Trip to Volant, PA

A few days ago I was looking outside and enjoying the sight of GRASS.  It might have been a dreary but there it was....GRASS....!!!  A few hours later I looked out and...Wham Bang!  We were getting bombarded with snow.... like 5-6 inches...OMG....not again.  Will it never end?  Today it is sunny out but today is also, what I call, the big "M" day.  You know...that dreaded day once a year when you get to look forward to having the much hated MAMMOGRAM.  This morning I went for routine blood work.  This afternoon is the mammogram and bone density.  I know that these are great diagnostic tools and have helped save many lives, but can't they find a less painful way?  Moving on....

Last Saturday I visited the James Creek Gallery in Volant, PA.  Volant is a sweet little village in Amish country not too far from the Ohio border.  Jan and Claire have a wonderful shop filled with beautiful hand-made colonial early American furniture.  I was there for their Cabin Fever day to demonstrate rug hooking.  There were others offering wool applique and even teaching distressed painting.  We had great fun sitting on the beautiful furniture and chatting with several of the customers.  A few of my rugs are now being offered for sale at the gallery as well.  You can find Jan and Claire at www.jamescreekgalleries.com. Here are some pictures of their beautiful shop... 

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!  Are you as ready for spring as I am, and are any of you as bad as I am about finishing my projects?  Last I got working on that and finished a small hooked pillow for my bed.  It is from an older Need'l Love book.  In the book it is wool applique, but I wanted to hook mine, and now it's done as you can see above.  I also finished a hooked mat that was originally a punch needle design (I can't remember the designer's name right now) that I just fell in love with about two years ago.  Oh, it's been done for quite a while, but I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with it.  At first my plans were to make it into a pillow for my sofa.  Then I decided against that and went for a mat with tongues.  What do you think?  I love it a bunch.  It is the first time I have finished a hooked piece with tongues, so it was a learning experience, and I am quite pleased with it. I  still have two more hooked items that have to be finished, hopefully, in the near future.  Doesn't that bunny just scream SPRING? 

Yesterday I had a brunch for 13.  It was my son's 43rd birthday, so I thought it sounded like a fun idea to have all my children and grandchildren in for a birthday brunch.  We had a great time.  I got his baby book out and let his kids see how cute he was.  It was fun and I was exhausted when it was over.......

P.S.  The design for the mat above is Stone and Thread Needlepunch.

Have a great day everyone 

Lonna 

Those Wonderful Blogs

How's everyone today?  Warm and toasty inside or sunbathing on a beach (I wish).  Maybe you got chores done today or maybe even a little hooking or you visited your favorite blogs.  I don't know about all of you, but I could spend hours visiting blogs.  I am always finding a new and interesting blog to follow.  Sometimes it is overwhelming, so many amazing and talented prim lovers...so many great ideas....beautiful homes...etc.  I sometimes find it more fun than watching TV.  Maybe I'm a blog junkie....could be worse....I guess.  If you are reading this, you probably are a blog junkie too.  What did we do without them......

It's Friday and a BIG weekend for western PA ...grocery stores are packed like it was Christmas...getting ready for Super Bowl parties.  Everywhere you go people are in their black and gold, even store employees.  Restaurants and bars are offering Super Bowl specials.  I'm sure the Green Bay area is going the same.  I'll be at my daughter's for a party which will be loads of fun.  I must not forget to get my Terrible Towel out.....  Whether you are a football fan or not, have a wonderful and safe weekend.  GO STEELERS!!!!!!

It's done!

Here it is, my newest completed rug.  It is titled Watching over Us.  I will be adding it to the website today or tomorrow.  I must say I am very glad to have this one completed.  A lot of changes were made during the hooking, more than in any other rug I have designed.  I changed the poor chicken three times. Have any of you ever designed a rug?  I find it very time consuming.  I like what I design then I don't like it.  Even when it is finished I am still wondering what I could have done differently.  For me the face was the hardest part.  Overall, I am very pleased with it and have already started my next project - the prim rabbit mat.  I should have some pics soon.

Today is dreary and snowy and for me a comfort day.  I'm going to hook and maybe make something special for dinner...maybe homemade pizza.  Stay warm everyone and have a great weekend.

Lonna

PITTSBURGH IS GOING TO THE SUPER BOWL!!!!!

WooHoo!  We're going to the Super Bowl.  What a great game.  We love our Steelers, and we wish them the best of luck in Dallas.

GO STEELERS!!!!

Visiting in Ohio

Good morning everyone.  I'm spending a few days with my sister (Patty) here in Ohio.  Her hubby is out of town working so I drove over yesterday to spend a few days with her.  I think we are going to be baking bread, hooking, eating, hooking,etc.  You get the picture right?

After I read Blackbird Designs a while back, I was telling Patty about the bread that Alma made.  She loves to cook and bake and of course she bought the book referenced in Blackbird Designs' blog and tried her hand at baking bread.  She said it was great, and I can't wait to taste some of her freshly baked bread.

Are you like me?  I think these January days are the longest and most dreary of the year.  We have had a lot of ice here in our area with a lot of out-of-control cars slipping and sliding all over the roads.  At least the days are slowly getting longer and that helps...just a bit.  Anyone doing something special to get through the dreary days of January?  I'm working on the bunny pattern, and I still have to bind the angel rug.  I have been looking over my new wool swatches from Heavens to Betsy and trying to decide what I can't live without.  They are so beautiful.  I love that she also puts wool pictures on her website.  It makes it so much easier when seeing a larger view of each wool. 

What about spring or Easter hooking?  Anyone working on anything special for Easter.  Please share if you are :)

Well, gotta go.  I think we are about to start our biga...our bread starter....Mmm!  I can smell it now!!!

Lonna

Happy New Year

Happy New Year everyone.  I hope your Christmas was great and that you got all those handmade gifts finished, all the cookies baked and all the gifts wrapped. Well, I got the cookies baked and the gifts wrapped, but those handmade gifts that I planned on making--Nope, not a one.  I'll be sure and get them done next year :)  RIGHT!!  Here is a picture of my seven wonderful grandchildren that was taken on Christmas Eve.   What a blessing they are. I will have a picture of the rug I just finished in a few days.  I want to get it steamed first.  Here is a drawing of my next project.  It is a rough drawing and still needs work done like decorating the eggs which will be shaped a little different.  Updates will be coming.  Take care and have a good evening,

 

Lonna