…and just in case you can’t make the New Mexico Arts & Crafts Festival on November 19, High on Hooking will also be participating in the 12th Annual High Desert Studio Tour. Of course, you can come to both. In fact, you should.
For the past several years, New Mexican hand-dyer and knitter extraordinaire, Dagmar Beinenz-Byrd of ZiaWoolz has generously invited me to join her at her home and studio for the High Desert Studio Tour (click to download the brochure). We won’t talk about the past couple of years that Covid screwed us out of such things. It’s an intimate venue rather than one filled with all kinds of vendors and activities, allowing one the chance to get in some good conversations with makers, letting you learn more about my work as well as Dagmar’s. In addition, Sarah Lovell of Southwest Sunflower Pottery will have all kinds of things that you didn’t even realize you need. (I know. I have some, LOL.)
Dagmar wearing her own work. (If only she was my size…
To be sure, there are other arts and artists on the tour. They include painters, sculptors, jewelers and more spread out over seven different studios. More info is available in the brochure. And, certainly, if you have any questions, please email me at Laura@highonhooking.com.
Her Rio Grande mugs provide just a taste of Sarah’s pottery.
If you’re looking to find holiday gifts for family and friends (and yourself!), please come see us at the New Mexico Arts & Crafts Festival in November AND at the High Desert Studio Tour in December.
I’ve always maintained that September 1 is just as much a new year as January 1. You have a holiday and then you give yourself permission to start over. Maybe it’s a school year, your health, a job, or just a way of looking at life. In my case this September of 2022, it’s health and working on a new perspective. (And don’t get me wrong, I think renewal goes on all through the year, it’s just more celebrated in January and September.)
It’s no secret that I have autoimmune issues. Fibromyalgia was just added to the mix. I shouldn’t have been surprised; it explains so much. But so often when you’re busy, you work with the data that you have. When you’re in your late 50s, you don’t go looking for more things to go wrong with the chasse. Actually, I’m in pretty good shape, I think. Nonetheless, I could be doing better, especially regarding stress and sleep. I need more of one and less of the other. Bet you can guess which is which. LOL
I decided, therefore, that I’m taking a bit of a sabbatical from many of my local responsibilities for two whole months! I’d like to say that I’m making the months all about Laura all the time, but that’s not the case. It would also be très boring. Even to me! No, in less than a week my parents are making their second trip in six years to New Mexico from Connecticut. They’ll be here for 16 days. We’ll be doing some touristy things and even heading up to Colorado for a few days. They’ve never been there. After they leave, I’ll be teaching hooking and punching at the Mountain and Valley Wool Festival in Santa Fe. That takes us into October when Tom and I and a dog or two will take to the open road for Seattle. The kid’s now been there for three months; it’s time for a visit. And while I once spent a weekend in that area years and years ago, I never got a chance to really see it. This is an opportunity, too, to add a few missing states to my repertoire. I’ve never been to Utah (other than Four Corners), Idaho, Nevada, and Oregon.
By the time we get back, it’ll be Workshop Week 5 and even Halloween. Then the holidays and… You see why I need a break?
But I’ll be around online, certainly, and in touch with folks. Being away always lets me refresh, see things in a new way, and be inspired. All of which usually allows for some new and exciting artwork. At least to and for me. Perhaps for others as well.
PLACES WHERE YOU DEFINITELY CAN FIND ME THIS FALL INTO WINTER
Mountain and Valley Wool Festival (MAVWA): September 29 – October 2 The festival is Saturday and Sunday, October 1 and 2, but the workshops happen the Thursday and Friday before. I’m teaching Thursday. Find info HERE. BTW, if you’re thinking of coming for MAVWA, know that it’s the start of Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque. Think 500 hot air balloons in the air at one time. Pictures and words can’t do it justice.
In the Studio Online Workshop Week 5: October 23 – 30
While I’m not teaching this time around, I am the general administrator, so if you need a catalog or have questions, please give a yell. We have eight great teachers and workshops scheduled. If you’re just realizing you forgot to register, now’s the time. Some classes have filled, but teachers have waiting lists, and some have already scheduled second sessions. More info HERE.
High Desert Studio Tour – December 3 After missing two or three years, the High Desert Studio Tour is back! As in the past, I’ll be camped out at the home of ZiaWoolz. Dagmar generously invites myself and a few other artists to hang our shingles out with hers for the day. If you’re looking for some gorgeous, hand-dyed yarn, check out her Etsy shop, or better yet, visit us in December.
The boys bring you a HAPPY NEW YEAR WHAT’S ON THE FRAME this week. THE REZ is hooked on monk’s cloth with old t-shirts, wool strips, and wool yarn. So far…
View our CALENDARpage to see more dates to be added as we go further into the fall.
The boys and I wish you all a HAPPY NEW YEAR, a cooler fall, and success with all your efforts at renewal!
PLUS there will be vendors, other workshops, music, animals, and all kinds of things. Register online or contact me with interest or questions concerning the punch needle class.
PS – If you can’t make this workshop, see the CALENDAR for other class opportunities.
High on Hooking is regularly available to teach individuals and groups in the Albuquerque-Santa Fe area. Currently we’ve got workshops scheduled in early and late September at two different events.
Held in conjunction with Wildlife West Nature Park’s Harvest Festival in Edgewood. There will be vendors, workshops, live animals, and demonstrations all weekend.
Intro to Punch Needle Rug Hooking
Saturday, September 3, 2:00 – 5:00 PM
Find class info HEREor contact Laura directly.
Now being held in Santa Fe at the County Fairgrounds. There will be: vendors of all types, artists, a “fiber critter corner,” auctions, demonstrations, hands-on activities for kids and adults, food vendors, and music. NOTE: Workshops are held Thursday and Friday, September 29 and 30.
Intro to Rug Hooking
Thursday, September 29, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Find class info HEREor contact Laura directly.
Intro to Punch Needle Rug Hooking
Thursday, September 29, 200 – 5:00 PM
Find class info HEREor contact Laura directly.
High on Hooking is happy to teach in other locations, on Zoom, or even in our/your home. Just give a yell and tell us what you’re interested in. Topics include:
– Intro to Punch Needle Rug Hooking – Introduction to Rug Hooking – Not So Traditional – Hooking With and Beyond the Wool – using materials besides wool strips – Hooking With T-Shirts – Build a Baby Boucherouite – create a little mat from old textiles
Keep an eye on our Calendarpage for our teaching schedule and upcoming events.
Claire Nolan, Shakerag Workshops studio assistant and student extraordinaire in class learned how to hook and punch with High on Hooking in June. Bravo, Claire! Now everyone be like Claire and take a rug hooking workshop.
If you’re in Albuquerque this summer and can get thee to the Fabric of New Mexico textile arts exhibit, get thee there for sure! It’s a très classy show. Below you’ll find some highlights from the opening night reception.
“This exhibit stretches the limits of fiber art to celebrate the full range of innovative creativity in fabric, including quilting, macramé, embroidery, rug hooking, and work with plastics, paper, metal, and wire. Curated by artist Martin Terry as part of the Two Moons exhibit series, the Fabric of New Mexico [includes] over 20 contemporary fiber artists working in New Mexico today.”
Find the full schedule of related events including fiber art workshops and demos at FUSIONnm.org. More info HERE.
Three of my pieces are in the Fabric of New Mexico show: WHIMSY up above, HOLES, and a couple of segments from the RIBBON RUG JOURNAL.
Several mixed media pieces by Kathryn Lazier.Kathryn Lazier’s GREENMAN (felt; fabrics; yarn; dyed, moldable batting; machine and hand stitching; fabric stiffener)
BALLET FOLKLORICO OUTFIT / TRADITIONAL CHIAPAS TOP AND SKIRT provided by Sally Moon of W!ild Moon; handmade in Chiapas, Mexico.
LA CHURRITA with maker Vivienne Riggio. (Papier mache head and horns; raw churro sheep’s wool; upcycled textiles and necklace.)
MISSING by Carol Sullivan (Wooden disc; milk carton with typing; wooden stick with smooth, multicolored cotton; twine; beige suede; red permanent marker; crystals; bone mutton; various findings; red suede; metal wolf; black permanent marker on white cotton; feathers; gold pin; red bandana; gold pin; acrylic batting.)
WEAVING THROUGH TIME by Sara Miller. (Acrylic paint; wool felt; cotton fabric; wool and silk roving; rayon thread.)
DAY by Mika Maloney. (Merino wool yarn (with cotton/poly cord); scrap leather; dried flowers on driftwood.)
AUTUMN LEAVES by Terri Lagerway. (Weaving on branch.)
BEE PEACEFUL by Patricia Halloran. (Wire; wet and needle felted wool felt; embroidery floss; recycled cotton backing and stuffing.)
WAVES by Maria Jonsson. (Recycled metal; magnet wire.)
SIPHONOPHORE by Betty Busby. (Artit overpainted cotton batik; machine stitching; artist painted linen; cotton knit; EVA foam; paint marker; hand stitchin with perle cotton thread.)
FANTASY GARDEN, freeform crochet, by members of the New Mexico Crochet Guild.ALCHEMY (part of a pair) by Laurie McCann. (Wire grid and wire mesh; Chinese pot lids; yarn; coins.)JELLIES (part of a pair) by Laurie McCann. (Wire grid and wire mesh; Chinese pot lids; yarn; coins.)
And lastly, WHY NOT GO OUT ON A LIMB by Molly Mooney. Tom and I liked this one soooo much that we’re purchasing it. It’s going to look perfect in our living room, currently dominated by a large TV. (Found tree branch; hand-dyed wool fiber; found and repurposed bells; beads and ceramic pieces; sari fabrics; ribbons.)
