CLASS ON HEARTS ~ ~ ~

One of my rug hooking friends wants to do a class on hearts in preparation for Valentines Day!!  So, on Monday, January 28, we're going to do this heart pillow with the proddy edge or a heart chairpad with hand-torn 1" strips!!!  Class will be from 10-4.  If you're interested, let me know soon so I can draw you a pattern and plan a little lunch!!!!  You can call me at 419-565-8821, email at gfraizer@neo.rr.com or respond here!!  Come join us ~ it'll be fun!!! 

PRODDY CLASS ~ ~ ~

 A good time was had by all!!  At least, that's what they conveyed to me at the time! MJ, who just flew in from wintering in Florida,  is looking over Dawn's shoulder and Pam ~ my wonderful lunch helper ~ is looking on!  They all worked on my Lexington Proddy Sheep pattern that is at the top left of the sidebar.

Linda, MJ, Pam and Jackie show off their progress at the end of the day!  We really had a lots of laughs ~ Linda was especially glad to get here after being lost on these twisty, turning country roads with no markings!  We were sure glad she found her way here! 

Lauren and Dawn thought they were so cute hiding behind their work ~ Deb was very proud to show her face!!  Lauren really got a lot of her proddy done ~ she picked  beautiful background and border wools.

Here's Lauren's face ~ she's taking a picture of me

taking a picture of her.  Deb is very serious about her work ~ she was doing a great job on her sheep and flag background.  Linda is also doing a flag background on hers ~ love that!

I wanted you to see a close up of Deb and Jackie's

sheep faces ~ they're doing them in Leicester sheep fleece that I had in my stash!  So cute ~ they're going to be very fuzzy faces ~ one with hooked ears and one with proddy ears!  Jackie and MJ really stepped out of the color box and chose purples and teals for their sheep ~ I hope they like them as well when they're done as they did that day!  Of course, you know I was crazy about the vibrant colors!

Jackie is modeling her Funky Flower purse that she made in our fall class ~ I was so glad she brought it along to show everybody!  She and Deb came from Pittsburgh bright and early that day and Dawn from Indiana ~ bless their hearts for travelling so far ~ Linda and Lauren travelled a distance, too ~ they want to plan a class for summer ~ I have to get my thinking cap on!! 

I do try to give the gals a great experience while they're here ~ they get a nice lunch ~ a house tour ~ great wool to work with ~ and I try to teach them something new so they leave here feeling their time was well spent!  Thanks to each one of you for a day of fun and sharing!

My next post will be about the International Quilt Festival that Heidi and I went to ~ what a great time that was!!  We're already planning on it for next year!! 

I'm getting ready for a show this Saturday at the fairgrounds in Mansfield ~ Gathered Treasures ~ a great primitive show ~ come see us!  The info and link to their website is on my sidebar!  Then on Sunday, we leave for the Woolley Fox for three days of my favorite pastime ~ hooking!!!  What a week I've got going!  Ta ta for now!
Alice

SATURDAY'S CLASS & TIPP CITY RUGS ~ ~ ~

 These four gals came from Pittsburgh and Indiana to take my Funky Flower Purse class and I was so glad to have them here in my studio!  This is what they accomplished in a 6 hour class plus we took time out  for lunch and the 'house tour'!

Heidi, Charisse and Sue are local gals ~ they didn't have to travel too far to join us! I give them a choice of the purse background wool and all do basically the same pattern (my design) but have the choice of all kinds of materials that are here in the hooking room.

I teach several different hooking stitches, needle felting by hand and with my felting machine, proddy and wool applique!  We crammed a lot into our time together and as dear friend, Heidi, said at the end of the day "she was on overload"!!  It's a lot but they all hung in there and covered a lot of ground!

There were seven students and friend, Pam (in the pink shirt) came to hook and to help me serve lunch!  Thank goodness!  So nine of us in the hooking room was quite comfortable ~ it helps me to gauge how many I can take in a class for the future ~ and I think a couple more would make a nice full classroom! 

Most of the girls were from the class in Tipp City, so I asked them to bring their projects finished or not,  so I could share them with all of you!  This is Jackie's piece ~ she used the same bittersweet motif that I did but all her 'berries' are done in quilled wool, rolled wool, cats paws ~ whatever you choose to call it.  She added felting and some roving ~ it really is a great example of using alternative materials to make a design into a very artistic

rug!

Sue, wearing her lovely SKIF sweater (Nola brought these fabulous sweaters from St. Louis for us to purchase) , made her project into a pillow and used Karen Kahle's idea of prodding the edge to bring the hooked side and the wool backing together.  She did a great job ~ it looks just like Karen's finished project!!

Charisse did a mirror image of the turkey design along with oak leaves and acorns and she's doing a

crochet edging, which she left a little unfinished so she could show us how to do that.  It looks great, by the way!!!!!!!

Pam,  the lunch lady, brought hers along to work on ~ I love the purple turkey!  She did a great job on her stone fireplace, too ~ although, I think she mentioned that was a challenge to get it just right ~ and I think she did!!  Thank you, Pam, for being a good helper that day!

Here's my pal, Heidi ~ she hasn't worked on hers since we were in that class, but I wanted you to see her cute squirrel ~ if you click on the picture to enlarge, you can see that she used yarn for his tail ~ it's really quite cute!  And a spot dyed wool for the tree ~ really nice! If you remember, we were given paper patterns with various fall designs and then we made up our own rug pattern.  So all these rugs came from the same class but are vastly different ~ very interesting results!

Sue wasn't in our class but this is the rug she's working on ~ my friend, Maria Barton's pattern ~ it's a bigger pattern than I realized from just seeing a picture.  Sue will do a great job ~ she's a fun gal and a nice addition to our class that day!  When these girls finish their purses and send photos, I'll post them here for you to see ~ I think that they'll all be different but yet the same ~ I can't wait!!  They had so much fun, they're coming back in the spring for a proddy class!!! 

On Tuesday, MJ came to show me her 'first rug' done in a class here not long ago!  She did great ~ I love the texture in her crow ~ and we planned a chair pad for her next project!!  She's going to a hook-in and wanted approval that her hooking was good enough to do in public ~ I assured her it was!!! 

A long post today ~ I hope you're still hanging in there ~ it's been a busy week here, as usual!  Tonite we're going to our Homebuilders' annual charity auction and I have no gift to donate!! So, I have to head out of here and find some nice Christmasy type thing to take and hope they'll bid high ~ we adopt needy kids at Christmas so we need lots of high bids tonite!  Tomorrow, Heidi and I go hooking with the group in Akron ~ tomorrow night is the opening party for The Art Center's Holiday Fair and Saturday, I think we have a plan with Sonny's daughter!  Yikes!!  I better get out my roller skates!! 

Hope you've all had a good week ~ and get rested up because the holiday season is approaching at warp speed (my new saying)!  Take care ~
Alice

YESTERDAY ~ ~ ~

We had a fun little class here in my little studio!  Vivian and MJ are new hookers!!! I love being part of that!!  We had such a fun day ~ we hooked ~ we laughed ~ we ate!  Vivian and I have been friends for a long time now ~ Sonny built their new home years ago and since we both like the same style of home and furniture and do shows ~ we have lots in common.  I just met MJ at my last show and she was so anxious to learn the art of rug hooking ~ we all hit it off and are planning a little field trip in a few weeks ~ new friends ~ I love that!  New hookers ~ I love that, too!

Congratulations to my Seattle daughter-in-law, Coni ~ on the right!  She participated in the 3-day walk for breast cancer research for the third year in a row!!  Her team was 81 strong and at last report was the highest earning team in the country ~ over $205,000 pledged for the Valley Girls team!!  That's amazing!  They walk 60 miles in 3 days ~ and my son and the three kids cheer her long the way!!!  I hear that two of my Ohio daughters-in-law are going to do the walk next year!!!  I'll be on the side-lines cheering them on!!!!

That's it for today ~ Heidi will be here shortly and off we go to our class in Tipp City!  It will be fun and we're looking forward to learning lots of new stuff!!!  Have a good weekend, everybody!
Alice

NEW HOOKERS ~ ~ ~

Two weeks ago, I had five girls in for beginning rug hooking classes ~ I haven't been posting in a very timely manner ~ that's obvious! This is Karen and her sheep seat pad ~ she did a great job and has called me and told me she's finished and ready to bind!!  I love it when the new hookers are so enthusiastic!!!

This is Karen's friend, Pat ~ I've known her forever ~ and she worked on one of my starter patterns Three Hearts.  She caught on fast and I'm sure it is done by now!  Pat is very creative ~ makes purses out of felted sweaters ~ she'll be off and running with rug hooking, I'm sure!

Jalane brought two of her friends on Saturday and they were all ready to learn rug hooking, too!  Look how enthusiastic she is!!  Jalane loves pumpkins so we got her started on this and I hear by the grapevine that she is done, too!

Bev and I have crossed paths several times this past summer so I was very surprised to see her walking up my sidewalk!!  She had already done some rug hooking, so she was a leg up on her girlfriends!  The grapevine told me she has finished the piece she started previously, so I bet by now, her hearts are done, too!  Call me, Bev!!!!!!!

Sally took to rug hooking so quick ~ anybody who knows me knows that I like my hookers to hook high ~ might as well start out there than have to change. Sally did great with that and she is finished, ready to bind and ready to start her next one for her new haven at the lake!

This was the past Thursday night ~ we were blessed with 3-4" of SNOW!!!!!  We had been out for dinner with friends ~ celebrating my 65th birthday,(YIKES!) ~ and came home to this!  The roads were awful but this was so pretty that I thought it camera worthy! Birthdays come around pretty fast now ~ it's kind of hard to believe! But I'm blessed with good health, good friends (my peeps Donna and Cathy took me out for breakfast and the week before, other friend, Cathy, took me out for lunch ~ it's no wonder I'm what my son calls 'pleasingly plump' !!), good kids and my hard-working, still cute, Sonny boy!! So, I'm looking forward to the next 65 years ~ I'll keep blogging and we'll all be amazed at what my future holds!!!

Have a good day, friends!
Alice

TODAY ~ ~ ~

There will be a beginning rug class in my little studio, taught by me! These are the patterns that I generally offer ~ very simple ~ something the new rug hooker can see an end to! I know the gals who are coming and actually, I did a chair pad for one of them ~ she begged me! And on Saturday, I'm doing another small class ~ busy weekend for mama! It should be fun ~ I really like to teach and I love it when they leave with a sense of accomplishment and the ability to finish their new rug! My classes are from 10-4 and include a tour of the house to see the rugs I've hooked and a nice homemade lunch of chicken salad on croissants and 7-layer salad ~ and a little pastry! It is 12:45 a.m. now ~ I need to make this quick and get this old body to bed!

This photo of dyed antique black wool is for Jane ~ she commented on my dyeing post last week asking if I had trouble getting a good antique black and did Cushing's black turn purple!! Here's your answer, Jane!!!! And the answer is YES!!!! The white part of the plaid ends up a bluish purpleish color for sure ~ there's a piece in the middle that was a solid base color and I do like the result of that one! And mixed together, they will give a nice dark background. There was another piece that I dyed and loved the outcome ~ but I swear, it is lost somewhere in the depths!! I had it with these pieces and now I can't find it anywhere! When I do ~ you notice I say 'when' ~ I'll post a picture of that as well!

This pile is all the other wool I dyed last week. A friend of mine is often the beneficiary of wool and occasionally gives me a pile to dye ~ she provides the wool ~ I do the dying ~ and then we split the pieces ~ a good deal for both of us! I love the blueberry color in the upper left corner! The really light piece is actually a great slate blue but it doesn't show well in this photo ~ the greens are great and so is the red! The wool to the upper right turned out pretty funky but will give a very antique look to a rug, me thinks!!

I posted a photo of something I received in the mail today but it went into cyber space and I really don't have time to re-post it. My blog friend, Jacque sent me this cute fabric basket she made and a sheep pin ~ it was from her Pay It Forward post from last fall. Now, I need to get going on my two PIF's for Helen and Julie! Hang in there, girls ~ I'll get them done! Jacque said we had a year to do this and I'm the wrong person to give that kind of time frame to ~ as soon, as I get the tax prep done and delivered to the accountant, I'll tackle my PIF's!!! And I'll show the picture on the next post of today's gift!

Okay ~ this girl is done, it's 1:15 now! ~ we'll have fun today ~ and I'll post all about it on Sunday!! Spring is sprouting in the midst of all this snow we have left on the ground here in Ohio! I hope it's springy where you are!
Alice

THURSDAY'S CLASS ~ ~ ~

Look at the great work these gals did on Thursday!! I love that they expounded on the bones of my design and created these wonderful purse fronts! And they got so much done ~ my classes are from 10-4 with time out for lunch and a look around our house and rugs I have done ~ and other than that, we worked like demons to get as much done as possible!!

Look how hard they're working! I had several wools pulled for the purse itself for them to choose from and then let them pull from my wool stash and scrap baskets to build their designs. I put out various rovings and yarns and we needle felted by hand and with the needlefelting machine and had a ball!!!! For the most part, they finished their designs and then had to do the purse construction and lining on their own at home!! Fortunately, all the girls know how to sew!! That's a good thing!!




Last night, Penny emailed me her finished purse!!! She went right home and got to work and look what a nice job she did!! I love seeing the results of something that I was able to help with and inspire!!!






This is Penny's purse back ~ out of an extra piece of wool, she created a flap that goes to the back so that it doesn't obscure the front design. A couple of the gals requested a zipper closure and a couple chose not to go that route. I favor a loop and button on the back but Penny's version is a good choice!! Thanks for the pictures! And you'll see Pam's, Joan's and Susan's on here as soon as they're done!

We did have a fun, productive day ~ for lunch, I made them comfort food!! Homemade macaroni and cheese (it really was good ~ they asked for recipe!), seven layer salad and homemade bumbleberry pie!!!! So for those of you, who are close enough, if you would like a class on my purse design, give me a call and we'll set one up for you and your friends!!! I think you'll have a good time!!!

Saturday, we went to a clambake/surprise birthday party for two of our lake friends ~ Carol and Bill!! We are so happy that soon somebody in that group will be in the 60's along with us ~ finally!!! Their son and daughter hosted it at her son's beautiful home and they were definitely surprised!! Sunday, I went to a birthday party for an 89 year old friend ~ she, too, was surprised! Violet is a lovely lady and I was honored to be included in the guest list!!

Yesterday, was a great day with old school friends, Karen and John! Karen is back in our home area from Oregon and our friend, John, drove Miss Daisy down here to the gravel pit (on our property is an old gravel pit!) for the day!!! We laughed, we reminisced, went out to lunch (Sonny joined us ~ that tells you how busy he is!), we talked politics and the really fun thing is ~ Karen and I signed John up for Facebook!! The picture of us taken with my camera was a bit fuzzy ~ I think the photographer was nervous ~ so Karen will email me hers when she gets home!! Of course, my mind thinks you want to see pictures of old people!!!!!!!!

Weather in Ohio has finally warmed up and no doubt, this is our Indian Summer ~ I sure hope it lasts for a while! Tomorrow, some friends and I are going to the lake for a fun day and Saturday is our trip to Kelley's Island for the annual Halloween celebration!!! We need good weather to get on that ferry and do our Halloween pub crawl!!!

I hope you're having a good Fall season ~ and enjoying life!! Thanks for stopping by ~ I really appreciate knowing that there are interested souls out there reading this stuff!! Today, the hit counter should mark 28,000 hits since it was installed in January!!! That is pretty amazing to me!!! Again, thank you!

Alice



At Lauren's request:

TASHA TUDOR'S HOMEMADE MAC AND CHEESE


2 c. elbow macaroni
5 T. unsalted butter
1/4 c. flour
2 c. milk
1 c. Vermont sharp cheddar ~ grated
salt and pepper
4 oz. Velveeta, cubed

preheat oven to 350 degrees. and butter a 1 1/2 qt. baking dish.
cook macaroni in boiling salted water just till tender and drain.

in large saucepan, melt 4 T. butter, whisk in the flour, and add milk. stir until it thickens, add the cheddar and stir until it melts. add Velveeta but do not allow it to melt completely. mix the macaroni into the sauce and place all in baking dish. cover with Progresso bread crumbs mixed w/ the last T. of butter.

bake for 20 - 25 minutes until brown and bubbly. serves 4 to 6.

NOTE: I didn't use the salt and pepper and thought it was salty enough. hope you like it!!!