Adventures in Stripping (among other things)!

I've heard it said that before you can become a good hooker, you need to be a good stripper!

 Truth be told, I didn't realize how tedious it would be to cut all the wool strips by hand... and how much LINT was involved (thank goodness for my Enjo dust glove)! I also discovered that although I had *thought* the wools had fulled/felted sufficiently, after cutting the strips found this not to be the case. I've spent several hours 'defraying' the strips (creating even more dust than cutting, to be sure). I'm pretty sure it's due to the fact that most of my secondhand wool finds, although labeled '100% virgin wool', would be gabardines and/or made with worsted wool... which I have since discovered are not ideal for hooking. Learning curve! Slowly but surely, however, I'm ready to start hooking. The stash also grows after adding more neutrals, houndstooth and grays. And today I received my new hook in the mail!! Sweet!!

Also, I've finally settled on a pattern... my first couple of ideas were a little over-the-top for a first project. I'm hoping that won't be the case with this guy – someone whoooooo should really start drinking decaf. He's about 16" square.

The concentric circles are intended for loop direction (more so than for colour)... the night sky will be variegated with different dark shades. Also I haven't stretched the burlap yet. Once that's done I'll be ready to begin hooking this hooter.

Catch ya on the flip side!

Traditional Rug Hooking using Upcycled Wool

It's always my objective to work recycled and/or 'upcycled' materials into my crafting, artwork and home decor. Traditional rug hooking involves cutting wool fabric (or yarn) into thin strips and then pulling small loops of the fabric through a backing material (usually linen or burlap) using a crochet-type hook. The combination of colours and loop angles make the patterns come to life. This technique is not to be confused latch hooking, which uses a hinged hook and short, pre-cut yarn to create a knotted pile somewhat reminiscent of 70's shag carpeting. Groovy... but not my bag, baby! At least not this week... ; 

Photography by Shirley Chaiken, used under Creative Commons license.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rugaction.jpg

What wonderful potential for upcycling previously-loved – even torn or damaged – textiles!

My latest experiment begins with a trip to one of my fave places... the thrift store! What can I say, I love spelunking through other peoples' castoffs. My mission: to procure 100% pure virgin wool fabrics in a variety of colours in order to create my first hooked rug. I scored big time! 8 skirts – purchased during a 50% off sale – all for under $25.

Seam ripper in hand, all were disassembled and then the pieces fulled (machine wash with detergent in hot water, cold rinse, dried on high setting), all of which took approximately three hours. Since these were secondhand clothes, tearing down the pieces and getting them into the hot water wash should be done as quickly as possible, to avoid the possibility of surviving critters (moth eggs etc.) on the garments being introduced into your home. 

Removing pleats and darts is somewhat labour intensive, but makes for a much higher fabric yield. One longer, fully pleated skirt provided a full yard of bright red pure wool for $5.00. Also a lovely pale yellow – a fantastic find as the lighter colours are more challenging to come by (at least in secondhand form).

So begins my wool stash! 8 lovely colours... to be cut into strips and lovingly hooped through burlap.

Not to mention other items I was able to salvage from these discounted duds... such as these lovely additions to my button stash! (And, of course, my zipper-stache...)

Next up, cutting strips, and more strips... and some more strips after that. Can't afford the strip cutter at present, so I will have to make do with my trusty rotary cutter. Also, the next 50% off sale is in three days... time to incorporate some patterned wools into the stash. These will help create gradients and subtler tones. Still working on a pattern, waiting for the colours to 'speak' to me. Let's see what they say! 

And speaking of saying... got Feedback? Advice? Ideas? Please leave a comment or drop me an email. Spammers, however, will be hung from their toenails and flogged with a suitably repurposed garden hose.

So what is a Walking Fern?

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

"Asplenium rhizophyllum, aka the 'Walking Fern', is a rare, low lying fern native to North America. The name walking fern was derived from the way the fern spreads. The underside of each leaf contain spore-producing structures, and when the tip of the leaf touches the ground, new plantlets sprout, creating a 'walking' effect."

Okay, so what does this Cliff Clavin-esque botanical tidbit have to do with this blog? Simply put, my love of creativity and craft knows no bounds. I'm always latching on to some new idea, technique or medium, moving from project to project... like a kid in a candy store... or... well... a walking fern (only more biped-like, with a weakness for bacon).

At the risk of breaching proper netiquette and infuriating the blogod(desse)s, I will state upfront that this, my first Web journal will not focus on a specific topic. Quite the contrary. Aspects of creative life fall under so very many categories and subcategories. Why choose? Hopefully, in some way, you'll enjoy my haphazard experiments in indie craft, latest discoveries in learning, dastardly puns and the odd (okay, frequent) digression.

Welcome aboard and see you at the next port-of-call!