Great News: Lorraine Finished her Chair Pads

Lorraine! Hats off to you girl, you did a terrific job of these fruits... well done! They are curved and they have dimension and look good enough to eat. Fantastic!

Drawing by the shore/ Broccoli Heaven

I'm a dastardly blogger this summer. I can't seem to settle down at the computer unless it is cool out or I have company in the house. The two things seldom coincide. Man it has been a steady run with the dehumidifiers, it has been so hot and wet.

Lots of good things have been happening in the steam bath though.

Happy at the shore post picnic

My sketch

I'm teaching my online design class and I'm working myself on the the Line portion of class.

Here is a picture I drew by the shore or if I want to be all arty like I'd say a sketch instead of a picture.

Here is the amazing incredible broccoli island floating in a sea of mac and cheese! It grown by the gifted and green thumbed Peter Allemang, I cannot believe he and Erin gifted us with one. It was a whole new eating experience! Thank you guys!

Rugs to look at tomorrow my friends....

Can't wait to show you..

PS This week on the Welcome Mat we are having a Back to basics week, I hope you'll drop in with your fine self to have a look see!

A good letter from the Mat

On the Welcome Mat group Styles we went here to see the amazing work of Scott Prior.

This compelled Gail to write this:

Yes, the quality of the light here is very compelling. I especially like his kitchen pictures (great colors), and the ones with bottles lined up with light playing through and off them. I would like to own the one of the bottles painted in the window sill at sunrise. Wanda, do you think; I think you do; that a hooker can get the feeling of seeing through and object like the bottles and seeing light and color beyond? Where on earth would I start? Have to do some hecka fine dyeing I think. Comments always welcome.

Here is what I said:

Yes Gail you know I do.... we are just so afraid of using soft edges and extremes in value we make it hard for ourselves. As part of my portrait class I show students portraits done with chewing gum on birch plywood. They are picture perfect. Our restraint comes from ourselves, not from our materials. Amazing eh?

You start by looking for shapes, then assigning colour specifics to it, right value, right saturation, temperature and colour though the specific colour is really the last thing on the list... It ain't in the dyeing, though it helps to have hundreds of colours on tap, the great thing is you don't need too much of any one thing, what fun! Make sure you create a fulsome stash!

Be a thorough and slow looker babe.... your sketching is teaching you to do just that.

Well done.

An Encouraging Letter to My Students

Birdee's Reaction to Day 3- a coma

Dear Students,

Thank you for coming here to class. You both blessed me and encouraged me and enriched me with your presence.

Here are the things I think we should remember from our time together and I'd cherish any additions you can make to this list, please send them to us all.

1 There are no experts except the ones you make.

2 You know better what to do than any one else, trust yourself.

3 You should have more fun while you dye and hook, life isn't a dress rehearsal.

4 You might not be here and think you can't do it but I'm telling you, you were doing it and you can do it and I'm in charge of knowing that. Just do it!

5 Don't put off doing what you want to. Seize the day.

6 Strong works require strong ideas, great work requires flexibility.

7 You can use what you have with value blending to make amazing things, results are frequently better than using store bought wool.

8 Plans are good, adventures are better.

9 Be magical with colour, just be sure the assistant you choose to do this fits in with the crowd... Las Vegas show girl will not fit in at the Quaker meetinghouse.

10 Put a little bit of extra work in the beginning... plan out where you think you want to go. It will save you time in the long run.

D!

You are a loving blessing.

Do not outline, those days are done, paint strokes with your hook, let your inner goddess of the brunch blossom, imagine what you can do and then do it! I know you can. Each thing you did on your rug showed growth as the days passed, the water was a revelation....The cats bless you every day, they seem to have built a shrine with the snibbles you left behind, do you feel like a deity? I cannot wait to see what you will create next. You held me to the task and I'm grateful to know you.

C!

Girl, you are one hard worker and that's just what portraitist needs to be. I saw such amazing development as the week progressed. You were editing, you were making needed changes artistically, I know with out a doubt you got what it takes to do any damn thing you please. Look away from the portrait. Get a reducing glass, it will help you get an overall view. Keep at it, you are near a break through with this concept. I love your tenacity and your humour... your dislike of hot food I'm overlooking for now LOL! Build in relaxation or you are gonna blow, been there, done that. Be smarter than me.

B!

You are a loving person and I relished your hugs! I admire your enjoyment of the obscure and enlightening.

You did a great job with your sunset and with your farm field scene. Don't get hung up on executing the perfect concept, let artistry happen!

Your search for style is officially over. All you need to do is dream up and execute your ideas. You'll need to take lots of catnaps because you will be so busy !!!

Let your two sides shine, they both have things to say. Accept your unique self and expand in all ways possible. I'm so glad to have been with you and I'm thankful for the opportunity to know you better. Beware the gold...

A!

I'd like to use you for a poster child when I explain it is best to have few or no plans when you come to class here. You were open, relaxed, had a few things you wanted to accomplish in mind and set out to do them. I'm proud of your abilities. I can see if you wished it you could become a leading light in the hooking world. You did me a world of good, your humour, appreciation of my pets and not pets and looking at my rugs with a fresh eye was inspiring. You did a fantastic job with your projects, keep on, you have an amazing potential. I'll be saying, oh I knew her way back in '10. Trust your mensa mind and your gut!

Bless you,

Wanda

PS I'm taking out the names and I'm gonna post this on my blog, so others might be encouraged by our week too.

That Leo! So Smart

Every now and then go away and have a little relaxation. To remain constantly at work will diminish your judgment. Go some distance away, because work will be in perspective and a lack of harmony is more readily seen. – Leonardo DaVinci

More Class Photos

Splendid dyeing work Kay!Celie stakes her claim on Jen's wonderful wool!

Helen and Terri can't believe their results!Here is something else delicious we ate...

Chocolate Oaties

2 cups brown sugar packed

¾ cup soft butter

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

2-½ cups bisquick or gluten free pancake/waffle mix if you need a treat for those special people in your life.

3 cups oats

1 ½ cup of chocolate ( squares or chips)

1 can sweetened condensed milk

2 tsp butter

1-cup nuts ( optional)

2 tsp vanilla

Mix first four ingredients; add oats and bisquick ( or gluten free pancake/waffle mix) Melt chocolate, evaporated milk, butter (2 tsp), nuts and vanilla and mix into chocolate mixture. Put 2/3rds oat mixture on to the greased pan. Press to cover bottom of pan. Pour on chocolate mixture; don’t let it touch the edge of the pan. Drop remaining oat mixture on to the top by teaspoons as though making drop cookies. Bake for forty minutes at 350˚. 9x13’’ pan. Cut while still warm. Wait until it cools to remove from pan.

Class in the late afternoon

Stumpwork and portraits , landscapes and colour were topics of study yesterday.

Today we dye and get rolling on our dream rugs.

My Girls

On the Mat tonight I asked:

Tell us something you are thankful or grateful for today.

"At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us." -Albert Schweitzer

That happened to me today, I was rekindled and I'm very thankful for that.

I wish there was an illustration of us hooking this week in class! Where have all the artists of this ilk gone?

Here is what we are eating:

Lemon Cheese Bars

1 box of lemon or yellow cake mix

1 egg

1/3 cup of oil

Mix together until crumbly. Reserve one cup. Press remainder into a 8x8 pan. Bake for 10 minutes in a 350˚ F oven.

Meanwhile mix until smooth:

8 oz of cream cheese

1/3 cup of sugar

1egg

1tsp. lemon juice and 1 tsp of lemon zest

Spread cheese over the layer you cooked, sprinkle the remaining one cup of crumbles on top ( I usually add about 1/4 cup of flour to this reserved cup to insure good crumble)

Bake for another 15 minutes, remove when crumbles are golden.

Enjoy!

Another mouth to feed

A gift of a bouquet came with a dependant!

That's 6 mouths crying out for something everyday, I wish cat food grew wild like milk weed.

This new child rode in on some Joe Pye Weed. LOL!

Here I go again with the butterfly farm...

Class starts on Monday, delightful students here for dinner tonight!

I can't wait!

I'm off to the grocery to get some victuals.

Hook this weekend, kinda like your life depended on it, the time to do what we desire with life slips past us each day. Grab hold of what you want.

A Whale of a time!

Look what drifted on my shore, can you see the whale?

A whale ship was my Yale College and my Harvard.

Herman Melville

The ability to see things that are barely there is both a blessing and a curse.

W.K.

My environment- full of colour and wonder

Here Mary rest among the poppies, so sweet while sleeping.

My favourite wild flower is out: Joe Pye Weed, I love it.

Here is a sweet collection of weeds along the swamp. Look at all the greens from black to lime and everything in between.

Last but not least I was rewarded last night by a long visit with a frolicking beaver!

I had been going about 8 but an earlier arrival afforded me a lot more action.

This morning while walking my daily 5 miles I saw a doe walk right across the road in front of me, amazing. We had a mind meld a couple of times before she ran away.

What does Ted Andrews say about this?

When a deer enters your life it is time to be gentle with yourself and others, a new innocence or freshness is about to be awakened. Are you being too uncaring toward yourself? ( √ ) There is going to be an enticing, gentle lure of new adventures!

I can't wait!

Here is one of my new adventures...

hauling the air conditioner out of the back of the shed, up the hill, into the house, down the stairs to the studio and into the window. I did it myself. It took half an hour but I did it.

News and Views

Here is a job lot of beautiful eye candy from an auction hose, it's long been sold but I love the interplay of reds and neutrals! Could it be a rug colour plan?

My online class in the Wanda Way Studio, Design is back in the swing of things after a brief personal interruption and I'm glad to be working with lessons about designing. This is a fascinating subject and we are all surprised in class how quickly we are becoming better at something because we are practising. If we sat and thought about how we would try to do something or even get out the stuff we need to do it, it is not enough. We need to act, and act and act again. This is how we let something become heart knowledge, real understanding instead of head knowledge. Our bodies remember the skills we develop with an open mind.

To see some of what we are enjoying learning about go here John Lovett has lots of lessons we hookers might find beneficial. Next lesson I'm getting into the real meat of the heart of hooking for me! Colour. I can't wait. I can talk about colour and it's use all day long.

Robert Genn just sent a great letter on colour use and the work it takes to lay yourself an excellent foundation. And it does take practise again!

I'm starting to see a theme!

Great works are performed not by strength but by perseverance. (Samuel Johnson)

I recently got a tripod to take photos and movies for the Mat and my online lessons.

It is a great contraption and I love not worrying about a steady hand and the digital camera.

I'm well pleased, it even has a level and it was a great price from ebay, no shipping 29.95.

There is a handle that allows you to raise camera up slowly and steadily too. It is GOOD.

I was making my baking list for class next week and realized tho ugh I planned to bake, the humidity is too much to have the oven on. I hope tomorrow brings better baking weather.

I'm fixing honey oat biscotti, brownies, Mrs. Farmers Ginger Squares, lemon squares and my amazing chocolate chip cookies.

Thank goodness with all that bounty I have no appetite for sweets. I'm holding out for the most important sweet things to come into my life, the ones I've craved all my days and now don't want to do without another second.

Welcome Mat Free Pattern

This month's free pattern on The Welcome Mat

A friend at Beaver Bridge on Gleason Brook

Dads, Buttercups and Inspiration

From Post secret today...
From the back yard

From the net:

A Road Trip

I went on a road trip today to Debbie's Studio

It was great!!!

Albert and rugs

"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius -- and a lot of courage -- to move in the opposite direction." Albert Einstein

Speaking of moving in other directions, I was amused yesterday

to see a rug of mine tossed on another, hard to tell where one started and the other ended... oh boy. Have you ever thrown a few of your rugs together to see if they were "different"?

Mine look like a kindle of kittens! Albert, it's hard to move in another direction!

Publish Post

Big Beauty/To The Rescue!

Something for sale:

This amazing 1 yard big beauty can be yours if you wish.

Only $64 + shipping

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Ahhh, I'm so glad ... my counter top is in!

What a good thing.

I'm getting ready for my Class here in a few weeks.

It feels good to get things straightened up for company.

I'd love to have you come. There are two spaces available.

Sorry for the stove Tony, YAH, get making , let's not let time pass without doing what we need to.

I believe life is a series of near misses. A lot of what we ascribe to luck is not luck at all. It's seizing the day and accepting responsibility for your future. It's seeing what other people don't see and pursuing that vision.
Howard Schultz

Much of the success of life depends upon keeping one's mind open to opportunity and seizing it when it comes.
Alice Foote MacDougall

What I did yesterday

I had a big lot of yarn sitting around for 3 years and I'm so glad to finally do something with it, make it pretty and available for creating!

Here are the results:

I'll be back to larger needles I think.

I 've been doing a lot of soul searching lately and love this quote:

At the center of your being you have the answer; you know who you are and you know what you want.
Lao Tzu

What do you want?