Almost Purposeful Dyeing

I started dyeing wool for my new project (which by the way still does not have a name.) I would call my dyeing, almost purposeful. It is purposeful in the sense that I am dyeing wool for a particular project, and that I have a general color idea before I start the process. The rest of the dyeing process is all done impulsively!

I gathered recycled woolens from vintage skirts in beige, peach and grey tones. No whites today. I love the fact that they have slightly different textures and appearances, but I am diverging. When I went downstairs yesterday to dye the wools, I knew I wanted to hook my new rug with muted jewel tones. I knew I wanted one of the hens to be a Rhode Island Red. When I dye, I basically only use very basic colors, primary colors, and black that  I mix until I have the colors I want. I place the colors on the wool in a way that pleases my eye, expecting surprises from their interactions.This is my favorite way of dyeing.

I created purples in a range of depths, ochres, aquas, rusts, corals, reds, greens, night blues, and browns. And you know, even though I have been a hand dyer for many years, I still marvel at the beauty of each piece of wool after I rinse it. The magic of color never ceases to amaze me. I am forever grateful we live in a colorful world!

I have transferred the pattern to linen, my wools, at least for now are ready. It is time to hook!

Nothing Beats the Excitement of a New Rug Hooking Poject!

I worked on a new design over the weekend. When I started working on it, I only knew that I wanted a curvy branch, and hearts to be part of the design. I very quickly settled on two hearts. They reminded me of one of my favorite flowers,  bleeding hearts.

The branch kind of naturally started sprouting flowers, here and there. What I find amazing, is how creative ideas come to us. As I was sitting there doodling, from the base of the main branch, a new branch grew, curled like the scroll-like structures in the hearts. Almost naturally, as if they had always been meant to sit there, two hens decided to nest in the sheltered scrolls.

I imagine the piece will be rather large, maybe two feet by three feet, using mostly 1/4" hand-dyed wool strips with textured wool strips here and there. The colors I have in mind are deep, slightly muted jewel tones. I will be transferring it to primitive linen today, and I hope to start dyeing fabrics for it too.

I can hardly wait to start hooking this rug. Nothing beats the excitement of a new rug hooking project!

Kalon is Finished

Kalon, my little heart is finished. I had a great time hooking this design. I planned but not too much! I made most of my decisions as I was hooking. I love the freedom that gives me.

I dyed recycled woolens from vintage skirts, and used them in the heart. There are no new wools in it. Somehow this makes me happy. There were some plain wools, and some textures. I really like the contrast of the two. The contrast adds a lot of dimension to the work. I did not outline any of the forms as I preferred the soft transitions between background and forms. Rather I used the directional possibilities of rug hooking to create a background that would follow the forms. I lined the back with a piece of soft brown wool, and whip-stitched it snugly against the edge of the heart.


I am planing on creating a pdf of the pattern and offering it as a free pattern on this blog. I hope to have the pdf ready in a few days.

Have a great weekend, and happy hooking!

Blossoming Heart

Today, I just want to share with you the progress on Kalon, my heart design. I had a little time to hook yesterday. I added stems and leaves to the flowers.

I used vintage, recylcled wools to hook both stems and leaves. Both textured fabrics had been over-dyed in the same pot of green.

The stem fabric is a very subtle plaid, while the leaf fabric is a chevron. The almost solid plaid seems perfect for the simplicity of the stems. The contrasting texture of the chevron gives the leaves a certain glow.

I cut some more strips of wool from my hand-dyeds. I am proceeding slowly, laying colored strips here and there, making sure that I like their color before hooking, enjoying the time it takes to create.

I am hoping to have a lot more rug hooking to show you on Monday. Have a great weekend, and happy hooking!

Every Good Hooked Rug should Have its Greens

To go with my pinks, I needed some greens. I picked some more fabrics from my stash of recycled vintage wools, including the dark chevron I had rejected yesterday.

Making green I find is always hard. You don't want screaming green, not too yellow, not too blue, but not too brown. For this green batch I mixed a golden yellow with a little navy blue.

I got a lovely range of greens as they combined with the plaid and chevron patterns on my wools. The piece on top I decided to throw in the dye pot as an afterthought. I am so glad I did. I am particularly fond of it. It came from a vintage Pendleton Woolen Mills skirt, and based on the style of the skirt, I would say a 50's skirt. It took the green so well. It will add a lot of punch to my heart design. I will probably use it as a touch in a leaf. It will make it look sun-kissed. The best part for me is that I love how my greens go with my pinks. 

In the middle of the pinks I stuck a little piece of  aqua blue. I think it makes everything pop. I will have to dye some more of it.

I hope I will have some time today to continue working on my Moshimer Hooked Rug. I have given myself the goal to finish it before I start hooking anything else. Do you ever give yourself a goal like that? I think I need a little encouragement from you to meet this goal.