Today there was a Rug Exhibit at a fire company in New Jersey sponsored by the Atha Chapter from that area. The guild I belong to, Hunterdon Rug Guild was heavily involved also with members belonging to Atha. A while ago they put forth a "Jersey Girls" challenge - to create a rug telling what New Jersey means to you. (http://www.jerseygirlchallenge.org/). There were a lot of rugs at the fire company - Lucy the Elephant, the Jersey shore, the Jersey Devil, Jersey Girls and the fact they DON'T pump gas, homes, and more. It was a great show - i believe there were over 250 rugs there. Below is only a sampling of the rugs - I was a complete bonehead and forgot my camera - but Sharon was there and at least one of us has a brain and remembered a camera! So thanks Sharon for the photos! I Another fun thing was they had vendors selling wool, patterns, foundations, hooks, books, candy, and anything you needed! I was very good and didn't buy a thing except my admission fee. I am trying to use what I have and not double up on things or have too many patterns on hand as I find after a time they don't always appeal to me as they might have 3 years ago and I have become selective on the books I am buying. Of course this doesn't include wool, I will never turn down a really cool piece of wool but I refrained today! LOL - So enjoy the photos (I could never put names with the rugs!):

The event was held in Oldwick NJ - it is little more than an hour drive for me - but today was so nice out it was a nice ride - On the way home I realized I had a coupon for a free movie that expires tomorrow - so I stopped at the movies - saw a movie late afternoon and then came home!

Then I decided when I got home that since there was still about an hour of daylight and it was still so nice out I would paint my basket I picked up for $3.50 at a yard sale -It's fairly large and was a light chipped up blue (but not "cool" chipped" if you know what i mean - it was dingy and dirty). So I decided rather than trying to strip the thing and stain it, I would make spray paint it

Before:

After (I spray-painted it a nice prim green - I think it looks so much "fresher" now!


I will use the basket tomorrow to carry my wool I need to for hooking - I am demonstrating rug hooking at the Peter Wentz Farmstead. This is the third year I'll be helping out thru my guild with the rug demonstrating - Tomorrow is the Sheep Shearing - always a big turnout and always lots of interesting people. It's supposed to be absolutely gorgeous so should be enjoyable! Hopefully I'll remember my camera!

Hope everyone is having this great weather and gets to do whatever pleases them this weekend!

Enjoy - Joanne

I Still Miss Him!

Today is April 22 - today would have been Nicky's 20th birthday - I lost Nicky 3 years ago to bowel cancer - He was such a special guy. I have a zillion pics of him but not many on the computer so I thought I'd share a few of the pics of him.

This is a pic of him on the day of his very last visit to the vet - the day we had to say goodbye.

Nicholas Hobbes

1989-2006

This is the rug I did in his memory (If i posted this before - sorry!)

This is the picture it was drawn from - He loved the dryer - I would always have to check he didn't jump in while I was doing laundry - Thank goodness I never turned it on with him in it!

Here's a funny picture of when we had the three boys - Sid on top - Miles in a ball the size of a bagel and then Nicky. Nicky was a really laid back and an easy going cat. He got along with everyone. Miles if you remember hates Riley (we didn't adopt Riley until after Nicky passed) and Miles only tolerated Sid because Sid was here before Mile, but he just loved Nicky - Nicky would throw both paws around him and clean his ears and they would fall asleep with their paws around each other - too this day - Miles ears are dirty because Nicky always did them and now he won't let Riley. Sid we lost to renal failure 1 1/2 years before Nicky - I hardly have any pics of him on the computer because we didn't have a digital camera then - He was a sweetheart with a big mouth! Loved to talk and loved to snuggle! So this was rare shot with the three of them together! Must have been a rough day!

I just love this pic of Sid and Nicky butts! They are sitting on a big pillow in front of the lit fireplace (This pic had to be around the year we moved in the house because in this pic we had carpet and that fireplace screen i absolutely hated - one day i ripped it right on out of there! So this had to be about 12-13 years ago)


So that's a few pics of my Nicky - As I said before he was a great cat. He was my special guy. Had such an easy going demeanor. I had taught him to give "kisses" - I would say give me a kiss - he would bow his head and "bonk" my check. Too cute except when i was sleeping - he would give me "running bonks" - start at the end of the bed and bonk my cheek so hard one time my head flew off the pillow and the side of the bed into the nightstand - ouch - my husband saw it happen and still laughs about nearly 20 years later. Nick was big boy - 22 pounds at his heaviest and funny thing was he really didn't eat that much - just like people I guess - some bigger than others. We had a few scares with Nicky thru the years - he was prone to seizures- they lessened considerably. Weird! He also developed hyperthyroidism - after one very expensive shot and a week at a place called "Radio Cat" - he was good as new under that last few weeks when we found out he had cancer.

I miss this big guy every single day - he has certainly left his paw print on my heart forever!

Okay - deep breaths and tissues - moving on - The last few days it's been dreary and it sure affects the mood - Again warning - more cat pictures - here's a few pics of what the furry ones have been doing (I swear they can log some nap time!)

I found Miles asleep under the quilt on our bed - I went into the room - it was completely dark and lifted the covers and took this picture - this was yesterday:

Whenever you wake Miles up he always stands up and starts "dancing" (kneading and purring) so here he is coming out of the quilt:

Here's a pic taken this afternoon - I was doing laundry - came up and dumped my husbands socks, underwear, t-shirts, etc. (I don't put away his laundry - if he can't find it - it's his fault!) - Found Miles sound asleep in his on his boxer shorts!

Here's a pic from yesterday morning when we got a few sunbeams - I had just got done steaming my rug I just finished and there was sliver of sunbeams coming thru the window!

You find the cats in the funniest spots - later that evening my husband said "Did you see where Riley was sleeping" - So i grabbed the camera - here is is asleep on a pile of junk on my old trunk which is at the top of the landing - there is a railing there but it's a long drop behind it down to the living room - I had thrown the rug over the railing - So there's Riley atop the junk and rug - how it was comfortable - I'll never know!

So that's it for now - Hopefully I'll get that rug whipped this week!

Hope everyone is having a good week and be sure to give your family, kids, and 4-legged kids big hugs as time goes by so darn quick!

joanne

Smiles on a Sunny Thursday!

Today there is bright sunshine out there. Miles and Riley spent the morning asleep in the sunbeams by the slider and I forgot to get a picture of them! When they sought me out for a rub I could still feel the sunbeams on their fur. A good day for the cats and their humans that have been so tired of the rain!

I decided to rearrange some things today - tired of my living room and dining room but not sure where to go or what to do with everything. Plus things seem to multiply on the dining room table like coupons and mail and magazines and clutter everywhere - so I decided to take my time and put things away properly and/or throw things out or put in a pile for the goodwill! First though I went out in the backyard and brought some "Spring" into the house!


Then I saw the mail woman stopped - Went out to get my mail and in there was a package from one of the most thoughtful people I know, Paula . Paula sent Riley some belated birthday gifts along with some hugs for both Riley and Miles! She also knew I was looking for ball jar lids and sent me some! Thanks again Paula! Your one of the bestest! The toys were a big hit with Riley and the treats were a HUGE hit with Miles!




Here's a couple of pics of Riley playing with the balls:






So I was in my dining room most of the day - not sure where to put everything. I have 7 large white agate pots that I use to soak my wool and dye wool but a couple of them just won't fit in my tub i keep under my farmer's table in the kitchen. I decided to clean out this cabinet in my dining room of the "unnecessary" things I haven't used for a while so made some room for some of my dye supplies in the cabinet and underneath! Now they will be handy to grab when I need them. (My Dad did the caning on the caned chairs in the pics a number of years ago - I always wanted to learn how to do this - it's on my "someday" list.)



Then I decided to take the leaves off my table - My dining room is pretty small and as you can see I have it filled. The leaves are on each end - so i took them off - hope my table doesn't look to small now with the big furniture - I had the table made from old barnwood from a woman in Lancaster a few years ago - I also had an Amish man make me the hutch in the back from old barnwood and then I stained it. It's great being my kitchen isn't big it holds a lot of overflow - food, appliances, supplies, etc - Plus the top of it i can put more "stuff"!



Then I decided to drag in my old school desk from my living room (which was holding plants) - now it's holding a bunch of milk cans I've collected over the years - Great storage too - I use the milk cans a lot - sometimes i put a ball jar in the larger one and put the flowers in there - another has a candle in there, another has some walnuts, another my crock sheep, and I think one has cat toys. Great storage for small things. Seems everything I have has to have a purpose and use! Only problem is sometimes I can't remember where I store something!

This is my tree I leave up all year - i have hooked and other ornies from friends on there or whatever I find - if it's small enough - I just hang it on the tree. My mom made the quilt tree skirt that's around the bottom.


This is where I just found Riley after his sunbeams and playtime -now he is in for an afternoon nap while I'm on the computer. Guess those woolly worms are comfy - I almost missed him amongst the mess in my hooking room (yes it's a big mess again!)

So now my living room is a big mess with a hole where the desk was - but i have a few things i took out of the dining room - so that will be another day! Feels good to get things changed around a bit - wish I had more prim items but like I said most of my things have to have a use and a lot of my things are "found" objects from family, thrift, flea markets, yard sales, etc.!

Hope everyone got to enjoy the sun today! It's motivating!

Whining Wainy Wednesday

Well not much going on in these parts. This weather is putting a damper on everything. Poor Riley and Miles are mad at me because I can't seem to produce their morning sunbeams to nap in! I swear they look at me like I stole them or am punishing them or something! Too funny.

It's been raining for two days and it makes me have no motivation for anything. I did however finally after weeks and weeks pick up my hook. For those of you who gave me input on the outer background - I decided on the the same mixture of antique blacks overdyed on scraps so there are a lot of colors - I decided I did not want it to look "framed". So we shall see how it comes out.

I did manage to do some cleaning today and wash. One of the things that went into the washing machine was the blanket Riley naps in everyday - He was beside himself when he saw i took it off the spare bed to wash - Cats are funny with "their" things! He followed me right down to the washing machine and watched it go in the washer and just gave me the hairy eyeball. I promised him it would be back on the bed in an hour. They really get out of sorts - Guess it wasn't such a smart idea to wash his blanket the same day as there were no sunbeams for him! He was back in the blanket for his nap the minute i pulled it out of the dryer and put it back atop the bed. I checked on him a little while ago and found him cuddled deep in it - somehow he makes a big bundle out of it and sleeps under it all - he was purring away when I put my hand in to pet his toasty fur. Happy kitty once again! So I suppose there are positives on rainy days!

Hope everyone is having a good week and getting to relax in your own version of a good sunbeam and warm blanket!

joanne

Who Needs the Thrift Store When You Have an Uncle with an Attic!!!!

This morning I wanted to stop in and visit with my Dad for a few minutes and also an overdue visit with my Uncle (and he only lives 3 miles away!). Every year for a few months my Uncle Bud goes to Thailand and he got back mid-March. This time he went for three months. He loves to shop and you never know what he will bring back. Most of it is not my style but sterling silver is dirt cheap over there so he always brings me jewelry and some sort of bag (one can never have enough tote bags and things). Last year I got a gorgeous black onyx and sterling necklace, a black woven scarf, and a few pairs of earrings and bracelets. This year he said he didn't "shop" that much (yea right!)

Well anyway - here are three pair of earrings he brought me back - the top pair are very colorful and funky - not my usual style but still I like unusual things sometimes, then there is a pair of sterling earrings that remind me of "I Dream of Jeannie's" bottle, then a cute pair of cat earrings:



He also brought me a scarf woven by the "Hill People" (I'm not sure of the correct tribe name, but he said the women were the ones that have the long necks - they have those heavy gold rings that are added to make the neck grow long and longer) He took a side trip to the "hills" and spent some time up there - it's actually a brighter pink then the purple it looks. He also brought me a wooden bead bracelet that If forgot to take a pic of, a cute little silk bag with beads, a wooden/hand painted bowl that holds a little burner tart, and a wooden spoon for my wok (looks like a little shovel to me) - I think that's it - but who knows - every time you visit he gives you something else!

I asked him if he had an ball jar lids for my pin cushions (his house - which had been my grandmothers) is a treasure trove of antiques - very unusual now as it's stocked full of the older antiquities and then his "Asian" influence in decorating since my grandmother passed! So off we go to the attic - he found me one lid - and i came down with an old bar jar, a white agate pot with a lid and then an antique wash tub they used when he was a kid (he's in his 70's)! He tried to give me more stuff but I only took what I will use - the tub will be great to soak wool for dyeing - and same with the agate pot - Need to clean it up - a little Clorox will get it white again - it had bird seed stored in it - so his birds will be eating good tonite! I also dumped out the little dead bugs found in the wash tub!

Well before I went to Bud's, I stopped over to visit with my parents. My parents went for a "ride" the other day and not sure how the how story went - but met up with a man on the side of the road who is restoring the school house my Dad went to as a boy - long story short - my parents are going over to their house to visit and my Dad's taking his old report card from 1939, a war rations booklet he had from 1943, and some pictures of the school and property - the man is looking for items from the "day". Too funny, like I said before - my Dad will strike up a conversation with anyone. Looking for these old pictures and things had him poking in drawers and boxes and things - so he brings out to the sunroom these little feed sacks filled with coins and said "Here I have something for you you gave me to me years ago". He gave me a silver dollar he said I gave him when I was younger! He said I could have it back - I do not remember giving this to him but hey whatever! Funny what parents will keep - he also kept a card I gave him that said "Love Joanne and No backs" - a saying from my childhood I had completely forgotten about - How weird was I! LOL!

Then my Mom tells my Dad to go get this little bag - Hmmm wonder what it could be - and it's tied with a strip of wool -

I look inside and there are a pile of eggs!


Too cute - my Mom made them - I had told her I saw these little eggs made from old quilts at a local prim shop and she went to look at them and made her version and she added to them with the stitching - very cool! They are pieced (4 pieces) and she hand stitched with floss the crazy quilt stitching along each seam:

So that was my day! Just went out visiting and came home with a trunk of treasures.

It's Wednesday already and haven't gotten anything else completed in my rug hooking room but maybe, just maybe I'll get another spurt of energy! Jo-Jo - I hope you are feeling better!

Enjoy your week - Joanne

The Weekend

The last few days I've been puttering around my rug hooking room - not knowing where to start - I have so many rugs I want to hook, a rug I want to finish and so many "little" projects I want to do and have all these "grand" ideas but then never do anything - so I figured I'd use one of the techniques in a time management seminar I learned 100 years ago where you just don't think about it and pick something up and finish it to the end - if that means putting it in its permanent home then do that, if that means mailing it off somewhere - do it, or finishing something - then do it - so i looked up on my shelves and i had a tub full of these little boxes I had painted but needed their second coat and the little hooked tops I hooked put on them.

I proceeded paint them - cut out the fabric to line inside the box and put in the lining - and then put the hooked tops on - here they are - the pic came out horrid - they are not at all that bright. So these are done.

I have several more but need to hook a top for them to finish them off.

On Saturday I was meandering around some blogs - and thru a link on a friends blog i found a link to http://birdinthehandprimitives-robin.blogspot.com/ - She has a tutorial on how to make pinkeeps you put in an old ball jar zinc lid - well i have a handful of these lids and they looked easy enough for me to even to do - so I kinda went overboard - here's a pic of most of the ones i made - now I need find some more zinc lids : (and the pinkeeps are much more muted in person)

I also found some little wooden Easter eggs painted in lavenders, yellows, oranges, blues, etc. (pastel colors). I gave my Mother a pack of them and also a little bucket (Like the one Sharon puts her feather tree in!) for her feather tree since she expressed wanting to keep it out all year and thre snowman tree skirt I had made her wasn't cutting it - not good for Spring. Well my mom painted her bucket and mine with blue/black/stain - remember the pic looks brighter. I decided to put a white tree in my bucket with the pastel ornies and then put green woolly worms (easter grass) in the top of the bucket. Now sure I like this as it's not prim enough for me - but will keep it out or else maybe give it to my SIL as she's been wanting a tree. (Again you can't tell but the little wooden eggs are decorated in pastel colors and the wool I used for the tree is really an off white with a little blue in it)

So that's been my projects on and off this weekend.

Early this morning I went to the flea market that opened for the season last weekend - spent a few hours walking around looking for treasures - Found two old hooks, some buttons, and only 3 zinc lids - go figure - now that I'm looking for them they've gone scarce!

I then went with my friend Nettie to her church to play bingo and then we went to dinner - Nope I didn't win - but she did. Glad she got out to "play" finally - her Mother was just diagnosed with cancer and her whole family is taking turns taking care of her and trying to keep her spirits up. She also just recently lost two aunts - So I'm sure it's tough on her and her family. Nettie - I will be sending positive thoughts your way!

My Dad is doing a lot of better and gained 2 pounds last week - he needs to gain way more but it's a start. Tomorrow he goes to get some of the tubes taken out finally. So we are all hoping he stays on this path of getting better.

So that's about it for me this weekend. Hope everyone had a great weekend! Enjoy the first full week of April! joanne

Overwhelmed Again

Well this week has been amazing with the mailbox opening to such treasures - earlier this week was my Primitive Cat from Cathy - which I still keep looking at and smiling - He is just the "cat's meow" for sure! Then the other day there was another box that appeared in the box - It was from my friend Ter'e in Florida - If any of you know Ter'e - you know what a generous warm loving person she is - You do this woman a favor and she treats you like a Queen for sure - When I do a favor for someone I do not expect anything! Well anyway - I got the coolest box of loot from her - In the box was Mary Engelbright post-it's, notecards, journal with friendship messages - just adorable - love them. She sent me a cute kitty necklace and earrings with different breed cats on it - too cool - I love wearing different and sometimes funky jewelry and this will definitely get worn. A pin/tack with pewter cats, another that says "Im a hooker" (these will find a home on my jean jacket) , a silver hook charm, some Reese's pbutter cups (mmmmm good), an angel pin, a piece of plaid wool that's so soft, and a piece of RED paisley - just beautiful and I do love red! She really did spoil me! I was extremely overwhelmed at her gift - so thank you Ter'e! You're a gift in yourself!

Wednesday nite we finally got out for a "Girl's Nite Out". For a number of years we would do this once a month and this past year we could never get our acts together at the same time. This was a last minute thing and it felt good to get together again - We realized we haven't done this in over 8 months - way too long - we picked up right where we left off however and never stopped talking. Had some drinks, dinner, and of course some chocolate desserts! (Should have gotten pics of that!) It was good seeing everyone - in the pic - Jen is actually giving gifts (chocolate and some scented soaps) that she got us all when she was in York (England) last August for work - that's how long it's been! So here is a pic of Renee, Natalie and Jen -

Today was a miserable day - heavy downpours most of the morning and early afternoon and then sun - and then more rain and then heavy winds - My four legged friends spent the day napping and I spent most of my day in my rug hooking room making a mess (think paint, Mod Podge, glue, rug hooking, etc. You'll just have to wait to see - these possibly will become gifts depending on the end effect) Miles woke up and came in to visit - here he just got done stretching and "scratching on the basket (that some day i will hook a top to) - after that he jumped in my lap and wanted his pets and rubs:

Here's a pic of the sleepy tiger - i lifted the blanket from him and snapped this picture - After I did that i crawled under the blanket with him for like 5 minutes - nothing like a toasty tiger that is as soft as velvet to cuddle up with! He just hunkered back down to his nap!

I need to find some motivation somewhere - hopefully when the sun comes out and stays out it will be must easier to find my "get up and go!"

Have a good weekend! JOanne