Punching with Dora

Today I decided to work on a new punch, another present for a friend.
It seems that whenever I put the frame on my lap, it is a sign for Dora.
Now this is a punch needle frame, small and Dora is not small, but it doesn't matter, if she can squeeze into it, she will.
I have had cats who love to do this with my rug frames, but I can hook with kitties, but I cannot punch with them.
She is also persistent about staying and I literally have to tip it over to get her out and even then, she resists.

So, I got some punching done tonight, but not as much as I would have liked;)

Dora with her looks, she is very vocal with her eyes. This is the, try and get me out look. She is on my lap, so it was hard to get a shot so close.



This is after I dumped her and the frame on the couch, sideways, she is still insistent on staying put.
I finally decided to put the tunnel in the room and she and Izzy had fun with that for awhile, before she got bored and came back to harass me again.

Rug Progress

I got to work some more on my rug today. I decided to have fun with the cat and used some thrift wools that I had in green and blue. They were both dyed in a darker shade to get a bit of variation to them, so it gives them a more darker appearance. Hard to tell in the pictures, the camera loves to grab colors. I also decided that the apples didn't work, so I made a little cherry branch instead. As usual, I throw in faces with what worms, I have on hand, so those get redone later.

I am using black shades around light object, dark olive green around the brown and on the kitty, I use a black/gray texture that I had. I will use those and some dark browns as the main background colors and try to keep them close to the black hue, so that is blends in and adds movement.

For the tulip, I used a gold as is jacket that had touches of brown and varying shades in it. I mixed a yellow/gold that I dyed myself. The reds are from red jackets. I over dye them with maroon or mahogany to get the varying shades.

Lazy day for everyone

Today I had to go out for errands and then decided to cook when I got home. I make my own snacks, since I have a special diet. Today it was oatmeal crackers, banana/pineapple bread and Apple crisp. I think the cold weather is making me hungry lately, need lots of fuel;)

I put my rug on the couch to decide what to do next, but never got around to doing any hooking. Wore myself out, so worked a bit on my scrappy dog and cat quilt. It doesn't matter whether a rug is hooked or not, cats love them. Put backing on the floor and they are on it, they love to sit in the frames and love to roll around and dig their claws into them after they are hooked. Thank goodness, I can do my own repairs;)

I thought this picture would give you an idea of the size of the rug. The horses are about the same sizes as the kitties, lol.
Dora is the heavier of the two, Izzy has more fur than mass. Izzy is finally coming upstairs more often and likes to be nearby when I am working. Of course Dora always has her eyes on what she is doing, she is way too jealous of my attention.

Dora found a way to help other homeless kitties

Today I gave my rug hooking a rest and worked on finishing a basket for one punch and finishing another punch.
One is a gift, so I will have to wait to show you and the other I should be able to finish tomorrow.

Today we found a new site called Goodsearch. You can do your searches from their site and in the process, help a charity of your choice. Of course Dora and I picked our local pound, which is funded by Friends of the animals. Without them, our pound would be closed and the animals taken to another shelter which I do not care for. They are working on building a new area for the cats and dogs to play and more room for the animals.

This year we donated when we found Dora and I gave them one of my kitty rugs for a raffle they will be having. I have always gotten my kitties from them and there is no greater love than from a cat who finds a new home. So, check out Goodsearch and pick a charity from your local town, that you can help.

We all browse on a daily basis, so why not help others in the process.

Tonight while I was finishing up my punched piece, Dora decided to show me that she can fit in my small punch frame. It takes a bit of squeezing and wiggling, but she gets herself in there. This is her, "I told you I could fit", look. Of course she had to show off her beautiful tail by swooshing it around.



Dora loves to use her big paws. She is a grabber and can leap incredible bounds with those feet.

Tuesdays Rug progress

Today I finished off what I call the fox and a squirrel that looks more like a rat;)
I used some plaids that I had lying around and I like how they worked up. I love experimenting with colors, and plaids give such unique effects. For the fox I used the multi-colored plaid and the one with a bit of what orange shade in it. For the squirrel, I used the light/dark brown check. The multi wool was from a man's jacket, the other two were gifts from friends. The colors look brighter hooked, than they actually are.





Dora and Izzy were playing ball as usual. I throw them down the hallway and they zip after them. Dora also loves to try and catch them in the air. When I roll one down the hall, she flies to the rug and then slides into it, her favorite pastime. She decided to take a break and give me that smirk of hers;)

New Applique project and Izzy

Working on my big rug means, working on a floor frame. Which means, sitting up more than I want to at times;)
I take breaks and work on other projects and tonight, I did some sewing on my newest wall hanging and then a bit of punch needle. I got a wonderful book from my friend Kelley (Kanknchester) and it has two patterns in it I will be making. One is a crazy quilted horse hanging, but I decided I wanted dogs and cats, so I changed the designs.

I pieced different scraps together and then using a template made from freezer paper, I cut out the shapes from the quilted blocks I made up. I grabbed colors from a bag, so there is no color scheme, just scraps. When I finish the blocks, there will be scrap blocks around the main blocks and then another border around that. It just seemed like a fun project to do. I have finished four so far and two more to go. I haven't decided on faces yet or whether I will do machine or hand stitching, maybe both.



Izzy is the newest addition to our family. She is my son's cat and I am supposed to keep her until he finds a home for her. I do not see that happening and at this point, she is adapting to our other furry members. We know I will not have the heart to get rid of her;) Dora has already staked her claim on resting spots, so Izzy has found some of her own. Izzy also likes to sit on the ottoman next to me and watch while I hook. She loves the wool and loves to roll on the rugs. Dora is not too pleased, she gives Izzy the eye when she sits near me. Now Dora is becoming more obnoxious at getting my attention. Her newest thing is squishing herself into my small punching frame, while I am trying to punch, lol.

Antique Rug Progress

I worked a bit more on my rug, today. I am fighting off a cold, so I sit and work on projects and watch tv, that is my idea of resting;)

I Think I will stick with a dark background, which means thinking of what colors I am using in the motifs to blend in with blacks and a bit of brown and greens. I have a few rugs with black backgrounds and since this rug will go behind the couch as a hallway runner, I want it to blend in with the rest of the decor. I think a light shade would compete too much.

I will go with shades that blend with the blacks, but also show enough to give the rug movement. I also need to use lighter shades around the horses, so I may go with a brown shade or a gray black to set off the purples. It will be a matter of testing colors against them, to see what works best. I am not a fanatic about color choices, I pick some shades and then decide what works and throw it in. If you want to make your wool like this, you need to ball it up and do not stir, let the dye set by itself.



These are the shades that I used in the flowers and leaves. They were both creams, that I overdyed. I start with a light shade, then add another shade and usually a third, to get this effect. Adding a bit of blue to a light green gives the nice shade I have here and a nice variation of light to dark. With golds, I start with a yellow and add light to medium browns. I dye like I cook, a little of this and that in the pot and when it looks good, I throw the wool in. If the shade doesn't come out in a color I like, I add a bit of this or that to the mix;)