Los Alamos is the place to be Saturday
Category: marketing
Off to Tucson we go (by Tynan)
So, the idiots tell me we’re off to Tucson come Thursday. And NOT because their anniversary is tomorrow and we’re celebrating somewhere warmer than Albuquerque. No, it’s a rug hooking event, something she calls a hook-in. (Stupid name.) Apparently, some folks called the Old Pueblo Rug Hookers hold it. She goes every year leaving him and me at home. Bored.
Not this year; we leave Thursday morning, so we can be there by dinner (I love dinner) that evening. Eight hours in the car each way. And just like that, it’s October once more, and we’re back on the road again… They insist that I will not be left in the car while they do fun things without me, that we’ll go hiking. This remains to be seen.
Personally, I think that she wants me along so that he’s distracted after she buys all the crap she usually wins buys at the hook-in’s silent auction. (That and Darlene’s in Florida and isn’t available to dog-sit.) Two out of three years she’s come home with yet another frame! I tell you this, no frame is taking up my seat in the car. If it doesn’t fit, she’ll just have to get one of hooker friends to take it home in their car.
Never fear, I will be recording everything on this Tucson trip and will report back to you. Follow me on my High on Hooking’s Instagram/Facebook feeds in the meantime. You’ll see what I have to put up with.
Tynan
Enjoy the consolation then move on
Last week’s post was about the consolation of making art for art’s sake; this week it’s about having to move on. Unfortunately, fires are still burning in California, and it appears that as many as 85% of Puerto Ricans still don’t have power. My problems are NOTHING compared to those, though I’d never belittle anyone, including myself, who’s concerned about their kid. Still, we make our way through new situations. She’s still keeping her room and bathroom pretty clean, and she’s definitely working hard to avoid arguments that don’t have to be had. I call that maturing, and, damn, I still have a hard time with it!
In the meantime, Tom and I are dealing with the changes too. We’ve been to Home Depot and identified the shelving we’ll he’ll build for me in the laundry room. It should go a long way towards getting the clutter up off the closet floor. And, frankly, we’re coping with maybe the most acute disappointment of our new/old living arrangement. Today we and the dog were supposed to head back east on our first visit with family and friends since we moved here. We’re still sad, but, after two weeks, are coming to terms with it. Again, you have to move on even when life hands you those lemons.
So, tomorrow we’re off on a different adventure, a day-trip that Tom’s never been on. Almost a year ago to the date, Tynan and I headed up north on our own. Tom couldn’t come for whatever reason, and I wanted to get up that way before the snow started to fly. We drove north of Taos to check out the ski area – nothing to see but lots of construction it turned out. On the way back to town, we did some hiking then explored this nifty, itty bitty village called Arroyo Seco. There are some shops, including one with perfect pottery and, of course, Weaving Southwest, which has fabulous rug yarns. There’s a great little restaurant/ice cream parlor too.
Tom’s not been north of the town of Taos, so we’ll be heading up that way. Today we even picked up nice, new, fanny-type day packs at REI because I’m tired of being the one to carry everything in the pack including the water bottles. At Albuquerque’s new Cabela’s (which – for all you New England peeps living near the Patriots’ Gillette Stadium is NOT NEARLY as cool as the Bass Pro Shop with its giant fish tanks and honest-to-God, full-fledged pub) Tynan got a new, collapsible water/food bowl. I’ll happily carry that for him.
Yesterday was my last day vending at the Rail Yards this year. While I sold a good piece, this year’s not been that profitable there for me. It’s great for exposure and spreading the gospel of rug hooking, but I think that next year, I’ll cut back to once a month there and look for another venue. More on that in the coming months.
BIGGEST NEWS I’ve received lately came yesterday when I checked my email as I sat at the Rail Yards. Albuquerque’s Fiber Arts Council puts on an exhibit every other year (one that’s smaller than the Fiber Arts Fiesta held on the opposite year, no vendors). The marketing committee informed me that they’ve chosen a photo of my entry in the show back in April, 2016, to appear on the marketing materials for the 2018 show on April 7 and 8. Woohoo! I’m very honored and can’t wait to see the flyers and such. You know I’ll be sharing that when I get it. 🙂
In the meantime, we go on. As in New England, fall is the most beautiful time here in New Mexico. Nights have cooled off, but days still run anywhere in the 60s and 70s. Our very BIG SKY is bright blue; you might have seen it on the news last week, NBC covered Albuquerque’s famous International Balloon Fiesta last week, and USA Today has a bunch of pics up and just called it “the world’s most photographed event.” Tom and I didn’t attend this year, but the beauty of balloons is that they’re pretty visible from all over once they get up there. Consider making a visit sometime; hundreds of balloons in the sky at once is a spectacular sight.
Just so’s you know, I’ll be taking a little “stay-cation” from the blog, a week or two at most, while Tom and I find a few more little adventures to share this month. When you live in a beautiful place, you have to take advantage of it. I’m sure I’ll have some photos to share when I return.
What are you doing these days to keep your spirits up and to appreciate great autumnal weather? If you’re going to New England, send some lobsters out here!
Target art
Target art, which I use as a noun rather than the imperative that it sounds like: Target art now!
Let me explain. I was doing some monthly shopping in the store called Target this afternoon and was struck by the colors and designs that I could find if I only slowed down to look. I wish I’d gotten a shot of the four or five side-by-side fridges containing Coke. They were pretty retro, and it made for a great display visually at least. (Pity I don’t drink soda or other sugary drinks. Not!) Canisters of different Lysol wipes reminded my of Andy Warhol‘s pop art. No, didn’t get that shot either, as I figured that by then Target’s Loss Prevention department was probably wondering what I was up to.
But all this reminded me of the beauty that’s in life everywhere. And I’m not just talking what we can find in nature. That’s easy. I’m sure many of you have seen Abby Chapple‘s Facebook posts, the ones she always labels “ART EVERYWHERE.” I love them! Just a couple of days ago she had a video up of avocado pit carvings. They were extraordinary. Turns out a woman named Jan Campbell makes them and sells them via her store Avocado Stone Faces.
Abby’s shown us some great and unusual art since she started sharing her finds in Facebook. Of course, not all of us can afford such beautiful and intriguing pieces. I suppose that’s where Target comes in. Sure, some of their clothes and furniture and such are knock-offs. I once found a blouse than looked soooo like one I’d picked up at J.Jill (or maybe I just wanted to pick up, but it may have been too dear.) Ignoring that aspect for now, what I was really noticing today were the displays, how colors and shapes and textures were put together. I give Target credit for taking the time to do that. Walmart certainly doesn’t bother. And it works; I prefer the shopping experience at Target to Wally World.
Next time you’re out and about looking for toothpaste and what-have-you, take a look at the color combinations, the shapes that are all around you. You might be pleasantly surprised. And you’ll be living in the moment, certainly, something we all should do more of.
Where have you noticed art in unexpected places? Target art!
And in other areas of the world today… Tynan presents what’s just off the frame!
If I hook it, they will come. Really?
The rug that generates the most talk when folks come into my booth at the Rail Yards Market is the one I call “Welcome to New Mexico.” Many of you already know its story; that I started it right before I left Massachusetts late last July to move to Albuquerque. In my mind I’d work on it while the child and I crossed the country on our new adventure. I pictured myself contentedly hooking in motels each night as I decompressed after a day of driving. That didn’t happen once, not even when the kid spontaneously combusted in Scranton, Pennsylvania, when she thought her cell phone died. (I swear that I left at least a year of my life on the side of the highway there…)
No, I didn’t hook at all on the road. First of all, it was difficult just getting our things in and out of my Honda Fit each day. If you haven’t seen one, it’s a tiny car, and I’d packed it to the gills. Truthfully, it was enough every evening to find some dinner, catch up with important emails, call Tom (who was still back in Mass waiting for the movers), and brush my teeth before I fell asleep over my magazines.
Hence, I started the rug in earnest when the kid and I arrived at the house we were renting till we found our New Mexican castle. (Therapy!) It was designed to be a rug of convenience in that I was using t-shirts in the colors of the high desert and no set design. Old t-shirts in reds, browns, greens, and such are pretty ubiquitous; better, I’d found that Albuquerque had Savers stores. Savers has for years been my thrift shop of choice for used clothing to deconstruct and then hook with.
The hooking was done right quick – by the beginning of September. The finishing would have to wait until we moved (again) and I had more table room. To me it was an alright rug; it served its purpose, certainly, but I didn’t love it. Imagine my surprise when I put it up for sale at the Rail Yards this June. It was the mat that everyone pointed to when they perused my stuff. “Love that!” “Look, it’s got a Zia!” Even, “Hey, Sue, you should buy this one for your office.”
An aside: For those who don’t know about the Zia sun symbol, here is a description from Pueblo of Zia:
The Zia logo is used by the state of New Mexico on both the flag and license plates.
The symbol originated with the Indians of Zia Pueblo in ancient times. It’s design reflects their tribal philosophy, with its wealth of pantheistic spiritualism teaching the basic harmony of all things in the universe. (http://zia.com/home/zia_info.html)
Maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised by its popularity. Zia suns are all over the place here: on our license plates, on t-shirts, worked into company logos, and so on. Silly me for thinking it would be seen as touristy or, at best, kind of kitschy. I mean, I’m from New England, but I didn’t have photos of sailboats or lobster statues throughout my colonial home.
A few weeks back a woman came through my booth; she had a marketing background and did a lot of work with arts and/or craft shows. The first thing she told me (after saying that she loved my work, that is) was that I needed to have more Zias. that people would eat them up. And that my mug rug concept should be “expanded,” that I should hook a larger rug, big enough to hold four mugs. That “if I hook it, they will come.” (And, concomitantly, they will pay more.)
What the hell, I thought, Let’s try it. Tom and I ran to Savers a couple of days later (if I go on Tuesdays, he gets me a senior discount of 30%!). There weren’t four matching mugs that would fit the New Mexican bill, but I did find two colored turquoise. Fine, we’d start small-ish. Below is what I came up with (minus one mug for the pic).
Fast-forward to this past Sunday. Everyone loves the “Welcome to New Mexico” rug, but, of course, no one wants to pay for it. (I know the owner-to-be is out there…) Lady comes in, is looking for a gift for her mother. Takes her a while to decide on one with the “perfect” colors that will match her mom’s home. I realize suddenly that I don’t have my Square, that I left it in the car. Tom makes a run for it. Lady walks around the market with her husband while we wait. Tom and she arrive back at the same time. I start to input the info into Square. “Wait!” she says excitedly. “Can I have this one instead? I think she’ll really love this one.” The Zia rug with its matching mugs is $10 more. Of course, you can!
So, I’m about to start making a lot more New Mexican-themed rugs and mats. That’s okay. I find it an interesting challenge to come up with different designs that don’t bore me, that have some panache beyond the typical tourist crap you find in Old Town Albuquerque. But I’m not one to design according to others’ preferences – unless they’re paying for a custom rug, of course. Fortunately, these will tend to be smaller rugs. For myself and my own “artistic sense,” I usually have another rug running, something that’s less work and more…therapy. Right now that’s a bedsheet rug. Pictures will soon be available.
What about you? What do you like to hook? Landscapes? Geometrics? Portraits? Florals? Realistic versus stylized renderings? I know many love to do seasonal pieces. Me, I love pumpkins and other things fall, but I’m not a lover of Christmas rugs. It takes so long to make one, how can I put it out for six weeks at the most? Weigh in below!