I'm a hooker and a dyer!

I love rug hooking, but the only hooking I've done was with wool yarn and one small square in a Yahoo Groups rug with wool strips, and those both were about 2004! I've had a Bliss Model B since 2004 as well, bought used on ebay by my hubs for me. He bought me a beautiful frame as well that year for my birthday. And it all just sat there. I know I've blogged about this before, about how I wanted to use my goodies.

So I went to the local rug hooking group last week. It was on the day after I worked the weekend and my hours are crazy. I work until 3 a.m. so I didn't get to the group until 2 p.m., lol. The hooking group is from 10:30 to 3p.m.  Ha ha! I'm just not a morning person and I don't get up until at least noon the day after I work until 3 a.m. I'm sure you understand. : ) 

I'm so glad I went! The ladies were so nice and helped me draw a simple star on my monks cloth to get started. There were a few primitive gals and a few who were doing fine cut floral work. I became fast friends with Kimberlee who loves primitive in a 9 or 10 cut. I've never seen anything that wide and it was beautiful! We got to talking and then this week we have had a blast getting together. Monday we drove to Berlin, Ohio, on a last minute trip to Country Craft Cupboard. It's a rug hooker's dream! I bought a yard of primitive linen, a primitive 8mm Hartman hook, a pattern, and two Cushing's dyes (mulberry and spice brown). Tuesday I took my Bliss to Kimberlee's and she helped me clean it and oil it, and it works sooo nice now! I could barely get the handle turned before. It has been sitting for more than six years and still had some wool fuzz from the last owner. Wednesday, yesterday, we got together again (lol) and dyed some wool and she got me started on a pattern I have been looking at in Create and Decorate Magazine for four years! Yes, I am the Queen of Unfinished Projects and the Queen of Procrastination, lol!

Cardinal rug from Create and Decorate Magazine

We had so much fun dyeing. We tried to follow a formula in a book for a light tan color for me to use as the background on my cardinal rug. Well, we got a very dark brown. It's a beautiful color, just not what we were expecting. So then I tried my spice brown on a new piece of white wool. Love it! I think it's a tad darker than I wanted for the background, but it will work just fine.


Spice Brown on new white wool. It's darker in person.


Next we through some mulberry dye and some bright red wool in the pot just to see what we would get. Beautiful! I am a prim girl and this bright red wool was never going to get used by me. Again, beautiful mottled reds!


Mulberry on bright red wool. Again, darker in person.

 Poor Kimberlee was trying so hard to find the perfect color for her snowman rug and wasn't getting it. Too dark, too yellow....I told her I had beginner's luck.

We had a delicious lunch of chicken salad and pita bread, and got to hooking. I just love her house. It's a new house, about five years, but it's so prim. Hooked rugs, penny rugs, wool applique.....so many things to look at! Here is what I have done so far. I started with the cardinal wing and probably hooked too closely. Then I started outlining the body of the bird. I soon switched to my primitive Hartman hook because I was having trouble pulling the strips with the regular hook I was using. So much better! Even though I'm only using a #8 cut, the Hartman hook was so much easier. I was really struggling with the other hook and my finger was getting sore. I thought rug hooking was supposed to be relaxing, lol! The right side is where I was struggling and the left is when I switched to the Hartman hook. You can definitely see the difference. I might even re-hook the right side.

My progress so far on the cardinal rug

 Okay, off to get some cleaning done before work because I've been ignoring it the last few days. : )

Hi.

Just a quick note to say hello to the world. I have the winter/holiday blahs. I can't really say winter now can I?!?! It's about 50 degrees and raining....in Ohio....on December 15th.

I got to chat with Alice and she reminded me of a local hook-in, so I'm going. I'm actually looking forward to it! I've heard about it before and just dragged my feet and never made it. I'm determined to use some of my craft supplies (which include a wonderful frame, Bliss cutter, and some wool) and do something useful with them. Four years ago I bought some monks cloth (I think that's what it is) intending to make a rug for my sister's wedding. I will give you one guess where the monks cloth is. Yep, in the bag from the store.

My son had hand surgery on Monday and is still in some pain and bored out of his mind, but is hanging in there. He broke a finger badly during basketball practice a few weeks ago. We didn't realize it was broken and didn't get to the doc as soon as we should have. That's the downfall of working in a hospital. Kind of like that story of the shoemaker's children. So one pin and one screw later, he is all wrapped up and on Vicodin. Unfortunately he is missing an entire week of school (bad planning on my part) and next week starts winter break, so I guess in his mind he is lucky....though he is not happy about having to make up a week's worth of work over break.

I better go check on the patient. Have a good weekend all and hopefully I will have a picture of something hooked next time I stop in. : )

~Michelle

November: A good month to be thankful

Two posts in the same week?!?! I must be turning over a new leaf. : )

Since November is the month of giving thanks, I thought I would start a few new habits this month and try and shake this looming depression. I have so much to be thankful for that it's silly to be so depressed.

I already gave up my morning coffee months ago and was only getting a cappuccino and fruit snacks (they have like 300% of my daily vitamin C so they are vitamins, right?) on the days I work at the hospital at night, but I just gave that up too. I can get a free coffee in the cafeteria at work (much less fat and sugar than the cappuccino) and will be buying the fruit snacks in the small packets and just have *one* as a treat. This will save me about $10 a week and I think that's significant. Just think of all the neat things I can get at the thrift store with $10! lol!

I'm also going to stop wasting so much time. This is a hard one for me. I find myself looking online at everyone's crafting projects and home decor projects, and then never getting around to my own. Enough is enough!

My family deserves more from me and I deserve to feel better. I hope I can stick to it. They are small changes, but I think they will make a huge difference in my life and the lives of those around me.

I started stitching again and this is the first piece I've finished. I'm very proud of myself for getting it done so quickly. I'm the queen of unfinished projects (ADD + a little OCD = nothing getting done). Thank you to Christine at Preferably Prim for the cross stitch chart. It was just right for me.

Back to the thrift store!

Oh I have missed the thrift store, my local Salvation Army to be exact. I haven't been blogging or doing much of anything for a long time. I got sucked into something else and ignored my crafting. I have to admit the depression bug hit me and I was having a hard time dealing with some family illnesses. Fall is my favorite time of year and I seem to have gotten a little second wind when normally this is when the fall/winter blues start for most. Of course I'm not like everyone else, lol. Last Thursday I got the itch to go to the TS. One day late of the Wednesday 50% off sale that they always have. I figured I would take my chances as I know I don't have the same tastes as most people as I'm looking for items I can prim up. Here is what I found. So excited!



Isn't this adorable? I never find anything already my taste. This is a small plate, probably about 4 inches or so. I don't have to do a thing to it! It's perfect.



Wood slat basket, a little drawer with dividers that I will probably use in my craft room for buttons and such. The long wooden box says 'recipes' on it, but it's going to get a paint job and will be used as a table centerpiece I think. I found these three daisy doilies and couldn't pass them up for 99 cents. The only problem: they are starched. I washed one and it didn't really get much better. Is there a secret to removing starch or is it impossible?



3 recipe boxes. I just love the metal! I love the look of the box on the left, but not the words. I don't know what I'm going to do because I love the color of the box. Hmmm. The other two will probably get painted and a punch needle design on the top or front.




A tiny shelf. Really tiny! Probably 5 inches wide. It's a nice burgundy color so it just needs a little sanding and staining to age it a bit.



This isn't handmade, but I couldn't pass it up. The cork is in good shape and there is a picture frame spot at the top. The glass will get removed and I will add either a punch needle piece or a wool applique of some sort.

 So I got all of this for about $8! I'm so excited. It was blue sticker day so everything with a blue sticker was 50% off, so I got the little 'plant love' plate for 25 cents! Steal!

Happy Halloween!

Cat owner lesson of the day:

Don't leave your ice cream bowl on the fireplace mantle because the cat will find a way up there and it will come crashing down at 3 a.m. and scare the you-know-what outta you. : )

TIme Flies!

I can't believe I haven't posted in so long. I've been busy with Thirty-One and having fun, but then last week got the urge to craft again. I don't even know where to begin, lol. I spent some time in my craft room last trying to get things in order, but I just got more overwhelmed. Cross-stitch....penny rugs....polymer clay....salt dough??? So many crafts, so little time.

I have missed checking in with my favorite blogs and can't even begin to imagine what I have missed! There is no way for me to catch up on the last six weeks, so I will just jump in. : )  I'm sure my booth at River City Gift Shoppe is a disaster as well. I have not been a good vendor I'm afraid.

Patches and Cali have been spayed and are back outside after a week inside recuperating. We have also taken in one of our porch kittens. You will remember him from this post. Yes, we adopted Cinnamon into our family! He came down with a nasty eye infection and the doc said to keep him in for a week while he was treated. We loved him so much we didn't want to send him back outside.




Cinnamon while still being treated for his eye infection

 Our dog loves him too much and Cinnamon isn't ready for a friend yet, so he has been living in our bedroom. He is just a kitten so he has plenty of room to roam with lots of toys, and we play with him often so he is never alone. He is ready to explore the rest of the house so the dog and cat will just have to get used to each other.

The cooler weather we have had here in Ohio over the past two days is making me think about the Fall holidays that will be here before we know it. How can summer be over so soon?!?! My son started high school and is loving it, but I was not ready to have a kid in high-schooler. I can't possibly be old enough for that, lol.

My mind is swimming with ideas. I'm going to start with something simple, more coiled baskets for the cats, and go from there.

I hope all of you are enjoying the long weekend with your families.

It's been a while...

We have had a couple of really busy weeks here. It started out with a sick momma kitty that needed emergency surgery. She is doing fine now and is now spayed.

We had momma kitty #2 spayed last week. Today I took one of her kittens to the vet due to an eye infection. They are both living in our bedroom until they have healed. That kitten, Cinnamon, will be on the neuter list as soon as his eye is better.

I've been working at home part-time and haven't really had any time to stitch. So sad!

I also started up with Thirty-One Gifts as an independent consultant. I have been busy learning the ropes and am excited to get started! The quality is great. The catalog does not do these products justice. The hostess specials are unbelievable, so if any of you are interested in a party you can do a catalog party with me even if you aren't here in Akron, Ohio! If you are interested please check out my page at www.mythirtyone.com/mmauk and view the new Fall 2011 catalog. I wouldn't promote them on my blog if I didn't believe in the products and the company.

I will post more later. It's been busy around here and just writing about it has made me tired, lol.

I hope everyone is staying cool!

~Michelle

Thirty-One Gifts

I'm so excited and I just have to share it with you! Very soon I will be an independent consultant for Thirty-One Gifts. I fell in love with their purses and bags, and just had to sign up to be a consultant! This is so out of my 'norm', but I can't wait to get started.

If you haven't heard of this company, check out their website at Thirty-One Gifts and learn more about the CEO & Founder, their mission, and their great products. I will have a website for ordering very soon as well, but until then you can visit my Facebook Page.

Even if you are not near to me here in Ohio, you can still host a catalog party and earn all of the great hostess rewards! I will have more info to share soon, but was itching to share the news with you.

~Michelle

I Need Help Finding A Website

I found a website last week selling stitchery patterns. I cannot for the life of me find it again. I got there from a blog on my list talking about this company, so I'm hoping someone out there sees this and knows who I am talking about.

She had square muslin candle mat patterns for sale for about $2.50. I remember one having pineapples.

I have googled and looked in my history. No luck!

Thanks for your help.

~Michelle

New Items at the Shop

I stopped by River City Gift Shoppe on Saturday with some new items.

A few muslin candle mats.......




Wool star



Prim Flowers by Chestnut Junction



Stars and Cats by Chestnut Junction

A rose wool key fob, a few raggedy sunflowers, and a few other stitcheries. Here is what my booth likes like now. It's getting there!

Hope your weekend was relaxing. It's chilly here today in Ohio so I'm going to put some socks my cold piggies and get some laundry in before the day is done. 

A Bowl of Cinnamon

Cinnamon the kitten that is!  Remember the bowls that I blogged about here? Well the kittens love them. Oh, you don't know about those kittens do you. Well, I'll save that for another day. A family friend has cats and she has cute little baskets for them to sleep in. Well I don't have any cute baskets, but I wondered if they would like the bowls. Soft, conform to their shape, cozy....they love them! The green one is a bit too small for any of them to sleep in, but they like to just stand in it and watch their siblings play.

What do your cats like to sleep in?

Oh by the way, Sugar and Nilla are back. I'm happy and sad. My friend Tammy took them in and unfortunately her allergies were too severe. She almost wound up in the hospital! She brought them back last Friday and you would have thought they were never gone. Pumpkin Pie was thrilled when she realized who they were. Those three have been playing nonstop since then! I don't have any pictures of the three of them playing because they are all blurry, lol!

Eek! Look What I Did!



This was the exciting thing I was telling you about! My oldest sister Denise is kicking cancer's butt.  My sister Cathy went and got a pink ribbon tattoo, so I had to also! It was my first tattoo and boy did it hurt, lol! I wasn't sure what to expect really. Everyone told me childbirth was painful and I did that without any pain killers, so I figured I could handle a tattoo. Yikes! I probably picked a more sensitive area too, the inside of my right wrist, but I wanted to be able to see it every single day so that I didn't forget about my loved ones.

The three hearts have a special meaning. I have two aunts and sister who have all fought breast cancer, and are not going to let it take them down! I do not plan on adding any more hearts either. You got that cancer? No more!

This was a birthday present. I used the money that my aunt, my in-laws, and my husband gave me. I'm sure they thought I would go and buy craft stuff with it, lol! Surprise!

I'm still in shock that I actually went through with it, but I don't regret it one bit. Actually, I already know what I want for my second tattoo, but I need to wait a while until I don't remember the pain from this one. Just like childbirth! : )

My booth is set up!

I was so nervous/excited/scared/excited to set up my booth at River City Gift Shoppe today. I had to do a last minute packaging change from how I packaged my bowl fillers at the Spring Fling because amazingly this house doesn't have a stapler. So out came the ball of twine and a quick stop to Office Max for tags.

I'm not 100% happy with hanging them, but I can't think of another idea other than setting them on more shelves. I do think I have a few thrift store make-overs that I can take (they were kind enough to loan me the one in the photos). And heck, maybe the shelves will sell too! I'm going to look into boxes (candy or small bakery boxes) because the bags are driving me absolutely nuts.

I know it looks sparse, but I didn't know what to take and also did want to take too much, lol.

I'm excited to start stitching again as well. A little birdy suggested penny rugs which really gets me excited! I also have some muslin candle mat patterns that I've never stitched and have been itchin to get started on.

It was also my 34th birthday today so it made it extra fun to go and set up the booth. I know it's not really a booth, but I don't know what else to call it. I ran some errands afterward and then picked the kiddo up from an after school track and field party. Only two more days of school for him! I can't believe my baby will be going to the high school next year. Eek! The boys took me to Wendy's (my request) and we also made an appointment for me to do something really exciting on Saturday. I can't wait to share that with you, but you will have to wait to find out. I think most of you will be shocked. I'm a little shocked myself. Hee hee.

So that's that. I'm one year older and since I started exercising again last week, I really feel it! : ) 

Spring Fling

What a beautiful weekend we had here in Ohio! It's back to raining every day, but at least it's warm.

So I spent last Friday and Saturday at a Craft Fair/Flea Market at the shop I'm going to be consigning at. It was a looong two days, but I met some great people and it was a chance to see what the world outside my home thinks of my work. : )

I didn't have many sales, but the two ladies that stopped by and loved my designs because they decorate prim made my day! This was my table on Friday. I switched it up a bit and had more sample bowls and less options on the table on Saturday.

I try and think positive, so the positive side is that I have lots of product to set up in the shop when my consignment booth starts June 1st.

I met some great consultants from Scentsy, Pampered Chef, and Thirty-One. Have you heard of Thirty-One? I just found their adorable purses and I think I might become a consultant when the hiring freeze is up in the Fall! Yep, like I need one more thing to do, lol.

Allison from Yellowbird Yarn, who I blogged about here, stopped by to say hello too! At least I had fun ladies to talk with.

Stay cool and enjoy the sun!

Sugar and Nilla have a new home!

I'm so excited! Sugar and Nilla, now Lilly and Gigi, have gone to a wonderful home of a friend who lives nearby (read: visitation rights!). : )  I took lots of pictures yesterday because I knew they might take two kittens and that would be the last time I saw them for a while.




This picture just cracks me up!




Pretty Pumpkin Pie



These kitties love romping in the hay!

 Catching Sugar and Nilla was easy because they aren't afraid and love being held, but Pumpkin Pie, being the runt, is very shy and timid and ran when I was out on the deck. I need to work with her a bit more and hopefully I can find a home for her too.


Here are the kittens' new buddies, anxiously waiting to get a peek at the kittens!

And here they are fast asleep in their new home. Yes, Sugar/Lilly is sleeping in the litter box. Hopefully that won't be a habit. : )

 

Sugar/Lilly was a birthday present for an 8-year-old boy who didn't know his present was going to have four legs! He picked out the sweetest one for himself. His mom, dad, brother, and sister got Nilla/Gigi as their own. They will be well-loved little kitties!

I came home (after spending almost three hours at their new home because I just couldn't leave!) and had a big bowl of ice cream, lol. I know this is the best thing that could happen to these two, but I will miss them. Momma has Pumpkin Pie to love on for a little while longer, and hopefully she will grow big and strong now that she has Momma all to herself.

Hello Ohioans!

I am so excited to tell you that I will be participating in a craft festival May 20th and 21st at River City Gift Shoppe in Copley. I will have raggedy flowers, grubby candles, maybe some stitcheries and thrift store make-overs, and of course lots of salt dough bowl fillers! I'm also excited to say that I will most probably be setting up a booth at the shoppe as well starting June 1st, which just so happens to be my birthday. : ) There is a great spot in the shop opening up and I can't pass up the opportunity.

The shoppe is so cute. It's actually two shoppes across the parking lot from each other. One of the shops also has ice cream! Can't beat that on a warm day like we are having today! Here is a peek into the Carriage Barn Shoppe. (taken with my cell phone-sorry!)

Adorable mug cozy knitted by local artist Allison. She has lovely yarn and knitting needles in her booth as well. Check out her blog Yellowbird Yarn and her Facebook page. You can also see much better pictures of her mug cozy there. : )

 

I didn't catch the seller's name of this cute kitty, but I will have to resist not grabbing him on my next stop in. Love his pennies!

 Another vendor whose name I missed. She has great stitcheries for all seasons. I did see a sign that they are proudly stitched in the USA.

 Laurel Creek Candle Company, made locally in Copley. Gotta love that! They smell sooo good.

And these cards are so prim perfect! I grabbed the pineapple with the pennies that you can see in the upper left hand corner of the pic.

So if you are going to stop by for the craft festival, just look for this sign on Cleveland-Massillon Road!

Swap Goodies!

I participated in a swap with Lecia and Brenda. I do believe I got the better end of the deal.

Here is what I received from Lecia, a beautiful bonnet! It looks great against the mustard yellow color of my dining room, but as soon as I get a peg rack up in my bedroom it's going in there because this shelf is not doing it justice. The walls are tan and it will truly stand out in the bedroom I think.

And look at this adorable sheep from Brenda! The tag and rusty bells are a few of my favorite things about this sheep, not to mention I just love sheep. He has found a home on my dining room table.

Thanks girls! I absolutely love my gifts!

Sickness, sadness, and lessons learned

What a week! Last week my kiddo was home sick from school all week. I picked up his homework, which he wasn't thrilled about, and he did it like a trooper and finally started feeling better Friday evening. That's convenient. : ) 

Since kiddo was feeling better, we headed out to visit a family friend who was admitted into a hospice center Friday. She was my husband's grandfather's "girlfriend." They met at their town's senior center. After my hubby's grandfather passed away, his family kind of adopted Lucy as she had no family of her own left. She came to all family events and holidays. She had MS and long-standing back pain from a surgery many, many years ago, but I never heard her complain. We visited her on Saturday and she was not the Lucy I remembered. Cancer had struck hard and quick. She could barely talk, probably due to the morphine she was on, but did her best to communicate. She knew we were there and that's all that mattered. I got a call from hubs this morning that she passed on with my in-laws with her. While the hospice center was beautiful and everyone was so nice, I'm glad she had family with her. Now she is back with her "boyfriend."   : )  We will miss her. One less guest at Easter dinner this year.

Shipping. A hard lesson to figure out. I don't like it. I'd rather just create, but unfortunately the goods have to get to the customer some how! I'm going to stick to what I've seen on other blogs....contact me with your zip code and I'll get you a quote. It seems like a hassle, for the customer especially, but I don't know what else to do. Any suggestions?

And just to end this post on a happy note, here are some new kitty pictures. These are actually about two weeks old I think. It's amazing how fast they grow! Momma moved them from the kitty condo (the white wooden house in the pictures) to the guest house (a converted Rubbermaid container with hay and blankets where the other cats were sleeping since Momma and babies took over the condo), and now they are under the deck. It's been cold and wet, but I'm sure she has her reasons for doing it. I just wish I could see them. I can hear them, but I like to see them playing on the deck and knowing they are okay. Maybe she will bring them back out again. No one is sleeping in any of the houses, lol. Silly cats.

These pictures were taken while they were still living in the kitty condo and hadn't discovered their house has a door. Well, until this day.



Hi. I'm Sugar. Aren't I cute?




Momma, can we come out and play?




Move it Nilla, I want to see too!




Poor Momma. She tried to keep them from coming out. She is going to be busy from now on!

 So that's that. Oh, I did a few swaps recently too and I will be posting about them soon.

A quick makeover



This was my first attempt at making over a thrift store item. I used too many coats of paint and didn't watch my sanding, but she is cute anyway. She was an orangish-brown color underneath with polka dots, and even with a few coats of paint you can still see the polka dots and I kinda like that. I like that you can see that color along the edges where I sanded. She had a grungy blue bow that I changed to a raggedy piece of cotton. Here is the original:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Every time I walk past the fireplace I get a nice whiff of those grubby candles from Tonya. My son even commented on how great they smell. Yum!

~candles, doily, berries, and paddle~



So thankful!

I received a wonderful box from Tonya as part of Pay it Forward. Grubby candles that smell so good, a wooden canning jar that is being displayed on my kitchen windowsill next to my mossy jar terrarium, faux berries, a prim painted paddle, the cutest little doily, a candle holder with a nubby grubby candle, and one of her famous rice eye bags which I am going to pass on to mom as she has a few eye problems and I have no microwave to warm it up.  : (   The boys think it's time to get a new one. Maybe I will ask for one for Mother's Day. I am practical like that.   : )  

Tonya's prim painted items are perfect and I just can't get over the scent on the grubby candles!!

I can't wait to get my box out for the Pay it Forward. All I will say is that I'm busy stitching and painting.

I also posted a few sets of salt dough bowl fillers to my selling blog. Please stop by and take a look! I will be adding more throughout the weekend as well.