Slowly....Some Progress

I managed to get some leaves and my pumpkins done...slowly....as my back is doing better ....a little punching here... and a little there. I manage a about a 1/2 hour at a time. I add up my 1/2 hours and there I am - some progress.
I am learning much about working with yarn and punch hooking - CONTRAST is extremely important. Notice how my leaves sort of blend altogether - even though I dyed up some very different values, and purposely made one a blue green and one a yellow green. Thankfully the two oranges work - just. The stems of the pumpkin and the crow read almost the same value as well. I will have to wait and see 'til I put in some background to see if I need to take out some and replace.

The Show Must Go On...St. Henri Exhibit 2010

Squirrel - Pillow

Designed and Hooked by Mayumi Takahashi

Follow The Guide - Pillow

Designed by Di Franza Designs

Hooked by Christiane Lavoie

 Geometric Cushion

Designed and Hooked/Prodded by Terry Ballantyne

Hampden - Pillow

Designed by J.McGown Flynn

Hooked by Rosemary Daisy Sylvestre

Primitive Flowers - Pillow

Designed by Tara Darr

Punch Hooked by Mary Guay

Show Continues....St.Henri Exhibit 2010

Antique Rose - Chair Pad

Adaptation of Design by Karen Kahle

Punch Hooked by Jocelyn Guindon

Cape Breton Fishing Boat - Brick Cover

Designed and Hooked by Jocelyn Guindon

Floral Teapot - Chair Pad

Designed and Hooked by Jocelyn Guindon

Cape Breton Lighthouse - Brick Cover

Designed and Hooked by Jocelyn Guindon

OM - Chair Pad

Designed by Tony Latham

Punch Hooked by Jocelyn Guindon

Sacha The Cat - Brick Cover

Designed by Di Franza Designs

Hooked by Jocelyn Guindon

St. Henri Rug Show 2010 Continues...

My Davey

Designed and Hooked by Maureen Rowe

Dreamscape

Designed and Hooked by Terry Ballantyne

Dog Days of Summer

Designed and Hooked by Terry Ballantyne

Sheep

Designed by Signe Anderson

Adaptation and Locker Hooked by Margaret Brown

Four Hearts

Designed and Punch Hooked by Margaret Brown

1st Annual International Punch Needle Rug Hooking Day!

1st Annual International Punch Needle Rug Hooking Day!

 Erzuli

Designed and Hooked by Yanick Duchesne 

In the words of the artist: " Erzuli, voodoo god of love, is often represented in wrought iron on the front of homes to protect them. The central motif of the pillow is inspired from a traditional Haitian drawing. 

I added some decorative folkloric curves and hearts."

For more info on this first time Punch Needle Rug Hooking Day check out Amy Oxford's website - here: http://www.amyoxford.com/

Holidays Are Here....Finally!!!!

I have the next two weeks off from my full time job! YAY!!! Except, now I have a miserable cold. How is it that the body knows when you are going to slow down, take a break, pause??? This is not the first time I have been "under the weather" during the holiday season....it seems to be a perennial gift from the kids I work with. Oh well, nothing lasts forever as we all know.

Tomorrow... is the Winter Solstice! This means that the light will start to come back, oh what a blessing that is. It has to be my favorite day of the whole winter! Even though it is the shortest day - longest night, it means that...days will get longer, mornings will be brighter, coming home will be less eerie, and walking in the park with my Sophie will be more pleasurable....in the light.
I am trying to find and finish some projects that have been waiting for attention. Here is a Punch Needle piece that I did to experiment with a night sky. 

Living On The Edge
 Punch Needle by Tony Latham

Design by Deanne Fitzpatrick

I used the largest Cameo needle with Paternayan tapestry wool yarn, one strand at a time. I dyed the colors to work with my own color palette.

SNOW!! means time for rug hooking......

The SNOW arrived here in Montreal with a wallop! We received a total of 28 centimeters; just enough for it to be a challenge to navigate the city. Luckily, I commute to and from work by subway.

With all of this snow around it is a perfect time to surround myself with lots of wool. This weekend is the regular monthly Hookin of our local hooking group called - Les Tapissiers de St. Henri / The St. Henri Rug Hookers. We usually meet the second Saturday of each month, with the summer months off. 

We would be happy to have you join us anytime....Our fantastic LOGO is designed by one of our talented members Louise de Tonnancour.

The St. Henri Rug Hookers were fortunate enough to have had Amy Oxford  http://www.amyoxford.com here in Montreal for a Punch Hooking workshop this past October. I have been spending some of my creative time in the dye pots - one of my favorite activities. I have been in the process of planning and dying for my first punch hooking project after my learning piece. Here is a sampling of some of my recent colors.

It has been a fascinating learning experience to dye with wool yarn. These  samples are dyed over Washed White Bulky, a 4 ply 100% wool yarn from Briggs and Little woolen mills in New Brunswick - http://www.briggsandlittle.com Interestingly, my usual formulas do not give the same results over the lanolin rich yarn as the same formula on wool fabric. I am excited to start my new project, however, I am trying to finish off some current projects before I start my punch hooking.