How Do You Display Your Rugs?

Do you generally hang them on a wall?

...or on a cupboard door?

...or all over a cupboard?

...or as a pillow in a chair? 

...or carry them in your purse on a keyring?

...or pinned on your sweater or coat lapel?

I hope you are enjoying the hooked projects you finish...anywhere your imagination takes you!

Progress on New Rug

Here is a picture of the progress so far on my rug.  I've really been enjoying hooking this rug.  I like the colors and the way it is turning out up to this point.  I will hopefully finish the main design areas tonight and start on the background.  I may add something in the border, too.  I think it might need a little more  around the edges...we'll see!

Had to go shopping today and my feet are letting me know about it.  I can't seem to find good walking/shopping  shoes where I live...does anyone know who makes such a shoe?  I'm beginning to doubt their existence!

Anyway, hope you have a great weekend!
Linda   

New Fall Design

Since I'm really in the mood for Fall...the weather here in Illinois is changing to cooler evenings and mornings...I have drawn up a Fall-themed rug and am ready to start color selection.  The design is inspired by Kelley Belfast's great cat/pumpkin drawings, but the rug is my composition and drawing.  I just hope the finished rug will be as primitive as her wonderful rugs and punch needle creations.  Here is a picture of the rug:

I don't know if I've mentioned this in a past post or not, but I won't be babysitting my grandchildren this school year.  My granddaughters will both be in school all day and my grandson will be going to a friend's house to be around other children more, since he will be attending pre-school a year from now.  I will have much more time to spend hooking rugs and designing (I hope).  I'll really miss spending the days with Olivia, Allison and Kale, but look forward to being home and having some free time.  We live 5 minutes from my son and daughter-in-law, so we will still be able to see them often.

A school friend and former neighbor from the small town that I grew up in phoned me out of the blue last night.  I haven't seen her or heard from her for nearly 35 years.  She had just come home from visiting her elderly parents who still live in that small town,  and the evening was clear, cool and moonlit-reminding her of the summer nights that she and my three sisters and I would walk around town and talk and "hang out."  We would sit on the front porch and talk for hours about friends, school, and boys.  She is a couple of years older than I and she was feeling a little nostalgic about her youth, I guess.  Anyway, she told me how much she appreciated the feeling of belonging to our family during those years.  She said that she thought of us as the sisters that she never had (she had two younger brothers.)  It was a nice time of catching up on the paths our lives have taken since high school, children, grandchildren, jobs, etc.  We talked for an hour! 

The really strange part of the story is that I had just mentioned to Rachel (my daughter) during a recent gentle summer rain that it reminded me of the times during my teen years when our neighbor (the lady who called me) and we would walk around town during the summer rains and just talk and enjoy the rain.  I can't remember the last time I actually walked in the rain!!  It was a wonderful time in my life, and I have decided the next time it rains,  I'm going to go for a walk!

I hope you all have a wonderful week!
Linda

A New Little Christmas Rug

I finished hemming the Christmas mat that I've been hooking this week.  It is 8" X 14" and is hooked entirely with hand dyed wools.  The background is hooked with about six different blue wools, but for some reason it is looking a little purple on my monitor!  I've used a few snowflake buttons (they glisten like real snow) and a primitive star button for the tree top.  The "Christmas tree lights" are tiny freshwater pearls which had been drilled for beading.  Now I'm in the mood to do something Fall...I seem to have my seasons reversed!

Have a great weekend!

My Newest Rug is finished

Here is a picture of the rug I just completed (except for binding) yesterday.  This is, of course, a Kelley Belfast design from her most current booklet.  I love her designs, and  this was so much fun to hook.  I enlarged this punchneedle pattern to 15" X 21".  The wools are both hand dyed and as found.  I may need to take another picture in brighter daylight.  The colors are not displaying accurately, esp. the sunflower colors. 

I've begun a new Christmas design and hope to finish it fairly quickly since it is quite a bit smaller than the sunflower one above.  Hope to have more pictures soon.   I hope everyone has a great week!  Linda   

An Elegant Confection...Delicious!

Madeleines are truly the perfect elegant confection, in my opinion.  They are also very versatile as they may be baked in many delicious flavors.  This particular recipe is my favorite!  It has the perfect level of sweetness and lemon, and we  have found these to be perfect at any time or event.  (I enjoyed two at breakfast this morning!)

MADELEINES

This cookie launched a thousand memories—and a literary masterpiece—for Marcel Proust. The group enjoys madeleines with tea, just as the narrator did in Swann's Way.
Yield: Makes about 20

2 large eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
Pinch of salt
1 cup all purpose flour
10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, melted, cooled slightly

Powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 375°F. Generously butter and flour pan for large madeleines (about 3 x 1 1/4 inches).* Using electric mixer, beat eggs and 2/3 cup sugar in large bowl just to blend. Beat in vanilla, lemon peel and salt. Add flour; beat just until blended. Gradually add cooled melted butter in steady stream, beating just until blended.
Spoon 1 tablespoon batter into each indentation in pan. Bake until puffed and brown, about 16 minutes. Cool 5 minutes. Gently remove from pan. Repeat process, buttering and flouring pan before each batch. (Can be made 1 day ahead.)
Dust cookies with powdered sugar.
*A metal mold with scallop-shaped indentations, sold at cookware stores.

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/printerfriendly/Madeleines-102893#ixzz1UAQKywsM

I am also making very good progress on my current hooked rug (a Kelley Belfast design) and hope to post a picture in a day or two.  We all LOVE Kelley's designs, and this one is great!  I adapted it from one of her punchneedle designs from her newest booklet.

The Rose of Sharon in my back yard is covered with beautiful flowers (and a few Japanese beetles), and we snapped a few pictures this week.

Hope you have a great week!!  Linda