PICTURES OF HOOKED THINGS ~ ~ ~

Yes, I actually have done some hooking ~ I have a show Saturday in Columbus ~ the From Our Hands Show ~ you can look at the website www.fromourhands.com and check it out! This is a pattern that I drew freehand on a piece of hand-dyed wool that has a more open weave ~ I call it hookable wool ~ the flower stems are needle-felted yarn ~ I used my Babylok embellisher that doesn't get as much use as it should! It's a great way to do something quick since you don't have to fill in the background ~ this is a pillow top and will be a pillow by Saturday's show! The show is at the Aladdin Temple across from Easton shopping complex and is from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. ~ great hours and some really great folk art, rug hooking and some antiques! We'll go down Friday and make a night of it ~ after all, it's Halloween ~ there should be something 'brewing'!!

This little star mat was made for the top of this little old milking stool ~ I left the rough finish alone ~ they make a nice combination. The tan wool really comes off looking whiter than it is due to the camera flash.

Last week, I spent more time on this than I should have and finally took it off the frame so I would leave it alone. It's for my great niece, Isabella, who recently celebrated her first birthday ~ I copied her picture onto fabric and am going to hand stitch it onto the foundation and hook right up to the edge of it ~ she'll look like one of the little flowers!! Margo White is the designer ~ I loved the simplicity of it for a baby's room ~ last year I did another of Margo's patterns for the big sister, Ariana, and I also stitched her picture into the rug ~ it's a nice touch and the parents loved it!

One of the blog readers, Diana, asked if I knew the designer of the chicken runner that is in my Sauder Rug Show post of August 21 ~ if anyone knows the answer, would you post here on the blog ~ we'll try to get an answer for Diana!

In the midst of everything else, I dyed about 9 yards of wool today ~ started at 4 p.m. ~ I swear I'm going to work on getting better organized!! We did have a funeral to attend today so that's why the late start ~ but if you've read much here at all, you know I just get into gear when faced with a deadline!! Tomorrow and Friday ~ I'll be like a white tornado!! I have the last dryer load to empty and then I'm calling it a night! Sleep tight!
Alice

HALLOWEEN FUN ~ ~ ~

On Saturday, our lake friends, Karen (newly retired and loving life as you can see) and John, invited us all for a scary luncheon. Lots of good food and all done in a Halloween theme!



This bag o' bones was the centerpiece ~ wonder if it's anyone we knew?
This was truly 'finger food' ~ cute, isn't it? Carrot fingers with radish fingernails ~ Karen's sister JeanMarie is soooo talented!! I might add, Sonny and I served lunch on Friday ~ it consisted of crab soup and four bottles of wine!! It wasn't fancy but they seemed pretty happy when they left!! In the evening, we went to Mon Ami and ate some more and danced to Eddie and the Edsels ~ fun for old people!! And some of us are older than the rest!!!
This was our motley crew as we got ready to leave for the Jet Express ride over to Put-in-Bay! Some dressed up and some were just glad to be there!! There were three witches in our crowd (sadly, the pointy part of my witch hat was drooping) ~ a hippie ~ the Phantom of the opera ~ a couple dressed as really old people that never went out of character ~ and a guy that thought he was a bathing beauty!! We had a fun night over at the Bay ~ dancing to the Bomb Squad and The Menus ~ and seeing all kinds of crazy costumes and crazy people wearing them!

And this is today's reality in Ohio ~ snow ~ the same picture as my last post!! It actually has melted now and I'm off to lunch with friends!! Yippee!! Of course, I should be working ~ but I can't turn down an opportunity to visit and eat ~ friends help soothe the soul ~ and I'm so grateful for mine!!

FALL AROUND OUR HOUSE ~ ~ ~

Not a lot to write about this evening ~ just wanted to show some fall photos around our property! The dark red foliage to the right is oakleaf hydrangea ~ as pretty in the fall as when it's in bloom.
By the garden gate ~ a conglomeration of mums and odd pumpkins ~ the white is a lumina pumpkin, the dark orange - a cinderella pumpkin ~ and I can't remember the name of the lightest orange one. There is a place north of here that my son calls "the funky pumpkin patch" where we get the unusual ones. The rest came from an Amish farm in the area ~ great prices ~ helped to make up for the prices at the funky patch!


Just a primitive guy carved out of a big chunk of wood ~ and a little pumpkin nestled in one of the summer planters. And leaves ~ we have trees and leaves galore!
I put little mini's in the transoms above the doors ~ it's a good thing as long as I remember to remove them before winter ~ one year, I just didn't get around to it and with the freezing and the thawing ~ well, use your imagination!! It wasn't pretty!!


There's my Mr. Kitty looking out the window ~ he's waiting for 'Chipster' to appear ~ that's the name my friend gave those little critters that run rampant around here!
These two photos are just little vignettes on our breezeway ~ I love fall decorating ~ love the colors of fall ~ including this one last geranium that I couldn't discard ~ not just yet!

I wrote this posting last night so I wouldn't spend half my morning lining up words with pictures and figuring out what words to say (it takes me forever!)~ now, I'm off to do laundry, office work and the hooking room ~ there's definitely lots to do around here! At the beginning of this post, I said there wasn't much to write about ~ but I sure managed, didn't I!!!
Have a good fall day, wherever you are ~ enjoy the sunshine ~ enjoy your life!!
Alice

KELLEY'S ISLAND REVISITED ~ ~ ~

These pictures are from our recent trip over to Kelley's ~ Carol just emailed them to me and since there's not a lot to write about today ~ here we go! This beautiful spot was at the end of the road that goes past the Winery. Our driver ~ Sonny ~ decided we needed a tour and this is where we landed ~ this beautiful rocky shore on this small island in Lake Erie ~ beautiful, isn't it?


Carol ~ the photographer ~ and Bill ~ our lake friends ~ out of the four couples who planned to go that day but only the two of us made it! We had a fun day for sure!

Here's us ~ Sonny, the golf cart driver extraordinaire and his co-pilot! This was just such a beautiful spot that we all had to have our pictures taken here!
This is ABSOLUTELY my favorite place on the island (it ranks right up there with the Village Pump and their famous brandy alexanders!) ~ The Glacial Grooves! This formation was left by the glacier that moved across this continent eons ago ~ much of this was lost to the stone quarry on Kelley's before they knew exactly what this was. It's all guarded by chain link fence with placards and pictures along the path that surrounds it ~ to me, it's kind of a spiritual place when you realize how very long ago the glacier was travelling across this land where we now live. On our property here at home, there are formations called 'puddingstone' which were also left by that same glacier ~ pretty amazing! So every time we go to Kelley's, I campaign to get a cart and ride out there ~ obviously, they never change but I just love it there ~ and Carol does, too ~ now I have a Glacial Grooves buddy!!

This beautiful sunset marks the end of our day as we ride the Kelley's Island ferry back to Marblehead ~ lots of fun things happened in between these pictures but you don't really want to see us eating German food and slugging down wine! A good time was had by all and thanks to Carol for sharing her pictures!
Alice

AND THE WINNER IS ~ ~ ~

We just returned home from an overnight in Cincinnati celebrating our friends, Cliff and Margo's birthdays at their daughter's ~ they were wonderful hosts ~ it was like being at a resort!! We had to hurry home to have THE DRAWING ~ well, we had to hurry home to get their dog out of the kennel before 6!! I put all the names on a piece of paper ~ cut them up ~ and Sonny boy drew the name of ~ ~ ~ .
Can you read it? Look closer!!! It's JOJO ~ who is a faithful reader and frequent commenter!! Thanks to everyone who reads this craziness and to all of you who entered! JoJo ~ email me with your address and I will send your little package off tomorrow! Hope you all had a good weekend!
Alice

LAST SUNDAY'S FUN ~ ~ ~

Six little grandpeople sitting on a log ~ last Sunday was so beautiful here in Ohio, so we planned a wiener roast down in our gravel pit ~ well, it used to be ~ now, it's a nice green meadow where we pile all our limbs and twigs for just such an occasion! There were 15 of us ~ a couple of local ones were missing and of course, the Seattle family is way too far away! Grandpa and I furnished the fire, the hot dogs, cider and chips and the girls brought a smorgasbord of yummy food!

Bobo (that's my gramma name) thought it would be fun if the kids carved pumpkins ~ seems like only the tops got cut and the insides got scooped out and then they were done!! And I made a huge bunch of pumpkin cut-out cookies and frosting and bought sprinkles so the little people could decorate them and take them home! The little darlings decorated only what they wanted to eat and left the rest for me to finish!!! We have a great property with lots of hills and trees and rocks and all the kids really want to do is run and climb and play ~ which is great!
When the moon came up thru the trees, I took this picture through the smoke of the fire and it came out pretty spooky looking, actually (see the orb)!! It was time for all the big kids to gather up their little kids and head for home with their half-carved pumpkins and plates of cookies! It was a fun evening and this gramma headed straight for my bed!

The next day, I delivered some cookies to a couple of friends ~ at my first stop, her cat bit me ~ at the second stop, I resisted the urge to pet the dog!! It's been a busy week which included a trip to Cleveland and the next day a trip to Columbus to the wholesale market! I've been doing a little hooking on a rug for a great niece ~ I should be hooking for my upcoming show! Guess I'll work on that next week! Have a good weekend!
Alice

P.S. Enter the give-away on last Friday's blog if you haven't already!

BLOG AWARD ~ ~ ~

Once again, that sweet Trudy bestowed a blog award on this blog o' mine!! Trudy has a fun blog herself ~ Bits of Wool ~ on the list at the left! It's too hard to pick out my favorites ~ they're all award worthy ~ please take a minute and check out the ones on my list ~ there are others I need to add as soon as there is time!

Thanks, again, Trudy ~ you're always so complimentary!
Alice

LAST SATURDAY'S FUN ~ ~ ~

Last Saturday, my friend, Heidi and I went to Navarre to a hook-in sponsored by the Fort Laurens Rugcrafters. This rug has hooked by various members of their group and really makes a nice presentation ~ and it also helped the visitors, like us, know where in the world we were!!

These ladies, Arlene and Laurel and another lady, whose name I've forgotten already, were part of the 78 rug hookers who gathered for such a fun day! There was lots of talking, laughing, hooking, and eating ~ they served a really good lunch and lots of wonderful goodies to have with coffee when we arrived!

Fritz Mitnick and Sally McNally gave a really informative presentation regarding borders and included a great slide show of their various rugs showing what an important part the border plays in the overall effect of the rug. The two complement each other's style very well ~ they brought this wonderful array of rugs so that we could see in person the rugs that were in their slide show!

Our host group presented all these varied versions of fall leaves ~ I believe the pattern was drawn by one of them! I love seeing the same pattern hooked by many ~ everyone has their own idea of what fall looks like to them and this was certainly a nice representation!

Kay Forbush is a well-known rug hooking teacher in our area and probably far and wide! She's a lovely lady ~ full of fun ~ and I told her she was going to be on my blog!!! Any of you who know her ~ please tell her she's on the 'web' !!!!

Last but not least, my friend, Heidi, holding this darling little pocket that is a combination of hooking and proddy ~ very refined and sweet looking!! Heidi will also be so happy to see herself here again!! I was so sorry that my friend, Donna, didn't get at the other end of my lens ~ she and her friend, Lorel, sat with us ~ we had our own little party!!

It was a great day and one thing that came to mind, was that for five hours, no one was talking about the election or the economy ~ it was just an uplifting time of being with like-minded people who share a love of rug hooking!

Then ~ true to form ~ Sonny and I had a clambake to attend that night!! He met Heidi and I by the side of the road and I grabbed my hooking stuff, hopped in our car and we drove North to gather with our lake friends at their home in Hinckley!! Another food fest!!! We had never been to a clambake ~ pretty darn interesting that they cook all that stuff in one pot and it all comes out good!! We were to bring a dessert which I baked at 10 p.m. the night before ~ it was AWFUL (even Sonny said so - a new recipe - which I threw in the trash) ~ so I had to get up and go the bakery at 7 a.m. before we left for the hook-in and order a nice box of pumpkin cookies so I didn't have to go empty handed!!! That would be a typical "Day in the LIfe ~ ~ ~". Lots of fun, though!
Alice

P.S. Don't forget to check last Friday's give-away post!

FLAG PATTERN & NEUTRALS ~ ~ ~

Last night, I was hooking late, as usual, and was becoming very annoyed with the way the lighter stripe was turning out. I think there were a couple of reasons ~ one being that I hooked in all three darker stripes first ~ maybe I should have hooked them in succession because I was trying to fill in and nothing was working out evenly with the 9.5 cut I was using ~ so then I did the fill-in with a 9 and 8.5 and 8. Another reason may be that the two colors were very different weights of wool and the lighter one just doesn't stand up to the other one as well. It was just all annoying. So, I outtened the light (I think my Canadian cousins say that or I heard it somewhere!) and went to my bed!

This morning, I threw some laundry in, made a pot of coffee and went back to the hooking room! I hooked the star last night and finished the background just now so I could get a posting done. It looks better to me today ~ what do you think? The colors look pretty good to me but when you're used to dealing with lots of color, this takes some getting used to. This pattern is 8" x 20" and I can draw it on monk's or linen ~ you can email me at gfraizer@neo.rr.com if you would like to hook one for yourself!

This nice pineapple is my first foray into hooking in neutrals. It was done in a class with Jane Hester, who is the neutral guru!! I really liked the way this came together, although the pineapple segments were a real struggle for me. I came home after class and tweaked it by adding some wool out of my scrap basket ~ it was another one of those that was a challenge but in the end, I think it all works very well! I like it when everything just flows and not much thinking involved ~ cause my thinker is worn out!!

Another busy, fun weekend ahead! Tomorrow a hook-in, tomorrow night a clambake and Sunday a wiener roast in the gravel pit (that's where we live) with all our kids and grandkids ~ except for the ones in Seattle. The weather is outstanding right now, so we're going to take advantage of it! At some of our fall gatherings, we have made applebutter, soap, ground up and jarred horseradish ~ I don't think we have a plan for this year but maybe we could come up with something before Sunday! So ~ I'm off and running for today ~ gotta bake something to take to the clambake ~ finish the laundry ~ go pick up a plat plan for an upcoming job and it goes on! Have a nice Fall weekend wherever you are!
Alice

A FLAG AND MR. KITTY ~ ~ ~

Last night about 10 p.m., I finally made it down to the hooking room ~ I had been down there during the day trying to put some order to it ~ but now I need to hook. I drew this flag on the monk's cloth, picked out some wool and got these three stripes hooked in by 11:30. I'm going to do it in neutrals much like one I've seen in Polly Minich's last book ~ this is a small one and will give me a chance to see how a neutral works for me!

While I was hooking, Mr. Kitty made himself a nice nest in the wool~he looks a little droopy because I woke him up to take his picture! I have wool piled everywhere ~ this is my work table which should be where I draw patterns ~ but since I haven't put away the wool left from Mr. Catfish, and various other projects, it makes a nice soft place for my boy! Actually, I'm going to use some of this wool in a project I have planned ~ so why put it away?! It's right there waiting for me!

Short post today ~ I've got a billing to get ready and outside work galore ~ so I need to get off my blog and off of something else and get to work!! It is a beautiful sunshiney day here in Ohio! Ta ta for now!
Alice

Good Morning ~ I'm sitting at the computer having my morning coffee out of my "I LOVE RUG HOOKING" mug that RHM was selling at the Sauder Village show. It was so cute, with it's heart shaped handle, that who could resist it?



At a hook-in, a couple of month's ago, someone said they needed Rebecca Erb's "wild mushroom" wool. Last night, while working on getting my pit of a hooking room straightened up ~ I found that I have two yards of it (the one on the left) and two yards of something I don't know the name of ~ but it's a good companion to 'wild mushroom'. If anyone is interested, email me at gfraizer@neo.rr.com! I have a show coming up November 1 and it seems that I need to get some organization to that room so I can create some new small hooked pieces to sell! And I need to get back to the dye pot ~ so much to do and so little time!


This fishing boat was just off our balcony Sunday morning ~ fishermen checking their nets ~ I'm not sure what they catch in those nets, but I thought it looked like a bit of New England. Sonny went fishing that morning (not on that boat!) with our neighbors and brought home a 'fine kettle of fish' ~ well, enough for a nice meal last night!! Sonny is the fish fryer and likes to dip it in milk and then cornmeal ~ seems we had no milk (we don't drink it) so he used my hazelnut creamer!! It was good but kind of weird!

Saturday, on our Kelley's Island trip, we found these ruins of on old island winery ~ there was a for sale sign at the end of the drive that caught my eye and through the trees, we could see the remainder of what we thought was the old Kelley's Island Winery. Our friends, who have a home on Kelley's, said there were several wineries on the island in years past and they weren't sure which one this was ~ but we got off our cart (which our friends so kindly left at the Ferry for us to drive around that day!) and walked back into the area ~ kind of an interesting old place ~ it would be kind of fun to restore if you had a pile of money! There were remnants of all four walls ~ a great place for a secret garden!

There were other interesting sites that day and I hadn't taken the camera (I don't take a purse on such trips so no where to carry it) so there were some nice photos that I missed. At the ruins, Sonny suggested I use my phone ~ duh! ~ wish we would have thought of it at the Glacial Grooves and the beach that was all big flat rocks! My friend took some photos so if she sends them my way, I'll post them.

If anyone watched Extreme Makeover on Sunday night, my step-son, Chris, was a part of the drilling team that drilled the geothermal wells. We watched carefully, but he wasn't on camera unless it was from behind! They went down to southern Ohio on a Saturday and worked all night into Sunday and returned home later that day. He said it was a good experience ~ that family was so deserving!

Today, I'm off to the lake ~ I left my wool cutter and favorite hook up there this weekend and can't produce anything without them!! Someone I know really well says "what you don't have in your head, you must have in your feet"! So, I'm rousting my son, Tad, out of bed and we're heading north ~ we'll go to our favorite place for a nice breakfast ~ they serve late! Oh, we had our flu shots yesterday ~ have you had yours? Have a good day!
Alice

CROW RUG PLUS ~ ~ ~

It took a late night session to get this little rug finished ~ I was way too tired and decided to add a little dyed hand-spun yarn to the bottom ~ it seemed way too plain so in my delirium, I decided to dress it up! Not sure that's a good thing but it will go to the lake with me this weekend for binding and maybe then I can figure it out!!
This is a close-up of Cilla's pumpkin rug ~ I'm hoping it will give you a chance to see all the different types of materials and hooking technique's that were used! Some of the pumpkin stems are dyed nylon tricot ~ pipe cleaner tendrils ~ lots of hand-dyed fleece! The middle pumpkin is proddy while the one to the right, is hooking that has been clipped open ~ lots of different textures!

Last evening, we went to visit friends and to meet their new neighbors ~ and watch the debate! I expected it to be a little more rousing that it was ~ Sarah did a pretty good job ~ I will be so interested to see what Tina Fey does on Saturday Night Live ~ Sarah didn't give her as much material as last week!! I will be in Pennsylvania rug hooking on election night ~ that should be an interesting evening!!

Tomorrow is our annual Kelley's Island day with our lake friends (although one of the couples can't be there~so sad) It's going to be a chilly day BUT ~ there's going to be an Oktoberfest at one of the pubs ~ I'm excited ~ schnitzel and sauerkraut balls and cabbage and noodles and bratwurst and German potato salad and just maybe - a little German beer!! Yippee ~ sounds like fun is afoot! Hope you have a fun fall weekend, too!
Alice

CROW RUG PROGRESS PLUS ~ ~ ~

Another hour + of hooking last night and the background of the crow pattern is done! It was late when I finally got to my hooking room but I was committed ~ tonite (by 'hook' or by crook) the border and star will be finished!


The next two pictures are in our kitchen - keeping room. This one is over the dry sink ~ an old drying rack filled with antique baskets, artist's baskets and even a couple that I have made ~ I've done a little bit of everything thru the years! The pumpkin mat is one of my favorites for sure! Cilla Cameron made this piece for the class she taught us when our group went to England in 2006 ~ after the class I practically begged her to sell it to me and happily, she agreed! It is a combination of hooking and proddy and clipped hooked loops, too. There is a bit of dyed nylon that she hooked for the stems, dyed pipe cleaners for the tendrils and dyed Wensleydale fleece used in the border and as accents thoughout. It is absolutely a great piece ~ beautiful depth of color in the dyed wool ~ creative use of a variety of materials ~ and a wonderful basic design to work from!! I thank Cilla so much for letting me bring this piece of her artwork back to Ohio with me!!'

Sitting below all that is the antique dry sink that belonged to my husband's grandmother ~ we bought it and the butter churn, at the left, at auction when she broke up housekeeping over twenty years ago ~ back when we really didn't have money to buy such things but so glad that we did!! The hooked Welcome mat hanging over the sink is a Margo White pattern that I started at a class of hers at Shaker Village in Kentucky several hears ago now. It's perfect over the dry sink where I serve a 'welcome punch' when the various groups come for lunch ~ a little candlelight ~ a little rosemary lemonade ~ I hope it's a nice way to begin their visit!

Last night, our good friends took us out for dinner as a belated Anniversary present ~ what a nice surprise! Then I came home and hooked on the crow mat and shorten a pair of pants for grandson, Luke ~ which had to be delivered before school this morning!! That would be me ~ why do today what I can put off until tomorrow!!! I have two more pair to do for him ~ wonder what would happen if I did both of them today??!! Can any of you relate to that??
Alice

Two nights in a row!!!! I've gotten to hook in my hooking room!!!! Amazing! Again, while watching Dancing with the Stars (I'm glad they saved Cloris one more night ~ she's a character!), I hooked for an hour and got quite a bit of background done. I'm using a 9.5 cut for the background and a 9 for the crow ~ both those cuts make it move along pretty quickly and obviously, it's just working with very basic colors and filling in the space. That's what makes it a good beginner's pattern ~ you can just get the feel of working with the hook and pulling the loops!

This buttery soft plaid makes a really nice neutral background for this old crow. The tricky part will be finding the right border wool ~ and I like a red or a gold star ~ that might be a little challenge for tonite's hooking! But I've hooked two nights in a row ~ I've done office work, two days in a row ~ and I've exercised two days in a row!!!!!!!!!!! I'm on a roll now, people!! By the way, I do sell the plaid wool for $14 a half yard, if you would like to try some for yourself!!

Yesterday, my friends and I went to an Amish farmer to buy pumpkins!! They were really well priced (cheap) at 20 cents a pound!! WE loaded up the back of Cathy's blazer and off we drove ~ all the pumpkins separated into piles so we each would know what was ours! Cathy came to a stop ~ put the brakes on ~ the pumpkins all started to roll ~ some of them flew up into the seat with me, between the captain's chairs ~ we had pumpkins everywhere and of course, after all the careful sorting ~ we had no idea whose was what!!!!!! Only the big green one that was mine ~ the rest all looked amazingly alike!! Pretty funny! Then Cathy and I went to the 'funky pumpkin patch' north of town to find the unusual white pumpkins, Cinderella pumpkins, bumpy ones, etc. We got pie pumpkins and the little ones that I put over the door transoms. It was a fun fall morning for three gals who have been neighbors for over 30 years!!

Off to get the gray hair colored and find some mums ~ time to dump the summer flower pots and adorn the gardens with fall things! I love the colors of fall and it brightens everything to add all those gorgeous oranges and yellows to what has become a little drab. Enjoy your fall day, wherever you are!! Oh ~ now I've blogged two days in a row, too ~ this is scary !!
Alice