"OUT ON A LIMB" ~ ~ ~

That's the name of this Blog Challenge # 3  ~ and it's done ~ fini ~ completed!!  I couldn't be happier ~ late Sunday afternoon, I decided I better get this under way since I had to have  the post about it done before we leave on our vacation!  Yesterday, I wasn't thrilled with the way it was progressing but by the time it was finished this evening, it was looking very good to me!

To refresh your memory as to materials ~ the roving in the picture was used for the circles in the sheep and for the big fluffy cloud in the sky.  I stripped it out into skinnier pieces of the length and hooked it right into the foundation fabric first, before I hooked anything around it!

The same with the curly yarn ~ that's the three flowers at the bottom and the sparkly craft thread makes up the flower stems!  All the limey green dyed curly fleece is at the bottom of the rug also ~ it looks like nice curly grass to me ~ enhancing the countryside!

And last, but not least ~ the TWIG which became the "limb"  ~ Out On A Limb ~ yes, that little sheep definitely is!  I hooked the tree in a light, natural color to complement the twig, laid the twig on the bare linen, traced it with a Sharpie pen and hooked in a temporary row to follow that drawn-in line.  Then, I hooked it with some junk wool and hooked all around it with the green hill wool ~ after the mat was done, I pulled out the hooking and laid the twig into that space and anchored with some linen twine!  It's not looking too bad, if I say so myself ~ and I do!!  To get a closer look, double click on the photo and you can see the rug in detail!

When I opened the box of bits and pieces that Kris Miller sent, the idea came to me pretty quickly ~ it was just putting the idea into wool, that was a bit tricky for me ~ but it worked!  Check out the Ali Strebel's  and Maria Barton's blogs on the 20th and see what they came up with ~ I can't wait myself!!!

Today is Sunday, February 20th and I'm posting from sunny Englewood, Florida!!  The weather has been spectacular for the entire 9 days we've been here ~ as if it were custom ordered!!  We've had the most fun ~ that's for another post ~ and I had a great time at the Searsport hook-in in Sarasota!  That's another post, too!  I met up with Tammy of Skip to My Ewe blog and Tere ~ a Wool Snippets rug forum friend ~ and my friend MJ saw that I got there ~ it was fun for her, too, as she was able to hook up with some Florida hookers!!  How many people can say that with a straight face?!!  We're heading home to winter in Ohio tomorrow ~ I think our wonderful friends and hosts, Diane and Greg, will be glad to get back to their schedule ~ they have taken us hither and yon to some very fun places!!  Talk to you soon!!