Sun Rose Tile

It is summer, full on, hot and dry!

This weather gives me a very different feeling than say, March, when it's grey and drizzly. My creative process is drenched with summer sun, heat, and abundant light! The other day I did catch myself complaining about the heat, and so, once again, it is time to turn that negative into a positive, and embrace it through a hooking project.

This piece, called Sun Rose Tile measures approx 8" x 8". It reflects the good things about summer. A morning with a beautiful sunrise in the garden. A lazy afternoon with ice tea, a good book, a friend, or project. An evening sunset as the outside temperature cools and we can finally open all the windows for the night!

I like to hook small projects as a way to test an idea. Separating the flower petals with a different color isn't a new idea but it is new for me to use the background color as the petals separating line. I like the look it gives the piece, sort of an Arts and Crafts Era feel. I definitely will continue to explore this concept in some of my future designs!

 

I hope you can use this summer heat to spark your creativity too!

You can find many of my patterns and rug hooking related items at my ETSY shop.

 

 

Hooked Flower Garden

 

Lately, it has been far too hot to be outside in my garden, so I'm inside, thinking about the flower beds I've created in my hooked rugs. There are many ways to use technique, color and texture to make your hooked garden bloom beautifully.

 

Nature's Dance (above photos) shows how outlining your motifs with similar value neutrals can help the flowers show up against a background, especially a medium value background. By outlining, it allows you to use lighters or darker values for the motifs and still have the motif show up against the background. I like the unity outlining gives to all the motifs, but be sure to change up textures and wools you use to outline so the rug stays interesting.

When I want a primitive flower to be viewed as if from the side, I move the center of the flower more toward one edge of the flower. This can give your rug design a different feel, rather than having all the flowers facing full on center. In Winter's Bouquet, here are examples of sideways and center facing flowers.

 

The above photo shows a complementary color plan. It is a sure way to make your hooked rug sing. In, Ode to Spring Center, I used the complementary colors of blue and orange. Notice that the orange leans to a peachy pink color, and the blue birds are a grayed, soft blue-green. It makes for a more lively rug if you also use colors that are on either side of the complementary colors you are using. So if looking at the color wheel, you would use in varying amounts, the Blue, and Blue/Violet and Blue/Green. For the Orange, you could also include Red/Orange or Yellow/Orange. The dark textured background is a great companion to the motifs, and doesn't compete for attention because it is a neutral.

When hooking a grouping of flowers, as in Autumn's Smile (below) I like to change the color slightly on some of the blossoms, again, as a way to spark interest. The rosehips are differing shades of yellow.

The spray of tiny blue buds are hooked with a few different shades of blue.

Textures are a good way to draw attention to a motif. Try using an interesting texture in your flowers, whether it's the center, petals, or all of the flower.

 

Here's to hooking a lovely array of flowers, and the best part is, you don't have to water them!

Please visit my ETSY shop to see more of my rug hooking patterns and designs.

My Designs by Guest Hooking Artist

 

(Note: All photos in this week's post are hooked by Maureen Lowrey)

When I design a rug, sometimes I know the color plan before I have finished with paper and pencil and long before I pick up my hook. Other times, Nature, a painting, fabric or textile has inspired me and I create my palette based on these ideas.

I'm always honored when a rug hooker wants to hook my designs. I love to see how they make the rug their own. Whether they use the color concept that I initially used, or if they go in another direction using colors and values that better suits their home and their own creativity.

My dear friend Maureen Lowery has given me permission to share photos of my rug designs hooked by her. She is a talented rug hooking artist! I'm in awe of her work and I'm sure you will be too! Thank you Maureen!

 

 

These patterns are available on my ETSY, or at iloverughooking.com

The rugs in order of appearance:

Rose Wreath

Halo

Meadow Bound

Thy Friend

Rose Wreath close-up

 

Dove's Song

 

Dove's Song celebrates the beautiful haunting song that the mourning doves make as they call to one another.

This spring as my yellow roses were in bloom, I was mesmerized by the dove's song.

 

The oval shape inner border gives the rug an old fashion feel.

 

The flowing, looping vine and open leaves mimic the oval shape and is meant to suggest movement and the musical notes of their lilting song.

This rug measures 17" x 23". This is a lovely, romantic rug to hook.

Dove's Song can be found at my ETSY SHOP.

 

Too Many Irons in the Fire

 

Dove's Song, (close-up photo above), is just one of the many creative projects in various stages of completion. "Too many irons in the fire," is what my mother might have called it. I'm lucky enough to know many creative, artistic, crafting people, and all of them seem to have this same issue.

Perhaps, this is the natural ebb and flow of artistic minds. You start in on one project, yet a deadline appears for a different project or piece that's nearly done. So you stop working on one piece, and complete the other. Or maybe you are happily working away on your project, and you get a brilliant idea for something else that pulls you off in another direction.

The trick is to make certain that the unfinished pieces do not become a burden, a nagging voice inside your head saying, "You can't start something new, you have 3, 5, 10 (or whatever your limit) pieces to finish first!" If you are stuck on the color or concept of a piece, and that's why you are avoiding it, get some advice from other art friends. Take a break from it for a bit and let your brain "noodle" on it for awhile. Try to have a timeline of when you will revisit it, so it doesn't continue to nag at you and compromise your creativity.

Currently, I have three small hooking projects that are almost finished.

Finally binding, Sweet Pea, the peacock, that was designed and hooked last summer.

Abby Cat, as it is currently called, will become a pillow. I only have some more lettering to hook before I can start to figure out the pillow style.

On Dove's Song, I'm working out the final color changes. To bind I will crochet the edge, either with wool strips or yarn, but I am not at that stage to choose, yet.

I have a rug that I'll start in September that I am beginning to dye the wool for as well as pulling together other colors and textures.

For the past two months I have been designing a large rug that has the theme of "matters of the heart" which is SUPPOSE to be hooked using my already cut wool worm stash. Maybe I'll get it on linen later this month.

Also, I have a couple small rugs designs I want to start this year, and I haven't even mentioned my hooking "bucket" list!

So what about you? I bet you can easily rattle off three to five creative things off the top of your head that you are working on to complete! I mostly just hook! What about other imaginative people who, quilt, knit, stitch, crochet, paint, garden or create is some other way?

I'm curious to know, how many "irons" you have in your "fire"?

Chicken Trio

 

This design, Chicken Trio, truly does epitomize the phrase, "funky chicken"!

Someone once sweetly told me that my chickens didn't look like any chickens they'd ever seen! That made me smile inwardly. I'm sure they have never seen a purple mouse, green cat, or a rabbit on a blue hill either! All of which I have designed and hooked in other pieces. As a primitive/folk artist, I'm not concerned with reality, rather I want a mood or essence to be the focus emanating from my work.

 

 

 

 

Even though I live within the city limits, I love that I can hear neighbor's chickens clucking. It feels like I've cheated and have a little bit of the farm right in my own backyard. For over a year now, someone has a rooster too. It makes me chuckle to myself, glad that he is still around, greeting each morning!

Chicken Trio is a light-hearted, fun rug to hook.

Please visit my ETSY shop if you are interested in Chicken Trio or any of my other designs.

 

New Paint, New Curtains & Hooked Rugs

 

When fresh new paint, lovely curtain material and hooked rugs come together, it means inspiration for me! I'll back up and explain.

Two of my dear friends actually enjoy painting rooms! They are efficient, dependable, problem solvers, have a great color sense, and they make the work fun.

My bedroom, I'm embarrassed to report, had not been repainted in two decades. The old curtains that were in my bedroom, were made by my mom, originally for our living room. However, my mom has been gone over 15 years. These curtains were showing signs of wear and tear. It was time for an update!

As luck would have it, one of my painting buddies was getting rid of five panels of Ralph Lauren drapery and upholstery weight fabric. It has a soft grey-blue background with bouquets of mauve pinks, creams, and yellows. Perfect fabric for my new curtains!

The newly painted room feels so peaceful. I have rediscovered the furniture that has been in there for years. I'm playing with what rug goes where, and with which keepsakes.

I haven't finished with the decorating yet, but here's to a good start and a salute to new paint, dreamy floral curtains, hooked rugs and best of all, good friends!