful in their life. There are over 200 suggestions of good books. (Hope I win the boots for my choice, Gabrielle Roy's "The Tin Flute').
--Rita


Deanne's favourite: red Blundstones. You could own your own pair. Image: Deanne Fitzpatrick

Gabrielle Roy's The Tin Flute. Image: Digital Collections at McMaster University

Liv's favourite book at the moment. Image: Amazon.ca

New Supplier on Our List

2011-12-07T22:02:00.001+01:00

Blue Heron Rug Hooking Studio is a new Canadian supplier listed on our site. They sell backing, frames, hooks, scissors, and patterns, including some stunning Emily Carr designs. Check it out!

Blue Heron Rug Hooking Studio in Victoria, BC

Video: World's Largest Hooked Rug Exhibit

2011-12-01T22:08:00.001+01:00

Photo credit: www.gohookit.blogspot.com. "Corn Stalks" by Jen Lavoie

Patti emailed to the members of the group a posting at the "Stuck in Vermont" Vlog: a video of the 15th Annual Hooked in the Mountains exhibit. Watch at 3:17 for a couple of rugs that Rita admired on another blog recently!

"Aries Woman" by Mariah Krauss. Photo credit: www.gohookit.blogspot.com

Heritage Rug Hookers Display at Sundog Tomorrow

2011-12-01T22:02:00.001+01:00

Check out the group's handiwork this Saturday at the Sundog Craft Fair! Rugs and rug hooking will be on display. Have a look and see if you'd like to give rug hooking a try.

Teaching Children Rug Hooking

2011-10-31T05:19:00.002+01:00

Rita, a former educator, and I (a wannabe/beginner rug hooker) went to a Grade 1-4, 15-student Montessori school last Friday to introduce the children to the history of rug hooking, and to give it a go themselves. It was a bit of a scramble to get things ready as we haven't done this before.

Anna gives rug hooking a try for the first time. Photo: Julie Davidsen

On a roll! photo: Julie Davidsen


The children admire a few rugs by Rita and Patti (shown). Photo: Julie Davidsen

Rita and Liv. Rita holds up one of her beautiful rugs. The children were really interested and engaged. Photo: Julie Davidsen

The children were enthralled with the rugs that Rita and I brought, especially Rita's leopard rug. Rita was so amazing with the children and they just loved her. One boy proclaimed, "Rita, I like you."

Here's how Rita tells it:

I serged some of my linen slightly larger than the picture frames Patti and I collected (very
inexpensively, about 25 cents each) from thrift stores and garage sales. Liv's husband, John, stapled the linen on the frames. One frame fell apart, but the other 7 worked very well. The frames were heavy enough to stay on the table so the children were able to use them without much trouble- a much better solution than flimsy hoops. Each 10x12 frame held two designs- rectangles to outline and fill in with hit and miss.

After a brief chat about the history of rug hooking, we worked with 7 children at a time. Each child worked on one of the designs, which helped cut down the number of frames needed. We
gathered a variety of hooks from our personal collections.

On the whole, the children did very well and seemed to enjoy the process. Most caught on immediately. They all enjoyed choosing their favourite colours of wool from a huge pile of left-over strips.

It's been proposed now that we have some hooks on hand for teaching children when the occasion arises. The Montessori teacher would like to make it an annual event since it ties in nicely with the elementary curriculum. She reported that one of the children, who took her project home for the weekend, just loves rug hooking and would like to do more!
--Liv

Update: The Brilliant Star Montessori school will be purchasing linen and hooks for future projects. Looks like they are "hooked"! Also, the rug pieced together from the 16 rectangles fetched $750 at the school's fundraising auction. Photos of the rug, once properly framed, will be posted soon.

Island Sweet Fibre Arts and Red Spruce

2011-09-23T00:35:00.000+02:00

This summer, Gloria was out east and showed us some great textured wool that she purchased at Island Sweet Fibre Arts in Newfoundland. They have handspun merino, shetland, mohair, NL heritage wool, angelina, bamboo and novelty yarns. Gloria plans to incorporate this wool into her rug hooking.

Wool from Island Sweet Fibre Arts in Newfoundland

Also of note is RED SPRUCE in Dartmouth, Novia Scotia. Hooked rugs are handmade in Nova Scotia with colourful abstract designs by Canadian artists. Michael Christie runs the shop, and works with a cottage industry of hobbyist rug hookers. One 6 x 9 rug took 450 hrs to complete. This fall Red Spruce plans to introduce needle punch construction, a method that gives a nubblier texture. (phone 19024820460 or redspruce.ca.)-- Patti

Trendy?

2011-07-26T21:06:00.000+02:00

Looks like Rag Rugs are showing up in a trendy West Hollywood hotel -- The Farmer's Daughter -- with the description "LA modern meets country kitsch."

The Farmer's Suite (look bottom left)

Rug Hooker Profle: Maureen Ellis

2011-07-26T20:53:00.000+02:00

Maureen Ellis, July 2011

Liv and I visited artist Maureen Ellis at her home for a coffee and chat about her experience with rug hooking, one of many different art forms she's explored over the years. "Rug hooking was .... a way to make art [that was] focused on women's work," says Maureen, who has deep respect for and interest in traditional women's art forms and all the work that goes into them.

At the time she started, Maureen was home with a small daughter, now grown, and didn't want to expose her to the chemicals used in painting. Since Maureen was anchored to the domestic environment, using it as a studio, she made use of it for inspiration, taking pictures around her house and yard to use for hooking projects. She would study the photos close up and represent pieces of them; for example, piece #1 here shows the bottom leg of a weathered old bench with interesting colour and pattern for her beautiful rug. The piece almost appears to be pixelated, and is made entirely of recycled wool. Image #2 shows a detail of the rug where you can see just how many colours, wool types, and variations of thickness went into it.

image #1: rug that Maureen hooked based on a photograph of a bench leg

image #2 detail of bench leg

#3 proddy rug that Maureen picked up second-hand

#4 detail from proddy rug

image #5: mid-process locker hooking project in beautiful colours

image #6: rug hooked from image Maureen's daughter painted when very young.

Only using the library and experimentation to learn how to rug-hook, Maureen is entirely self-taught. She says, "I'm not a rule person," and didn't enjoy fussing with the dyeing process. She really liked the idea of recycling and was interested in colour and fabric.

While we visited, Maureen showed us examples of proddy (a rug she had purchased, image #3), locker hooking (which she hangs on the wall, frozen in mid-process for a long time now, she jokes, image #5), and an endearing hooked rug from a picture her daughter painted as a young child (image #6).

Maureen is a former member of the Heritage Rug Hookers of Saskatoon, but is now moving with her husband and daughter to Kitchener-Waterloo, ON: our loss and their gain!

Grain Elevator Rugs on Moose Jaw Western Development Museum Site

2011-06-10T21:40:00.001+02:00

Here is a link from the gallery where the rugs are currently on display.
Very appealing!
Rita

http://www.wdm.ca/mj/rug_hookers.html

Natural Dye DIY

2011-04-10T07:00:00.000+02:00

Beetroot, cabbage, red onions + recycled cream wool skirt = table runner?


top left: red onion::bottom left: red cabbage w salt::top right: red cabbage w vinegar::bottom right: beetroot

Photos, Caption, and DIY rom Whip-Up via PoppyTalk.
-Liv

Mary Sheppard Burton's Family Rugs

2011-04-05T17:39:00.000+02:00

Mary Sheppard Burton created a wonderful series of rugs which she entitled the "Tell Me 'Bout Series."

Each rug recounts a family story.

Mary passed away recently. One of her major accomplishments was creating her own designs and encouraging other hookers to do so, at a time when the majority of the North American hooking community used only McGown patterns. This was considered an act of rebellion at the time! --Rita

Good use for buttons and leftover wool pieces

2011-03-30T19:13:00.002+02:00

Gail Ducois Lapierre has a good use for small pieces of wool and all those buttons from recycled garments. She makes folk art garlands. --Rita

Dye Class

2011-03-10T18:49:00.001+01:00

Some photos from last Saturday's dye class. You can find more photos, a description of the process on Susan's blog "Mouse Droppings."

Maple Oat Scone Recipe

2011-03-10T18:43:00.000+01:00

Photo Credit: From Monica at the Homespun Heart

Maple Oat Scone Recipe
1 ¾ C all purpose flour (I used whole grain organic flour)
1.5 C old fashioned oats
2 tsp baking powder
10 TBSP cold unsalted butter (I used 5 tsp butter & 5 tsp organic Coconut Oil from health food store)
1/3 C heavy cream
1/4 cup Maple Syrup
1 large egg beaten
½ cup chopped walnuts...about 2 oz.
Maple Glace – recipe to follow

Maple Glaze Recipe
Combine 1 TBSP melted unsalted butter, 2 TBSP Maple Syrup, 1 TBSP heavy cream & 1 C icing sugar/confectioner’s sugar in a small bowl & whisk together until smooth & lump free...drizzle glaze on scones when they come out of the oven...then let cool before eating....if you can wait that long.

Scones
Mix the dough – heat oven to 425 degrees F. Combine the flour, oats & baking powder in a large mixing bowl. Use a pastry blender or your fingers or knives to cut the butter into the flour mixture until the butter is the size of peas. Add the cream, maple syrup & egg...mix with a wooden spoon until well combined. Stir in the nuts.

Bake the scones – Turn the dough out onto an unfloured surface & form into an 8 inch round about 1 inch thick( I pressed my dough into a greased large deep dish pie plate & precut it into pieces with a metal flipper before putting it in the oven.) Cut into 8 wedges & place on a baking sheet. Bake until lightly browned...about 15 to 18 minutes. Remove to a wire rack to cool.

Recipe from Country Living’s book “The Farm Chicks in the Kitchen” by Teri Edwards & Serena Thomson.

Hope you & yours enjoy this great recipe...Hugs Susan

A Good Day for Wool Gathering

2011-02-26T01:28:00.000+01:00

Saturday, Feb. 26, is half price day on clothing and accessories at all Salvation Army Thrift Stores. Maybe there's some wool out there waiting to be recycled into rugs.

Rita

Free Patterns from Primitive Bettys

2011-02-25T17:02:00.000+01:00

Free pattern on Primitive Bettys' blog

"By My Hands" sampler pattern

Primitive Bettys is a blog with a link to several free patterns. They can be used for cross stitch, rug hooking, or whatever you like. She also has an Etsy shop where she sells her handiwork and some other patterns.

Great Rug Hooking Blog from Texas

2011-02-25T00:15:00.000+01:00

Check out Beehive Hooking. Laura, the blogger, posts her progress on rugs as she makes them. This one is stunning!

Hooked Purses

2011-02-25T00:10:00.000+01:00

Check out these beautiful purses on Jen Manuell's blog (Ontario). She sells patterns, too!

Fun with Colour!

2011-02-24T23:54:00.001+01:00

Here is a site with brilliant colour, an example of "generative art". Watch how the hue changes. --Rita

How to Make Vegetable Dye (on Re-Nest)

2011-02-24T23:49:00.000+01:00

I came across this great post from Re-Nest on how to make natural vegetable dyes for fabric and yarn. Enjoy!

Mary Flanagan Felted Wool Patchwork "Quillow"

2010-12-10T19:14:00.002+01:00

As a rug hooker, you will likely recognize the folded stack of hand-dyed wool in the picture here. The Purl Bee blog has just posted instructions for a beautiful "Quillow" made of these rectangles.

New York Times slide show and article on Boucherioute show

2010-10-07T01:26:00.000+02:00

New York Times
"Faced with a call for increased output and a scarcity of natural materials, Berber weavers have had to rethink aspects of their craft. This has meant, among other things, supplementing wool with recycled fabrics and cheap synthetic fibers like nylon and Lurex, and various plastics.

With the synthetic fibers came new colors and chromatic intensities. Where old-fashioned vegetable dyes tend to look savory and subtle, machine dyes are emphatic and bright. The first things you notice about the Cavin-Morris show is how visually assertive it is. Yes, there are ranges of earth tones, but it’s the fire-engine reds, the Day-Glo oranges, the post-punk pinks that pop out."

--"Wild, Not Woolly, Berber Rugs" - Holland Cotter, New York Times Art Review, 22 July 2010 online version of New York Edition article in C23

"Boucherouite" Moroccan rag rugs: techniques

2010-10-07T01:18:00.000+02:00

I'm having difficulty finding details about how these rugs are made. It looks as though Moroccan women have had varied approaches to making them. Any ideas from these pictures, expert rug hookers? Here's a boucherioute rug from the front, and some detail from the back (link).

And some more examples of Boucherioute

2010-10-07T01:06:00.000+02:00

At this website, there are some more amazing pictures of Boucherioute rugs.

"Boucherouite" Moroccan rag rugs

2010-10-07T00:58:00.000+02:00

Have a look at this website for examples, history, and analysis of Moroccan Boucherouite rag rugs, also called "Boucherwit, from Moroccan Arabic bu sherwit, ‘a piece torn from pre-used clothing’, ‘scrap’"

Example of Boucherouite Rag Rug

Natural Dyeing: Making Your Own Indigo!

2010-09-15T19:10:00.001+02:00

The results of Eva's indigo dyeing.

Freshly-picked leaves, ready to cook down.

Eva, an English blogger, records her adventures with natural dyeing. Look at her amazing work with growing and harvesting indigo for dyeing.

Here's a link to a book about dyeing with indigo.

Natural Dyeing

2010-09-15T19:02:00.000+02:00

Here's an article and interview with Margaret Ooman on Dyeing fabric naturally. I'm not sure if it will be useful or interesting to readers of this blog, but I thought I'd post it anyhow!

Ooman is a rural physician with a background in chemistry, and she's a textile artist.

In this interview, she mentions light sensitivity of natural fabrics and gathering local plants to make dyes.

Results of Oosman's experiment using wild fennel.

Oosman has an amazing blog: Naturally Dyeing. Here she records her experiments and techniques in natural dyeing. The images here show the results of using wild fennel to dye her textiles. Beautiful!

Leaf Rug

2010-09-15T18:50:00.001+02:00

Can you see the caterpillar?

This year our members decided that along with our usual cash donation, we could make a rug to donate to the Sherbrooke Center, the facility which provides meeting space for our group. The rug was designed, hooked and bound by members of our club. It was auctioned at the Center's fund raising gala in May. The name of the rug, "With a Little Help From My Friends", describes our group, as we come together in friendship to share and learn, but it also describes the Sherbrooke Center residents and staff. Together we are stronger and happier.

One More Wild Rice Recipe from the Retreat!

2010-07-13T19:56:00.002+02:00

Here is Wendy T.'s recipe from the retreat. Enjoy!

Wild Rice Casserole
½ cup washed, uncooked wild rice
½ cup washed, uncooked brown rice
¼ cup butter
1 cup diced onion
1 cup diced celery
1 cup sliced mushrooms
3 ½ cups chicken broth
salt
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp sage

Saute uncooked rice , onion, celery and mushrooms in butter 3-5 minutes.
Place in 1 ½ quart casserole and add hot chicken broth. Cover and bake at 325 degrees F for 1 ½-2 hours.

Can be used as stuffing.

Wild Rice Recipe from the Retreat

2010-07-09T18:29:00.001+02:00

Wild Rice Salad

This is a guideline (substitute anything you have on hand).

To cooked wild rice add: chopped green onions, thinly sliced/diced dried apricots, dried cranberries, chopped parsley, toasted almonds/pecans. (I often put in diced peppers). Use your favourite vinaigrette dressing or try the following: whisk together 1/2 c frozen orange juice concentrate, 3+ tbsp balsamic vinegar, 1/3 c olive oil/vegetable oil, 2 tsp Dijon mustard, 1 tsp+ minced garlic, S & P/other herbs.

It was a wonderful weekend. Thanks to Rita/others who organized it and to everyone for the great company.

Linda C

Colour Experimentation Part 5

2010-06-03T23:01:00.003+02:00

Color Hunter is amazing. Upload an image, and it breaks it down into colours for you. Here, I've tried it with the group's Leaf Rug!

Colour Experimentation Part 4

2010-06-03T22:56:00.001+02:00

Peter Piper's Palette Picker

Colour Experimentation Part 3

2010-06-03T22:42:00.002+02:00

Try myPANTONE, Pantone's member ideas for colour combinations. The most popular member is Pantone itself, which has some beautiful colour combinations.

Colour Experimentation Part 2

2010-06-03T22:31:00.001+02:00

Here is another site for colour inspiration.

Colour Experimentation Part 1

2010-06-03T22:30:00.002+02:00

Here is an interesting site for experimenting with colour. Choose a bar of colours and your choice will be shown in fabric designs. This could be useful in colour planning a rug.

E-Bay Wool Seller

2010-06-03T22:24:00.002+02:00

Susan has purchased hand-dyed wool from wpd74 "Olde Scotties Primitive" on E-Bay, and she was pleased with the quality.

Member Rugs: Gloria's Trip to Newfoundland

2010-06-03T22:21:00.001+02:00

Here is a wall hanging recently completed by Gloria. It is a pleasant reminder of her trip to Newfoundland.

With a Little Help from My Friends

2010-06-03T22:09:00.001+02:00

Here is the completed rug. It was auctioned at a fund-raiser for the Sherbrooke Centre. It was an interesting project, with many members participating in the designing, dyeing, hooking and binding.

Laura Megroz's Songbirds Hickory Bench on Chandler 4 Corners

2010-05-06T06:00:00.003+02:00

I couldn't resist adding one more image from the site. This bench is so sweet.

Chandler 4 Corners in Veranda Magazine

2010-05-06T05:44:00.003+02:00

Chandler 4 Corners (click here for a link to more rug images) is an American company that sells hand-hooked rugs online. I discovered it today when reading the May/June 2010 issue of Veranda Magazine. I don't really like this magazine because it's a bit sterile and posh, but the pillows and chair covers in a beautiful Cape Cod home caught my eye: they were rug hooked! I looked up the source and found great rugs for inspiration at Chandler 4 Corners. The images here are from this site, and are a couple of my favourites. I will send the copy of Veranda to the next meeting.

Over-dyeing

2010-05-05T21:09:00.002+02:00

A great web page reference for over-dyeing (click here).

Brussels in Bloom

2010-05-04T00:51:00.003+02:00

A floral carpet made of nearly a million begonia flowers.... Forwarded from our newest member, Cheryl! Thank you.

How Many Ways Are There to Make a Rug?

2010-05-04T00:47:00.002+02:00

A Rag Rugs Tour!

Anna Lajeunesse's Rug

2010-05-04T00:45:00.002+02:00

Hello

Attached is a photo of a rug made by Anna Lajeunesse (maiden name Brullotte), my great grandma, in 1980. She gave it to me when I was born. i don't remember the woman because she died when I was very young. My parents and grandparents say that she made around 500 rugs. Most she donated to family and friends as gifts though she did sell a few. My parents still have the rug she made them for their wedding. Many of my relatives still have the rugs she made.

Anna was born in Quebec but moved to Debden, SK where she lived most of her life. Let me know if you'd like more information about her or more photos of her rugs.

I tell you this because I briefly met you at the Sundog craft sale in December. I told you about my great grandma's rugs and you said that you'd like a photo to put on a rug hookers website. Thank you for your interest.

Take care
Reanne Lajeunesse

Member Rug: Heather's First Rug

2010-05-04T00:41:00.001+02:00

Last fall, Heather attended the Beginner class at Prairie Harvest Rug Hooking School here in Saskatchewan. She chose a folk art pattern, designed by one of the Rancheritas of Mexico. Heather did a great job, using bold and joyful colours. Firey tail feathers and stylish feet add to the appeal.

Update on Progress of Leaf Rug

2010-03-28T23:55:00.002+02:00

Book Discussion at Gloria's Hook-in

2010-03-13T22:44:00.002+01:00

At Gloria's hook-in, members discussed a new book by Suzie Stephanson on primitive rugs. Some of us have ordered the book and will "show and tell" at one of our meetings. Our next Saturday hook-in will be in March at Susan's.

Hook-in: Gloria's Recipes

2010-03-13T22:40:00.002+01:00

Several of our members had a lovely afternoon of friendship, food, and hooking projects at Gloria's two weeks ago. The food was a hit. Here are Gloria's recipes. --Patti

Flax Buns
3/4 cup flax
4 cups whole wheat flour
2 tsp. yeast
3 eggs
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
3 cups warm water
4 cups whole wheat four.
Mix ingredients together. Bake for 12 minutes at 400 degrees.

Hook-in: Gloria's Recipes

2010-03-13T22:35:00.002+01:00

Several of our members had a lovely afternoon of friendship, food, and hooking projects at Gloria's two weeks ago. The food was a hit. Here are Gloria's recipes. --Patti

Wild Rice and Mushroom Casserole
2/3 cup wild rice
1/2 tsp. Salt.
3 cups boiling water
cook for 30 minutes.
1/4 cup chopped onion
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp flour
1 cup fresh mushrooms
1 cup beef stock
1/8 tsp. pepper and 3/4 tsp. salt
saute onions and mushrooms, blend in flour and stock. Cook the roux. Add all together and bake for 30 mins at 350.

Image credit: Muddy River Photos on Creative Commons, Flickr

Hook-in: Gloria's Recipes

2010-03-13T22:29:00.003+01:00

Several of our members had a lovely afternoon of friendship, food, and hooking projects at Gloria's two weeks ago. The food was a hit. Here are Gloria's recipes. --Patti

Artisan Bread
3 cups lukewarm water
1 1/2 tsp. granulated yeast
1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
6 !/2 cups flour
Cornmeal for dusting.
Add yeast and salt to water, mix with flour. Kneading is not necessary. Mix with wooden spoon. It will be moist, wet, and loose). Let it rise (Cover with lid) for two hours. Place in fridge for up to a week. Shape into loaves or use for pizza. Rest loaf or pizza base for 20 minutes, dust the bread with cornmeal and slash with a knife before baking in a 450 degree oven for 30 minutes. Put a tray of hot water in the oven while baking for a crusty bread.
Recipe from Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day by Jeff Hertzborg and Zoe Francois.

Hook-in: Gloria's Recipes

2010-03-13T22:22:00.005+01:00

Several of our members had a lovely afternoon of friendship, food, and hooking projects at Gloria's two weeks ago. The food was a hit. Here are Gloria's recipes. --Patti

Taco Soup
1 lb browned hamburger
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 16 oz can tomatoes with juice and 1 16 oz can of kidney beans with juice
1 can corn
8 oz tomato sauce
1 envelope of taco mix seasoning
Simmer for 15 minutes. Serve with corn chips, shredded cheese and sour cream.

Cranberry Nut Muffins
3/4 c salad dressing
1/4 cup orange juice
2 beaten eggs
2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup chopped nuts
2 tsp. grated orange rind
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 18 muffin tins. Combine dressing, orange, eggs, and berries; Combine dry ingredients and stir wet into dry. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

image credit: MitaK on Creative Commons Flickr

Heather's Lemony Three-Bean Salad Recipe

2010-03-11T17:59:00.003+01:00

12 oz green beans, cut into 2" pieces and blanched
1 can chickpeas
1 can red kidney beans
1 c diced fresh tomatoes
1/2 c chopped red onion
1/4 c minced parsley

Combine the above in medium bowl. I often add minced green onion, minced garlic and/or thinly sliced cabbage. Any combination of canned beans will work.

1/2 c olive oil
3 T lemon juice
1 T lemon zest
1 t salt
3/4 t cracked pepper

Combine the above mix well and pour over salad ingredients.

Thanks, Heather

image credit: graygoosie on Flickr Creative Commons

Three Helpful Gene Shepard Videos

2010-03-08T18:12:00.006+01:00

Gene Shepard has some rug hooking instructional videos on YouTube. They are short, highly-rated and easy-to-follow. Here are three: How to Hook a Corner ; How to Hook a Round Shape ; and "How to Hook a Point."

--Rita

Hooker News

2010-03-04T18:29:00.003+01:00

1. We had a lovely, stress-free day at Gloria's hook-in, pleasant conversation and some laughs while we hooked. The food was wonderful--watch for Gloria's muffin and Taco Soup recipes coming soon to the blog.

2. For those of you who have borrowed the dyes, please continue to look for the missing Majic Carpet dye books- Antique Colors and Spots, Books I and II and Sky Blue Pink with a Smell of Green. They are small booklets, about 6"x 8", so they could easily been overlooked when packing the dye case.

3. We have a new member, Jacqueline. She is primarily a weaver, but we welcome her company and artistic ability to our group.

4. If you are interested in ordering Susie Stephenson's new book, Designing and Hooking Primitive Rugs, please let me know and we can order together to save shipping. The price is $15.96 on Amazon.ca. Send me an email if you are interested.

5. There is interest in holding a retreat. I have checked with Jackfish Lodge, Emma Lake and Dallas Ranch Camp and these facilities do not meet our needs. Any other suggestions? We can always return to Harmony House in Manitou. We have a tentaive booking made last year.

6. Need more light? Ott-Lite desk lamps are on sale for $49.99 at Michael's until March 5, reduced from $119.99. Other Ott lamps are 40% off.

7. Susan has offered to host a March hook-in, details to follow.

8. The Prairie Harvest Rug Hooking School registration forms are now available. With the school being held at Blackstrap, commuting from Saskatoon is easily accomplished.

9. Last call for membership renewal. Non members will be deleted from the list.

Take care,
Rita
*photo credit: docman at Flickr (Creative Commons licensed)

Member Rugs: Ann's Maple Leaves and Scrolls

2010-02-24T17:27:00.001+01:00

Ann purchased this design from a collection of vintage patterns that had been donated to our guild. Her choice of colour palette adds to the antique look of the rug. --Rita

Member Rugs: Ann's Whimsical Piece

2010-02-16T20:50:00.002+01:00

This is Ann's favorite rug of the many she has made. She likes the whimsy of the design and the antique look of the colors.

--Rita

Member Rugs: Gloria's Banner

2010-02-16T20:49:00.002+01:00

Gloria created this joyful banner to hang in a church where her son is the Pastor. The glittery sequins on the pink circles sparkle in the light.

--Rita

Hooker News from Rita

2010-02-16T20:42:00.003+01:00

1. Thank you, Patti, for organizing our display at the Heritage Fair and for those who assisted. At our meeting we decided we would not participate in this event next year. It was felt we get better exposure at the Sundog and we are given an honorarium of $150 there, whereas we pay a $50 fee at the Heritage Fair.

2. Don't forget to pay your membership fee of $12 if you have not done so.

3. A kind lady donated 9 Rug Hooking Magazines, which will be available for loan from our wool suitcase.

4. Keep the leaf rug moving! Thank you, Donna and Ann, for dyeing the background.

Take care and hook lots while you watch the Olympics.
Rita

*photo credit: docman at Flickr (Creative Commons licensed)

How Do You Pixilate?

2010-02-16T20:35:00.004+01:00

Many of us recently bought Jane Halliwell Green's second book on hooking pictorials. On her site, she explains in a video how to pixilate.

--Rita

2010 Saskatoon Heritage Festival: Western Development Museum

2010-02-09T20:55:00.007+01:00

On February 7th, 2010. Introducing some youngsters to the art and fun of rug hooking! Patti is with her grand-daughter, Anna (5) in the top right photo.

Our Rugs Displayed at the Gallery at Circle Centre Mall

2010-02-09T17:56:00.005+01:00

Pop by very soon to have a look before they are taken down on February 13th!

Thanks to everyone who helped, displayed rugs, and to Patti for arranging the exhibit.

Rug by Prolific Rug Hooker

2010-02-09T17:46:00.002+01:00

Attached is a photo of a rug made by Anna Lajeunesse (maiden name Brullotte), my great grandma, in 1980. She gave it to me when I was born. She died when I was very young.

My parents and grandparents say that she made around 500 rugs. Most she donated to family and friends as gifts though she did sell a few. My parents still have the rug she made them for their wedding. Many of my relatives still have the rugs she made.

Anna was born in Quebec but moved to Debden, SK where she lived most of her life.

-Reanne Lajeunesse

What Colour Is Snow?

2010-01-03T21:22:00.005+01:00

Here is Wanda Kerr’s suggestion for dyeing wool to use in hooking snow.

“You can make snow using any dyes and most dye colours. Blues, greens, purples make a cold day. Browns, blacks, yellows make dirty snow. You can also combine these two colour camps for interesting result. The thing to remember is don't use very much dye but put in lots of water to spot dye. You can pot dye this too but be sure to have a bit of constriction of wool in pot to create interesting splotches."

"For a half yd of natural use 3 or 4 colours spotted, about 1/256th each in 1 cup of water. That is light snow but you can increase the measure to create slightly darker snow, each time you double the measure it increases towards darkness by one value.”

Hint: There is no measuring spoon for 1/256 teaspoon, so mix 1/128 teaspoon of dye in 2 cups of water, but only use 1 cup of this. One half of 1/128 = 1/256.

--Rita

image credit: Green Mountain Hooked Rugs

Free Templates and Patterns Online

2009-12-30T21:38:00.004+01:00

The Briarpress site is great for its many free downloads. If you know of any other sites that offer free designs, not necessarily intended for rughooking either, comment on this post (see below)!

As I get started back into rug hooking in January after a 3-year hiatus, I plan to hook the "A" for my daughter Anna.

Sherbrooke Rug in Progress

2009-12-08T17:57:00.003+01:00

Here are the first three leaves in the rug we are creating to be auctioned at the Sherbrooke Centres spring gala. The green one is by Patti, and the brown ones are by Ann and Donna. Follow the progress of this rug on the blog.

Photos from the Christmas Party

2009-12-08T17:51:00.002+01:00

Member Rugs: Donna's Christmas Piece

2009-12-08T17:48:00.005+01:00

Hooker News from Rita

2009-12-08T17:07:00.004+01:00

First, Thank you to...
1. Patti and Ron, for welcoming us into your home for our Christmas get-together and fundraiser; we had a very enjoyable afternoon. Thank you to the donors and buyers- your generosity raised $240 for the Rancheritas.
2. Everyone who helped with the demonstration at Sundog. Thanks also to Dorothy for organizing the display and volunteer list. There was a lot of interest in our craft.
3. Ann and Donna, for your work on the Sherbrooke rug. There are now 4 leaves finished. We have until the beginning of May to complete this project. It will be auctioned in the Sherbrooke Gala on May 15.
4. Alice and Gloria, for coordinating the gallery display, especially at such a busy time. We'll all be proud to show the city our work in our first gallery exhibition.
5. Patti, for coordinating our demonstration and display at the Heritage Festival of Saskatoon, taking place at the WDM on Sunday, Feb.7. This is happening at the same time as the gallery display, so we will need rugs for both events.
6. Liv, for your work on the blog. Liv will teach us about adding articles and photos at a future meeting.

Mark your calendar: Sask Stitches Conference, Muenster, May 28-30. Lynne Howard will be teaching a class on Hooking With Polar Fleece.

I think we had a great year! We created some wonderful rugs, shared ideas, inspired each other and enjoyed spending time together. Life is good.

Merry Christmas to you and those you love.

Rita

*photo credit: docman at Flickr (Creative Commons licensed)

Way to Go! Christmas Party Raises Money for Rancheritas

2009-12-02T22:20:00.008+01:00

A good time was had by all at last weekend's Christmas party and hook-in, where our group raised $284 CAD for the Rancheritas in Mexico!

Thank you to everyone who participated, and for the food, auction items, sale items, and good company. If you have photos from the party, send them along to Liv for posting on the blog.

From the Rancheritas website: The Rug Hook Project was created in 1993 by a group of expatriates living in San Miguel de Allende Mexico. Their vision was to enhance the lives of rural women in two ways: create scholarships for girls so they could continue their education, Mujeres en cambio, and finding a moneymaking occupation for women, the Rug Hook Project.
photo information: Roosters by Isabel Cazares 25 Las Gallinas. Photo from the www.rughookproject.com website.

Guest at Last Guild Meeting

2009-11-25T20:55:00.003+01:00

Lisa, a recent guest to our guild, brought a rug that her great-grandmother hooked in the 1940s for her grand-child, Lisa's mom.

Lisa's great-grandmother, a resident of Nova Scotia, was an avid hooker. The Scotty Dog rug had been damaged on the edges by years of wear. In this photo, member BettyAnn in repairing a damaged spot.

Lisa was seeking suggestions on how to preserve this piece of her family history. The rug was hooked on burlap from a light-weight fabric which might have been rayon or cotton.

--Rita

Ahhhh, I'm in Love with This Rug

2009-11-15T23:01:00.003+01:00

And another Nathalie Lete. Wow. Here's the link. "Papillons."

Is Nathalie Lete the Artist Anthropologie Commissioned?

2009-11-15T22:46:00.005+01:00

Re: the last post (See below), I wonder if well-known French artist Nathalie Lete is the one who made the rug.... She does a lot of hand-hooked rugs in addition to paintings, drawings, and ceramics. See a news story on Lete here. Here's the collaborations she's done with Anthropologie.
--Liv

images from Anthropologie website, and from Nathalie Lete's website.

Massive rug-hooked artwork in Seattle

2009-11-15T05:19:00.003+01:00

My daughter and her husband went on a trip to Seattle last weekend and saw this hooked portrait rug hanging in the clothing and decor store Anthropologie . They said it was 3 metres by 5 metres!

--Patti

Hooker News from Rita

2009-11-12T17:58:00.007+01:00

1. SunDog: Please contact Dorothy about volunteering to demo on the weekend of Dec. 4,5,6. She will provide you with a ticket for admission. Please bring rugs for the display to the Nov. 24 hooking night.

2. Cutter: BettyAnn has donated a Fraser cutter to the group. Thank you very much.

3. Christmas Hook-in and charity fundraiser: Thanks, Patti, for offering your home. Instead of a gift exchange, please bring a few dollars and any items (they don't need to be hooking-related) that you would like to donate. The money raised from the sale of these donations will be used for charity. Our chosen charity this year is the Rancheritas. Learn about the Rancheritas at www.rughookproject.com

4.Annual General Meeting: The AGM will be held on our next hooking night, Nov. 24 @ 7:00 p.m. Please come out to discuss how you'd like to see the club improve.

5. Order from Rittermere-Hurst-Field: We agreed to order the new edition of the catalogue for the group. If you would like to order anything from RHF, email me before Monday, Nov. 16th. If we share the postage, it will save everyone money. You can view the products at www.letshookrugs.com

6. Donation for Sherbrooke Centre: Donna and Ann kindly offered to design a rug that we can all work on and donate to Sherbrooke's fundraising auction.

7. Centre Gallery Display: The display begins on Jan. 4, so it is absolutely urgent to prepare for this before the holidays. There is a $100 fine if the display is not put up and taken down at a prescribed time. Alice and Gloria are co-ordinating this event.
-Each person is asked to submit 2 or 3 pieces. All types of hooked items are needed. Please note that some may not be used if space becomes full.
-Deadline for rugs is Saturday, Nov. 28 (Christmas Hook-In). You may also bring them to the Nov.24 hooking night.
-In order to hang the rugs, they will need to have a pocket (casing) sewn to the back. Please use light weight cloth (such as muslin or broadcloth) and make a 2" pocket at the top on the back of your piece. Please leave 2" on each end without pocket. Make sure to sew the pocket to the backing threads, not the loops.
-Include this information along with your rug: name of rug, hooked by------, designed by.........,size, price or 'not for sale'. You may also add a short statement about your rug.
-If you should sell a rug, the gallery fee is 25%.

8. See the last blog posting (below) to see Donna's Halloween rug. If you sign up to follow this blog, you will be notified each time a new item is listed.

9. Watch this short video about the Rancheritas.

Take care,
Rita

*photo credit: docman at Flickr (Creative Commons licensed)

Member Rugs: Halloween Rug by Donna

2009-11-09T21:48:00.004+01:00

Here's Donna's Halloween rug! The design, by Christine Little, is called "Moonstruck Wanda." What an interesting sky, and don't you love the wonky houses? --Rita

October Guests

2009-10-30T20:16:00.002+01:00

Our Tuesday night hooking group was excited to welcome a fellow hooker, Charlotte Wood, from Port Williams, Nova Scotia and her daughter, Karen.

Charlotte came to Saskatoon to attend the fall convocation where Karen received her doctorate.

Charlotte expressed interest in coming out west with a group of maritime friends to attend Prairie Harvest Rug School. We would very much love to show you some prairie hospitality, Charlotte. We would be delighted to get to know you better.

Grain Elevator Rug Project

2009-07-15T18:55:00.008+02:00

A couple of updates on the cross-Canada grain elevator rug project:

1) Rug Hooking Magazine will publish a story or profile of the project in the spring 2011 issue.

2) The Sask. Legislative Assembly gallery is interested in displaying these rugs, too; we need a name for our display, so email your suggestions to Rita. She is also looking into Western Development museums in many cities.

3) Please consider creating a grain elevator rug this year. There are currently over 30 participants from across Canada. Photos of the projects will be taken at the 2010 Prairie Harvest Rug Hooking school, for proposed submission to Rug Hooking Magazine.

4) If anyone from Alberta, BC, or Manitoba would be interested in checking into possible sites for a showing, please Rita know.

5) Suggestions of any kind for this project and its exhibit(s) are welcome! Contact Rita.

Hooker News

2009-06-29T17:39:00.010+02:00

Our efforts to promote rug hooking have been very successful. Here are four new events that will take our work out to the public:

1. Our rugs have been accepted for display at the Centre East Galleries in Saskatoon. The display will run from March 29- May 9, 2010. With the variety and quality of our work, I'm sure it will be a wonderful display. Thanks, Patti, for your work on this.

2. Our new member, Jan, in Regina, has had discussions with the Saskatchewan Legislative Gallery. They are very interested in our elevator project and it is very possible that the gallery will display the rugs. People from all over the world visit this gallery. We need a title for the display. Any suggestions?

3. We are invited to have a hook-in and display our rugs at the Prairie Fibre Art Showcase, Saturday, July 11, at the Prairie Fibre Mill in Biggar. The Showcase runs from noon to 5:00 p.m.. Jo is the contact for this event. Please email Rita if you want to carpool.

4. Our member, Liv, is the very talented person who posts our articles and photos on the blog. If you have something to share, just email it to Liv and she will post it. Thank you so much, Liv. I have heard many positive comments about the blog.

Take care and enjoy the summer.
Rita

*photo credit: docman at Flickr (Creative Commons licensed)

Prim N Proper Stitches Semi-Annual Sale

2009-06-29T17:35:00.004+02:00

Now on from June 26th to 28th.

Dorr & British wool 25% off
Needfuls 20% off
Everything else 50%

Sorry, no sale on hand drawn patterns, but do ask about the paper patterns listed.

Orders are processed in a first-come-first-ship basis.

Kim Kowula
Simply Unique
www.primnproperstitches.com

A Visit to Princess Farms

2009-06-21T16:58:00.004+02:00

We enjoyed a very pleasant hook-in at the home of Jo and Mark. And what, might you ask, did we do there?

marveled at Jo's wonderful yarns, cashmere and alpaca, soft and luxurious
had a tasty potluck lunch
learned about dyeing roving via Jo's demo
picked rhubarb to take home
wandered among the animals and felt their soft wool
witnessed the arrival of their new animals- a male, 3 females and a baby alpaca
learned interesting information about the animals and the fibre business
tried out Wii Fit
chatted

And, oh yes, some of us hooked a few loops

Breakfast at Harmony House

2009-06-16T18:58:00.003+02:00

During the retreat, our hostess, Lidia, prepared this awesome egg dish for breakfast. It was light and delicious. She also served locally made sausages, baked french toast with a homemade hot apple cinnamon topping, fresh fruit salad, juice and coffee. Yum! This breakfast is worthy of special occasions or guests, yet so easy to prepare.

Harmony House Egg Dish
The basic portions are 5-6 large eggs for 2 cups of cream. This may be doubled.

Beat very well. Add sauteed vegetables such as mushrooms and peppers and your choice of cheese.

Bake in an open casserole pan at 350 degrees for 45 minutes to one hour, depending if you are doubling the recipe. It is done when it is nicely browned and firm in the middle.

Cooked bacon, ham or sausage may also be added if you choose.

(To make the french toast, prepare as usual using french bread, stack 2 layers deep in a casserole, and bake in the oven with the egg dish.)

Member Rugs: Sharon's Hooked Ornaments

2009-06-15T19:01:00.005+02:00

During the spring and summer, when less time is spent indoors, Sharon decided to hook small items rather than start a new rug.

Sharon recently bought two hugely discounted iron trees at Urban Barn, and she's planning several seasonal displays with these trees.

Sharon's first creations are Christmas decorations. She thought she would braid wool for a hanging loop or leave the braided wool long enough to tie a bow. She also thought she might try Easter eggs and fall leaves.

What an interesting project, Sharon!

-Rita

Photos from the Retreat

2009-06-15T05:09:00.003+02:00

Retreat Recipes by Patti

2009-06-14T20:14:00.004+02:00

Wild Rice Salad
1 cup of wild rice. Soak for 2 hours, then cook and cool.

When cold, add:
juice from 2 lemons
1/4 cup olive oil
chopped mint and parsley
dried cranberries
nuts (toasted pine nuts are best)
salt and pepper
fresh vegetables, chopped finely- cucumber, carrot, celery, red pepper

Mix and add more lemon juice if desired.

Asian Roast Chicken
Patti used this marinate for chicken, but it is equally good for pork.
1/2 cup of hoison sauce
1/4 cup soya sauce
2 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
4 clove garlic, crushed
Place whole chicken with sauce in a zip-lock bag, marinate 2 hours or longer. Roast.

Lemon-Rosemary Roast Chicken
Marinate chicken in lemon juice, olive oil and fresh rosemary.

-Photo credits: Lemon by reidab on Flickr. Fresh Rosemary by _peteej_'s on Flickr. Creative Commons licensed.

The Retreat: First Annual?

2009-06-14T20:07:00.004+02:00

Harmony House at Manitou Beach rolled out the welcome mat for the 10 members who attended the retreat. We had ‘The Annex’ all to ourselves- several bedrooms and bathrooms, a deck, a kitchen and a large area to set up our frames for hooking.

Breakfast was served in the main building, a lovely setting with antiques galore. The food was scrumptious and healthy. Patti planned and shopped for the other meals and was chief cook- and what a fine job she did! The Friday supper menu included Rosemary/Lemon or Asian Roast Chicken, freshly picked asparagus, Peanut Spice Noodles, Wild Rice Salad, Chocolate Mousse and strawberries and cream. Saturday supper featured Glazed Ham, Smashed Potatoes, an Indian vegetarian dish, green beans and a raspberry dessert. Lunches consisted of cold meats, salads, cheeses and vegetable and fresh fruit trays.

Manitou Beach has many interesting features. Some of us visited the mineral pool, antique and craft shops, Danceland and Camp Easter Seal.

A highlight of the retreat was learning Wanda’s Wandering dye method. BettyAnn has been very successful in using this method for the sky and mountains in her moonlit, winter pictorial, so she agreed to teach us. The resulting wool was beautifully colored.

Throughout the weekend we shared stories and laughter and enjoyed the company of friends with similar interests. Some hooked a lot, while others hooked a little- but everyone had a good time.

-Rita

Photo credits: Artwork, Harmony House, by Michael R. Gaudet. Photo of landscape Jorgio El Zein. Hooking in action photo by Rita.

Hooker News

2009-06-14T19:55:00.005+02:00

We now have 30 members.

Discussion from the meeting of June 9:
1. We decided at an earlier meeting that we would not be demonstrating at the Exhibition. If you would however, wish to volunteer for security or to be a judge for hooked entries, please call Dorothy. The Ex is on from Aug. 4-9.

2. We will tentatively book the Annex of Harmony House for a retreat next year during the first weekend in June. Those who attended this year will be asked for suggestions about what they liked and what could be improved.

3.Mark your calendar.....Hook in on June 20 at Jo's farm.We will be able to see her spring lambs and her wonderful yarn. Jo has invited the weavers and spinners, so it will be a very interesting afternoon. Plan to arrive for a potluck lunch at noon. I will email the directions to her farm. If you need a ride or have room for passengers, please send me a note. It might be a good idea to
bring a lawn chair.

4.A beginners' dye class will be arranged.

5. Susan offered to help seek out exhibit space for our elevator display. We have close to 30 signed up for the project from 6 provinces. The most recent to express interest is a lady from Waterloo University. Look for a photo of Jan's elevator rug on the blog. She was working on it at the retreat.

6. Two new rug hooking publications will be released soon. The least expensive way to buy them is by ordering from a company like Amazon.ca rather than from Rug Hooking Magazine. (For example, Hooked Rug Landscapes is $31.90 from RHM and $21.39 from Amazon.ca). There is free shipping for orders over $39. We can pre-order and they will ship as soon as the books are released. Send me an email if you would like to order one or both of these books.

Pictorial Hooked Rugs by Green Jane Halliwell (Paperback - Oct. 2009) Buy new: CDN$ 20.76 Available for Pre-order. Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping. Jane's first book on pictorials was excellent, with information on how to dye and hook everything from rocks to skies, roads to rivers. She assured me that this new book was even better.

Celebration of Hand-Hooked Rugs XIX by Rug Hooking Magazine (Paperback - Aug 2009) Buy new: CDN$ 20.76 Available for Pre-order. Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping. This is the collection of this year's award winning rugs, with our group well represented by Cindi's rug.

Take care,
Rita

*photo credit: docman at Flickr (Creative Commons licensed)

Natural Dyeing

2009-05-20T23:26:00.013+02:00

Before 1850, colour on every cloth was created with natural dye. I was looking at the British Designer, William Morris, for a rug I am going to do, and I found that he became an expert in natural dyeing.

Finding a store at Granville Island in Vancouver, my daughter, Liv, kindly obtained some natural dyes. Then she told me it was a mother's day gift. How lucky was I? I have an Indigo kit, natural dye kit, alum, marigold, pomegranate, henna, and brazilwood. The natural dye kit has osage, madder, logwood, natural cochineal, cutch, and tannin. They were obtained at MAIWA Supply, 1 604 669 3939 and at MAIWA@Maiwa.co. Recipes can be found on the Maiwa website.

The soft, muted shades of old hooked rugs are part of their charm, and many produce warm earthy tones. While synthetic dyes over the last 100 years have taken over natural dyes, now there is a renewed interest in the environmental sustainability of natural dyes.

Direct natural sunlight for drying naturally dyed material is recommended, and only natural fibers can be dyed using natural dyes. Mordants, those metallic salts that make the colour penetrate the wool fibers, can also be purchased through MAIWA.

I will bring the dyes to the Watrous weekend to show those who may be interested. No pictures yet, but when I do some dyeing, I'll post them.

--Patti

Book Review

2009-05-20T23:16:00.009+02:00

Miriam Miller pioneered the revival of "proggy" and "hooky"* rugs in Australia. She has just released a wonderful book on her work and that of the Narrawilly Proggy Ruggers who meet at her home: Proggy and Hooky Rugs (National Library of Australia, 2008. ISBN 9780646488721).

Featured in contemporary art galleries in Australia, Miriam’s body of work breathes life, joy, and colour galore. There are sections on design, dyeing, finishing, flowers, and even plastic bath mats. Patterns are included. The section I most enjoyed dealt with children’s hooking. It is an uncomplicated book, with fairly easy-to-do projects. I recommend it for beginners.

Both Rita and I have copies of the book, if you would like to borrow one. I will bring mine to the Watrous festivities.

* “Proggy” is proddy; “Hooky” is hooking.

--Patti

Colour Planning

2009-05-14T17:28:00.005+02:00

One of the most challenging parts of hooking is colour planning your rug. A colour wheel is a helpful tool, and the one at www.colorschemedesigner.com is amazing.

This web site instantly allows you to see a whole range of colour schemes by first choosing a scheme (click on mono, complement, triad, etc.) and then clicking on the colour on the wheel that you would like to include as your primary colour.

So, for example, if you want to see a complementary colour scheme that contains red/orange two clicks will produce the scheme. What an interesting way to study colour!

--Rita

What About Loop Height?

2009-04-29T22:23:00.004+02:00

A question of the day on Wanda Kerr's site was, "Do you think loop height is something to be concerned about?" Most of us were taught in our beginner classes that the loops should be as high as the cut is wide and we strive to make the loops even in height. Here are three interesting responses to the question. What is your opinion?

1) With beautiful hooked rugs being mass-produced (by hand) and offered at retail, I choose for my hooking to be easily identified as an individual work of labor and love. Slight variations in loop height, irregular sizes and shapes, color mix as well as incorporating names and dates do this for me. Many of the antique items we own - rugs or other treasures, show all sorts of "amateurish" or questionable execution but have stood the test of time and are probably as appreciated today by their lucky owners as they were by their proud or practical originators. While they may have strived for perfection within their skill level, their lack thereof is what would have attracted me to their pieces.
--Barbara

2) I love Barbara's answer about the variations, and individualism in contemporary, and older rugs. While I admire even polished rugs, but don't do them(a lot of it is can't), not with the varied, recycled materials I have to work with because they are not all the same weight, thickness, or texture. They pull up and hook differently even if they are all the same cut. I use thick to thin fabrics from coats, jackets, skirts, pants, sweaters, blankets, and almost no new fabrics along with commercial and hand spun yarns, sheep fleece, and other non wool materials and yarns. I like using the different materials as to me it's what I can afford, and i get interesting effects, textures, and looks to my work. I'm not a perfectionist who has to color in within the lines, and have perfect, even loops, or I feel I've failed as as a hooker. A lot of the old primitive rugs, and hookers I admire like Deanne Fritzpatrick do not do even polished rugs and do encourage variety in hooking and materials. Maybe if I used all the same weight or type of fabrics, like all new Dorr, etc. my loops and their appearance would be more even, but it'll be awhile until I can find out. When I have focused on trying to have perfect, even, polished loops I have ended up frazzled and hating what I'm working on out of sheer frustration, and almost gave up completely on hooking. I'd much rather enjoy what I am doing and not worry about even height, straight rows, or perfect consistent loops.
--Vickey

3) I strive to make my loops even because I personally like the way it looks. I'm not a grand master at it, but pressing usually takes care of the little variances. I find it especially important to watch my loop height if I am mixing different widths of wool. That said, I would vary loop height in projects that are not meant for the floor depending on the effect I want to create. This is especially true if I am using materials other than cut wool strips.
--Jean

Rug Hooking Isn't Just for Underfoot!

2009-04-29T22:16:00.003+02:00

Our members create cushions, footstools, wall hangings, coasters, trivets and purses. Here is a tea cozy, hooked by Sharon, from a design that was included in the Spring, 2008 issue of Needle Pulling Thread magazine. Sharon has created a colourful English garden around the cottage. Smaller hooked pieces like this are an excellent way to use up left-over bits of wool. A hooked tea cozy is an attractive way to keep your tea piping hot or it makes a welcome gift.

Hooker News

2009-04-26T17:54:00.003+02:00

During the education portion of the April 28 meeting, we will view a portion of Gene Shepherd's DVD, "Hooking Learn at Home, Volume 1". The video starts with very basic information on how to pull loops and progresses through more difficult concepts. The information is useful for beginners and a good review for those who are more experienced.

There are still a few openings for the retreat at Manitou Beach.

*photo credit: docman at Flickr (Creative Commons licensed)

Rug in Attic: Cleaning Advice from Jessie Turbayne

2009-04-18T03:28:00.006+02:00

After a member found this rug stored in her attic, we emailed Jessie Turbayne, an author and expert on antique rugs and rug restoration:
Hi Jessie, A member of our group recently found this rug, which had been stored in an attic. We don't know the age or history of this piece. The backing is burlap, while the hooking appears to be done with a knit fabric. The rug is quite dirty, but not badly worn. We have heard of using snow or soap bubbles for cleaning. Can you suggest the best way to clean a hooked rug or can you refer us to a source of this information? Have you seen this rug pattern before? Thank you for any suggestions you are able to provide.

Jessie replied today with the following detailed and helpful message:
Hi Rita, ... Your rug is most likely 20th century ( 1930s-1950s? ) but it is difficult to get much closer on the dates without me actually seeing and touching the rug. I believe it might be an original design perhaps inspired from a pattern or copied from a pattern. Again it is hard to tell without seeing the actual rug.

As to cleaning I did write about the process in two of my books. Whatever you do don't send the rug out to a cleaner or put it in the washing machine or hose it down in the bath tub. Air the rug out and broom sweep both sides. Mix up some cool water and a very small amount of dish washing liquid -7or 8 drops in a gallon of water. Also add about 1/4 cup white vinegar. With the back side facing you... take a white cloth ( like an old washcloth) and dampen the cloth with your soap mixture. On the backside of the rug daub the different colors (1" areas ) with small amounts of the liquid. DO NOT saturate the rug. This is done to check for color fastness. Leave the rug flat for 48 hours and check the areas that you have daubed for any running of colors. If none of the colors have run then you can proceed to surface clean the front and the back of the rug using a soft brush and gently clean using circular motions.

Leave the rug flat to dry. The rug should be barely damp when you finish cleaning. You do not want to get that burlap foundation soaking wet.

Cleaning with snow is also a good method. Broom sweep the rug clean and if available take light fluffy snow and cover the rug. Let it stay for a few minutes than sweep off the snow. This method really works and won't harm the rug. Just don't leave the rug out in a blizzard!!!!!!

You can repeat these methods of cleaning several times until you have achieved the desired effects. Just let the rug thoroughly dry between cleanings. Also you may have to put a little more effort into spots but just take your time and proceed with a gentle hand.

I hope this helps you out. If you need more advice please feel free to call...

Regards,
Jessie

Jessie is the author of several books, some of which are available from the Saskatoon Public Library (see the list of "Hooking Resources" at the bottom of this blog page).

Hooker News

2009-04-10T02:57:00.005+02:00

Happy Easter!
Agenda for the meeting on Tuesday, April 14:

Discussion topics
1. Is there interest in starting a dyeing group?
2. Kits for sale to new members
3. Feedback re: blog

Show and Tell
1. The "Over Tan" challenge
2. BettyAnn's method of finishing wall hangings
3. The latest edition of Needle Pulling Thread

--Rita

www.saskrug.blogspot.com
*photo credit: docman at Flickr (Creative Commons licensed)