Category: wool

August 5, 2020

Sunflowers – hopefully they’re a neutral subject

SUNFLOWERS

Hooked Sunflower Rug used as a bench cover — “Melinda’s Rug” shown as a bench cover. It was hooked using recycled t-shirts.

I decided to talk sunflowers , mostly because I’m pretty sick of all the negativity surrounding us today. And yet…I bet there are folks out there that can find something disapproving about one of my favorite flowers. Too bad! Because, as I will remind you all, I AM THE BOSS OF MY RUGS. AND MY BLOG.

Now that that’s off my chest, I can go on. Sunflowers are starting to bloom here in New Mexico. The garden varieties and the ones that I find on my walks in the Bosque, the woods running along the currently almost non-existent Rio Grande River here in Albuquerque. Sorry! I’ll try to get back to being positive.

New Mexican Sunflower — This is the first sunflower that greeted the kid and me as we crossed over the Texas border into New Mexico five years ago last week.

I recently finished “Melinda’s Rug,” and many of you have seen it on my social media accounts. It’s pretty in pastels. Just the colors that Melinda loves, particularly the turquoises. (An aside: It’s a housewarming present for the house she and Gary build over two years ago. I’m a tad tardy.)

But it’s not the first “sunflower” rug that I’ve hooked. In fact, I like to make at least one per year. And I always do one, a mug rug, for the silent auction at Mountainair’s Sunflowers Festival. Which will not be taking place this August. Thank you, Coronacootie. 🙁

I decided to take a look back and see the progression of this series of mine.

BTW: I’m not a botanist. So don’t hold me to a strict definition of sunflowers.

Round sunflower hooked rug — I’m pretty sure this is the first sunflower rug I hooked. It says 2013, but I think it’s older, that that’s when I took a photo to get ready to sell it. Some lady told me that I should’ve put elastic around the edge so it could be used as a toilet top cover. That was after she told me how she used to hook. In the 70s. I really wanted to tell her a few things…

Sunflower hooked rug — After blue I decided to try red for a background. Sure, they were simplistic. but they sold! Again, recycled t-shirts.

Sunflower hooked ruggggg — It’s another mostly wool sunflower rug. With a little silk sari yarn hooked in too. Silk sari yarn is perhaps my most favorite thing to hook. I seem to recall that there was a little velvet involved in this one too.

Dog on sunflower hooked rug — I went back to recycled t-shirts for this table runner/bench cover. Tynan liked it. I really loved the green background! So did customers. 🙂

Sunflower hooked rugs — I liked the green t-shirts so much that I went for it again the next year.

So, I hoped you enjoyed the “Sunflower Tour” as much as me. But maybe you’re a tulip person. Or you prefer zinnias. I’ve done those flowers too, but not like the sunflowers. They’re special. To me, at least. But if you’ve got examples of other flowers, please share them on our Facebook page. We love seeing beautiful things, no matter what they may be.

Till next week, please stay healthy. And positive. I know it’s hard these days. It can be depressing. But the country and world have gone through worse. Most of all, remember to be kind to the other folks out there. We’re all in it together.

BTW: If you have any interest in High on Hooking’s inaugural Zoom workshop Hooking With and beyond the Wool on August 19, it’s almost full. See details here.

June 24, 2020

Wine and Art Night!

Example of hooked rug and materials used to make it

WINE AND ART NIGHT – RUG HOOKING INTRODUCTION

Thursday, July 9, 2020, at 8 PM – 9:30 PM EDT

Karen Miller and Laura Salamy are teaming up for a fun night of showing you how to do your own hooked fibre art! Karen will demonstrate how to pull loops with yarn, and Laura will be talking about how to use all sorts of things that you probably already have lying around your house! We want to show you how little you need to get started, how wonderful the technique of rug hooking is for relaxation and for expressing yourself, and that it is the perfect art form to fit into your life when you are busy with work and/or kids!

Grab a glass of wine (or another favourite beverage), and get comfy on your couch at home for this online session. There is no need to have the materials on hand- we will go through all of that with you and you can just watch our demonstration. If you do wish to have materials on hand to try it as we go, though, just send us an email and we will give you a list. But don’t worry- there isn’t much that you need to make art in this way!

This class is a safe place for everyone and all are welcome! No experience is necessary- in fact this session is for those who have never tried hooked fibre art before, but are interested in learning OR those who have tried it before but didn’t love it and really want to love it! You don’t even have to have made any type of art before- this really is for everyone!

Bring your questions- we love questions and will answer them all!

Interested in joining us?

The session will be held Thursday, July 9, at 8pm EASTERN. It will be held over Zoom. If you would like to join us you can reserve a spot through Facebook and we will send you the Zoom link and password. Or you can email me (Karen Miller) at marzipanroad@bell.net or email Laura Salamy at laura@highonhooking.com, and we will send you the Zoom link and password straight to your inbox.

Looking forward to seeing you there and feel free to share this with anyone who is interested in learning new things!

November 21, 2019

“What is holiness” opens tomorrow; so does Fall Fiber Fiesta!

High on Hooking’s got a little problem. We’re supposed to be in two places at once tomorrow night. We’ll actually be at the Fall Fiber Fiesta in Santa Fe. In fact, we’ll be there till Sunday evening. Fortunately, this show, “What is holiness?” at the Santa Maria de la Vida Abbey in Albuquerque WHICH OPENS TOMORROW runs till December 13. My piece “Sacred Life” was juried in. Maybe we can go together?

Much excitement going on in our little fiber art world here these days. How about yours?

What is holiness? art show poster

April 9, 2019

Change is…GOOD!

Tynan on hooked rug. — Tynan presents this week’s “What’s on the frame.” This would be a teaser for **Albuquerque’s Fiber Arts Fiesta** (May 30 and 31, June 1). The **Adobe Wool Arts Guild** will have a special exhibit, “9 on 9,” comprised of friendship rugs. Tynan has managed to sit on at least two of them thus far.

Change requires a new way of looking at old things. Looking at anything differently is good; it gets you out of your old head and makes you see with new eyes. Less “same old, same old.” And so High on Hooking has to do some changing. Nothing that drastic, just something to shake us up a little, get the juices flowing again.

Over the last year Instagram has proven to be a real mover and a shaker. Even more than Pinterest these days, I love to see the beautiful items that everyone’s making and showing on Instagram. And so few words are needed. The photographs alone drive traffic to an artist’s website and Etsy shop. Because of this development and because, frankly, I’m tired of coming up with scintillating topics week after week, I plan on reducing the number of blog posts here at High on Hooking. Don’t worry, I promised Tynan that he could still post now and again. And you know you can find him on our Instagram and Facebook accounts.
Thought you might like this close-up of the friendship rug’s background. Yes, as a matter of fact, I do know how to hook wool strips. Guild member Cathy Kelly dyed it for me. (Okay, I was there doing some poking and prodding and dropping in some dye…)
Relatedly, it’s time to simplify some and pare down…the website itself. Again, change is good, and I’d like a new look. Also, I prefer to sell via my Etsy shop or directly. Directly as in, if you see something you like here on the website, just shoot me an email or a call. (No middlemen making money that way. 🙂 ) So, as I find time in the next couple of months (not an easy feat), the site will be changing. Because I’m doing it myself, we could also get lost in the Internet ether now and again. In that case, find me on the Facebook or Instagram pages. And know that the gallery page is currently hopelessly out of date!
If you follow my Instagram feed, maybe you noticed the new rug I’m working on. In between finishing “Big Boucherouite” and a couple of others. Maybe you looked closely and realized that it’s not actually hooked; rather it’s punched. Yep, I’m adding to the repertoire. But punching for me didn’t come out of nowhere. I used to do quite a bit of it, even spent four days with Amy Oxford one summer at the Fletcher Farm School for the Arts and Crafts before she moved into her own digs. And, like wool strips which I really don’t care to punch, you can punch t-shirt strips. I’ve done it. Haven’t tried bedsheets. Will have to think that one out. Not!
Why Amy Oxford’s had a run on her punch needles, besides Instagram that is. Because everyone loves how cool it looks from the back! BTW, this is being punched with wool yarns.

I think that’s enough change for one day, don’t you?

How are you mixing things up this spring? What change are you making?

December 10, 2018

Rugs on the frame this week

Rugs on the frame are the thing this week, peeps. We’re busy, busy, busy. Not only is Christmas coming, and the tree’s not finished, but a student will be here Wednesday and Friday too. Then tomorrow I’m at a friend’s for a day of dyeing wool for my friendship rug (more on that later). Okay, Cathy will be doing more of the dyeing while her five new puppies distract Melinda and me. Who can resist baby dogs??? No worries, I’ll take some pics. Maybe even a couple of the wool-dyeing.

Are you ready for the holidays? Have time to work on your rugs? How do you feed your creativity during this often frenetic time of year???

Dog on hand-hooked rugs; rugs on the frame. — Tynan brings you the “rugs on the frame this week.” **Despite being sick** – I’m only feeling truly human today, thank you – I managed to do some work on both “Kleeful” and the “Big Boucherouite” last week. The latter is off the **Anderson frame** because it became a pain in the neck to use. One leg pulled out from the base, and one side wouldn’t keep the rug as tight as I need. So, it’s onto the **Puritan** we go. Bet that’ll be fun when I get to the middle…