SAUDER VILLAGE RUG CLASS ~ ~ ~

Ta dah!! Here we are! Jule Marie Smith's Sauder Class of '09!! An interesting and varied group of women ~ all very talented and each with a story of their own. I didn't hear everyone's story but I did hear some and I'm sure each of us was glad to have this week all to ourselves for as many reasons as there were women! Rug hooking, eating great food and being with people who all love what we do ~ what could be better!!


I took pictures of each rug in our class before we all dispersed ~ this is Barb's Halloween rug ~ I love it!! I know you're going to love it, too, Barb!
At the top is Evelyn's rug ~ a great gal. The lion is Bev's ~ she also nearly completed Hannah's Hen ~ this is a hookin' woman!! At the bottom is Ginger's and to the left is her sister, Bobbie's rug! These two came with lots of wool ~ I mean 'lots'!!! One day during our lunch break, I had to rescue their wool from two women shoppers who were color planning a rug with Ginger and Bobbie's stash!!!

Carol's rug at the top is going to be very dramatic ~ lots of good rich color ~ she's lots of fun! Linda's house rug will be just as great as all her other rugs ~ you'll get to see them in the new Celebrations as hers is the featured home!!!! And Nancy of the big dog and crow rug is a rug hooking teacher ~ can't wait to see her finished rug!

Rebecca is working on a more traditional rug ~ she is a volunteer at Sauder Village so we had our own personal liaison ~ Rebecca took good care of us! Laurel and Linda both are working on great rugs! I hook with them in Akron at the library and they were so sweet to have a place right next to them all ready and waiting for me!! Thanks, girls! Laurel's the highest hooker I've ever seen!!!!

Donna and Ellen are great friends ~ they laugh a lot and they hook a lot! And both are creating great rugs! I love hearing those Southern accents ~ Ginger and Bobbie are Southern girls, too ~ wish I had that cute accent!

This beautiful geometric (a Bea Brock pattern) is being hooked by Aryl (she says it's like Carl without the C). I teased her that she was hooking with threads. She, like Rebecca, was hooking in a fine cut with the most beautiful jewel tones ever! A spectacular rug in the making!

And lastly (is that a word?) is my effort to step out of the primitive world into a more artistic world!! Yikes ~ what a stretch!! This is Barbara Brown's "Flower Tree" and it feels very wild and loud in color when I'm hooking on it ~ but viewing it in picture form helps get a better perspective ~ it's not quite so bright!! And I bought a 'reducer' ~ a little viewer that helps get a bird's eye view of your work as you go along ~ I love that new little gadget! I'm hooking this in a 9 cut with a 9.5 background ~ it will be interesting to see the end result ~ believe me, I'm struggling with all this color and I think I caused Jule to struggle along with me in the color planning. I brought along my stash of sparkly wools and paisleys ~ that's where we began and then filled in with her hand-dyed wools. I'll keep you posted on the progress but since I have two September shows to prepare for, it might take a while!

Jan Nofziger and Kathy Wright were the coordinators of this great week! Jan is retiring and this was her last hurrah, so to speak!! She does a wonderful job and her successor has big shoes to fill. HAPPY RETIREMENT, Jan, and I know you'll have lots of fun in your new venture!! Jan is so enthusiastic and full of life ~ enjoy your new journey!

In the days ahead, I'll be showing pictures of the famed Sauder Rug Show! There were lots of great rugs to see and I'm happy to share them with you! Tomorrow night, I'm hosting a garden club for a house tour and evening meal ~ so you know, I'm like a white tornado trying to get the weeds pulled and the menu put together!! Wish me luck!!!!!