~ Proper Implements ~

Hello Friends & Folk ~ 

another steamy Sunday here at the farm…

feeling much better than last week, have another appt with dr. on the 25th…

am hoping for more conclusive results to my symptoms this time?

I have been hooking again ~

the end of Summer always finds me pulling out wools & projects begun earlier in the year

or designing & dreaming up new ones!

I like to have everything near me ~ whether I'm stitching, punching or hooking.

here's my Standing Floor Frame with gripper strips that Peter makes ~ 

with a rug that's almost finished on it :)

  perfect size for me, I don't hook BIG-big rugs ~

but this frame is great for medium sized rugs like mine in progress...

I also love my 'Stripper's Tote' that I painted black with gold accents ~

{{ I personalized mine with my name & floral/bird motifs }}

you can see my trusty Fraser cutter clamped to the top/handle…

a portable cutting station you can carry wherever you want to work!

the strips flow down into the box when you cut them ~ perfect!

{{works with ANY clamp on cutter like Fraser, Townsend, Honeydoo…etc…}}

my Sliding Needle Box is painted in the same colors 

for a colonial/primitive look that I love ~ personalized with my name again.

the needle box fits down inside tote for traveling :)

what's in there?

well, I've got a tape measure, sharpies, thread, pencil & scissors…

a 'spare' hook and a loop-puller ~ some green ribbon clamped with a clothespin {why? who knows}

my cutter's wrench in case it needs tightening,

some mad-money and Burts Bees lip balm {you can wax threads with this tooooo!!}

~ here are my favorite Rug Hooks that Peter makes:

this is my primitive Pencil Hook with Brass tip ~

and my very favorite primitive Ergo hook with Steel tip

{{we will be offering these again soon!}}

I keep my hook-in-use in the handy little hole in the top of the stripper's tote ~

I keep these off-set scissors in my needle box too…

love them for cutting tails to pile height.

I can identify my scissors by the beautiful witch's hat charm at the end of my scissors fob

made by Victoria {Vikki} Gable {on Facebook}

Love it!

I also like to use my wool covered double-magnet

to hold my scissors and steel tipped hook when I'm not using my cutter, 

it holds fast to it, since it's metal!

see?

but it is mostly found on my hooking-in-progress…

one magnet on the top of my work, one underneath. handy dandy!

I made this little snippet pocket from wool and old buttons…it holds LOTS of snippets

until I'm ready to use them as stuffing -or- offer them to my bird-friends to use for nesting material :)

so there ya go…

a comfy chair, 

all of the proper implements 

and they make for a perfect hooking nest of my own!

~ almost forgot! ~

my beloved bird-friends here in the old farm-house 

keep me entertained and happy while I work away…

who could ask for better companions?

hoping you have a beautifully creative & relaxing Sunday eve ~ 

my sweet friends...

~ Blessings from the Farm ~ 

 Lori

~ Monday Morning Musings ~

Good Morning Friends & Folk ~

hoping you all enjoyed a peaceful & joyful Mother's Day!

I know I did…

I worked in the yard most of the day cutting back bittersweet vines and nandina bushes.

I mowed the lawn {again} and even pulled a few weeds!

while I was working outside, 

Peter was working in his woodshop making more of our 

Cutter Boards {for the Bliss Cutter} 

to ship out tomorrow to their new homes.

aren't they beautiful?

If you'd like to read more about them, please click HERE

 After my yard work was finished,

I came in to the farmhouse to relax a bit with my needlework ~

I'm finishing a punch needle design that I began while at the PSS Retreat in Atlanta in April

{some of you that visited our booth my remember me drawing this up for demonstration purposes}

the name of this design is "Ralph" and is a patriotic dog!

Using those delicious Valdani threads again 

help to make the design look instantly old from the get-go!

I'm excited about how I'll be finishing this one too, 

and can't wait to show you what's coming next ;)

We have a very busy week ahead of us,

 family will be coming in from CT to accompany us to Hannah's graduation ceremony!

She is graduating from VCU with a Bachelor's degree in Social Work ~ 

… such a smart, caring & compassionate young woman she is.

Hoping you all enjoy a beautiful beginning to a wonderful week!

~ Blessings from the Farm ~ 

 Lori

~ Wool Gathering ~

wool·gath·er·ing

ˈwo͝olˌɡaT͟H(ə)riNG/

noun

noun: wool-gathering

1. indulgence in aimless thought or dreamy imagining; absentmindedness.

   "she wanted to be free to indulge her woolgathering"

   Synonyms: daydreaming, reverie, dreaming, musing, abstraction, preoccupation;  absentmindedness, forgetfulness Usage:"She was free to indulge her everlasting woolgathering"

** "Woolgathering" 

once literally referred to the act of gathering loose tufts of wool 

that had gotten caught on bushes and fences as sheep passed by. 

… Woolgatherers must have seemed to wander aimlessly, 

gaining little for their efforts ~ for in the mid-16th century 

"woolgathering" began to appear in figurative phrases such as:

 "my wits (or my mind) went a-woolgathering" 

- in other words, "my mind went wandering aimlessly." 

From there, 

it wasn't long before the word "woolgathering"

 came to suggest the act of indulging in purposeless mind-wandering. ~ 

** excerpt from Merriam Webster Dictionary

Here is proof that this is true ~

the fence-line along where our mother & son sheep dwell 

shows exactly what the above refers too…

when Bobby & Esther rub against the fence, their wool gets caught and hangs there ~

the fence no longer holds them in, 

their constant rubbing has pulled the wire down to a point where it's useless now :)

they are now free to roam wherever they please here at the farm ~

they are SO dirty from the recent rains!

their first shearing this year will be very soon ~

the old fencing still shows sheep's wool ~

I do gather it from time-to-time…

a pleasant past-time indeed…

to go searching for bits of wool to use in my creations…

But ~

my description of Woolgathering is a bit different ;)

I am constantly hoarding collecting wool ~ 

not mindlessly, no…

very purposefully.

{ altho I do seem to let my mind wander when looking for just the right color }

wool spills from my cupboards, shelves and baskets…

it is piled next to my chair, on the dining room table and even in the kitchen…

in this old farmhouse there is evident-proof that a rug hooker lives here.

you can tell that by the wool dust & snippets everywhere!

… wool-worms and noodles emerge from their hiding places almost daily, 

and our vacuum-emptying is almost always a very colorful & pleasant surprise :)

I love to add lots of different colors & textures to my hooked projects

such as the one below in progress:

there must be 8 different wools alone

 in just the beeskep!

do you see the little snippet bowl I made in the photo below?

made from a densely felted orange blanket and old mother of pearl buttons…

I found the directions to make it 

HERE

{please pardon the cat-hair…proof that Iggy is always a generous helper}

I'll be happily hooking the rest of the beeskep this afternoon,

once my other chores are finished up, of course….

… then I'll begin color planning the little witch's dress ~

Hmmm….

there's that woolgathering again!

~ first though, I think I'll go out to visit old friends for a bit ~

and offer them an apple or two for their gifts.

Hoping your day is filled with creativity & treasures found ~

Blessings from the Farm ~ 

 Lori