A little news

Hi Everyone,
Hope everyone is enjoying the wonderful fall weather and the beauty that surrounds us at this time of year. Last weekend I was on Manitoulin Island and the leaves were in their full glory of color, the scenery was magnificent. Yesterday I spent the day in Bala at the Cranberry festival, and the leaves have been falling but the sun was shining and it was still beautiful. It's funny how I imagine trying to hook all that beauty in a rug, but I don't know if you could ever do it justice.

Just to let everyone know that new rug hooking yardage has come into the shop and the rug supplies are now up on the main floor. The Christmas patterns are starting to come out also, I will be making up kits this week for Christmas ornaments and 3-D Santas or Christmas trees. The store will now be open Saturdays from 10-3pm for winter hours now that my saturday shows are over and the job at the town dock has ended.

Last week the Orillia group had Germaine James who has been teaching for over 30 years come up to Linda Wilson's for "Playing with Plaids". We hooked one piece with a plaid which we used for more than one color and 1-2 plains to make a geometric pattern which is very effective. It was a great 2 days and it was wonderful to see all my hooking friends again. I am hoping to do a 2 day course on this style before Christmas, anyone interested in attending please email and let me know and I will add your name to the list.

The new beginner course will be staring November 5th and still has 2 seats available. They will be doing a 7"x12" Christmas project for hanging or using as a table mat.

We had 2 dye courses in September and I am pleased to see that the students went home and are dyeing for their rugs. I love to see people gain the confidence to do their rugs from start to finish, by drawing their own pattern, dyeing their own wool and finishing. I then feel I have done my job well.

Well ladies I hope you are all enjoying this glorious season as much as I am, if you haven't done so take a moment for yourselves and touch nature, it does us the world of good. Have a great week. Karen

Upcoming Courses

Hi Everyone,
I am finally getting settled in, at least the shop is somewhat organized. I have tons of work left to do on the rest of the house but I will get to it one day at a time. My neighbour Barb, said her husband used to tell her that you can't eat an elephant all in one day, I will take that advice to heart, as I have watched Barb working hard on her home for the past 2 years and they have finally opened their Bed & Breakfast, "Georgian Terrace" this past month. All their hard work has paid off, congratulations on a job well done!

The store has reopened and has been reasonably busy for summer. I will be running courses starting in August, as well as there will be a hookin/knitin. Here are the dates as follows:

Beginner Dye Course
One day Course: Tues Aug 5- 9:30am-2pm
Saturday Aug 16 9:30am-2pm
course outline: we will be working with natural and acid dyes, safety, intro to the color wheel, learn about setting agents, interactive dyeing(groups of 3), each student will go home with pieces that they have dyed.
Costs $80/student, supplies are included in course cost. Please bring apron, safety glasses and rubber gloves to class.

Beginner Rug Hooking
Four week course: Wed Aug 6-27th 6:30-8:30pm
Wed Sept 3-24th 6:30-8:30pm
Thurs Sept 4-25th 1-3pm
Course Cost $40, Kit and supplies $75

Intermediate Dye Course
One Day Course: Tues Sept 9th 9:30am-2pm
course outline: more color wheel, mixing dyes, marbelizeing, casserole dyeing, dip dyeing.
Course costs: $80/student, supplies included. Please bring apron, safety glasses, and rubber gloves to class.

Let's knit Socks!
Sat Sep 6, 13, 27 & Oct 1.
course cost: $40 Kit/needles $25

Let's make Thrum Mitts!
Oct 18, 25, Nov 1, 8
Course cost: $40 Kit/needles $25

Let's make Felted Mitts!
Nov 1, 8, 15, 22
Course cost: $40 Kit/Needles $35

Summer HookIn and KnitIn: Monday August 25th, 2008 10am-5:30pm
location: Centennial Museum,13 Burke St, Penetanguishene, we will hook/knit on the mnuseum grounds from 10am-1:30 when we will proceed to the town dock to hook/knit on the Georgian Queen for a 31/2h cruise. Costs $25 ($20 for group rate of 20 or more)
Please Rsvp by calling me at 705-549-1060

Sat Sept 20th-Settler's Day
Join us for a Hookin at Penetanguishene's Centennial Museum from 10am-4pm in celebration of the Drummond Island Settler's. There will be festivities throughout the museum, you are welcome to bring your lunck or there will be BBQ lunch available at minimal cost. Please let us know if you would like to attend by calling me at 705-549-1060

I hope I've got it all! For some reason I have done this 3 times and have wiped it out twice now-very frustrating. If you can think of any other courses you may want (there are some I will do this winter, such as needle felting, folk art and special rug hooking courses(primitives) Just ask!
I hope you all have a wonderful summer season. Take care and God Bless! Karen

Studio by the Bay- relocation

Summer is finally here and Studio by the Bay has had it's 1st anniversary as of June 23rd. It is hard to believe that we have been in business for 1 year already. As most of you know I have moved to 11 Water St, and will be moving the store there this weekend. I am hoping to be open for July 2nd, although I may still have some organizing to do we will still have the knit/hook ins as usual.

Louise Zoschke, Gayle Gunby, Ann Hallett and I all attended the Trent School of Rug Hooking 2 weeks ago. It was a very busy week, and we got to see all the upcoming courses previewed for next year, coming home with lots of ideas.

I was speaking with Nicole from Centennial Museum today and we are planning to do a hookin on the grounds with one of the museum events, I hope to hear more about this in the next couple weeks. Hopefully we can make this an annual event and put the message out to the other branches as an invite.

There will be a Beginner course, Dye courses and kit courses offered over the summer, they will be 1 day courses that require a brown bag lunch and your hook, hoop and scissors. If interested contact me by email or phone and I will be glad to answer any of your questions.

Happy Canada Day, all!!!
Karen

Bring on Spring!!!

Hi Everyone,
It has been a very busy winter, as well as a very snowy and cold one. I'm sure you are all looking forward to spring as much as I am. Hopefully with March coming in as a lion, we will see it go out as a lamb.

We had a very successful rug show at our Winterama. It was so nice to see all who came out to join in the fun and try their hand at hooking. There have been some wonderful comments from the public so you can all be proud of your efforts. Thanks to all of you who participated by joining in the hookin, setting up and donating rugs, we couldn't have done it with out you.

Gayle Gunby and I have just returned from a 4 day weekend at Germaine James, a 2 day course in Wide cut as a prerequisite to the OHCG TTEC Program, and a teachers meeting in Brighton. It was as the kids say "AWESOME". Germaine and her husband Terry were the ultimate hosts, and they have a lovely home with a tranquil setting in the country just N of Brighton. Germaine is a lovely woman with a good heart with amazing teaching skills, it was intense and very inspiring experience that I would highly recommend.

There are some wonderful courses coming up in the fall at the OHCG School at Mount Mary Retreat in Ancaster, ON and The Burlington Art Centre in Burlington, ON. If you are interested in attending I have the applications in the Store.
Our next event will be the Annual coming up May2,3 and 4 at the North Simcoe Recreation Centre in Midland. I encourage those of you who want to attend to join the OHCG and get your applications in, as Mar 31st is the last date to apply.
If anyone is planning to show their work we will have to send in the applications and get organized about setting up our booth for the show. Could those planning to help set up our booth please let me know so we can organize ourselves.

I am expecting my new Grandaughter on Thurs Mar 6th, it is so exciting and I am furiously knitting in anticipation of the birth. As Niki doesn't like the feel of wool I have knitted a Marble pattern with Cotton Tweed. It is working up beautifully and hopefully it will be finished by the time my "Bella" gets here.

My sister's daughter-in-law has gone into early labor, and as I write this newletter is at Orillia Soldiers Memorial, they figure she will give birth by 6am tomorrow. I'm sure everything will work out fine, but it would be nice if you could say a few extra prayers for them.

Well hopefully our weather gets better and we can all get out to the next meeting at the superstore, hope to see you there, Karen

Happy New Year!

It's off to a busy start to the year as the beginner rug class will be starting on Jan 23rd. There has been good response to the wednesday morning knitin(10-12am), the ladies are great for sharing information and inspiring each other. We also have had good particiapation at the hookin on Thursday morning from 10-12, all are welcome to join us.

The Patchwork Rughooking Branch will be presenting a rug show at the Centennial Museum in Penetanguishene for Winterama Weekend on Feb 15, 16 and 17th. I have invited the Orillia Sunshine Rughooking Branch to join us and will be also inviting the Huronia Branch from Barrie.
We will be having a hookin from 12-4pm at the museum and have tables set up for the public to try their hand at pulling loops. I am looking for volunteers to help to set up on the Thursday afternoon (Feb14th) those who would like to help please call me at the store 549-1060.

The OHCG Annual will take place at the North Simcoe Rec Center in Midland on May 3, 4 and 5th. You must be a member of the OHCG to participate in the full weekend. I encourage all to join as it will be a great opportunity for education, workshops, competition and to see rughooking at its finest. They will provide breakfast, lunch and dinner with speakers and entertainment plus refreshments on the Friday evening. The public will be allowed to attend on the Sunday only.
Patchwork Rughookers have been asked to put on a hookin for those who want to hook on the Sunday afternoon so the public can see what it is all about.

I have introduce a sport weight Alpaca yarn from Northfork Alpaca Farm in Uxbridge. Ian and Mary the owners take great pride in their alpacas and the yarn they produce. It is soft and luxurious in the natural colors, drop in and take a peek!

Fleece Artist hand-dyed yarn has been well recieved. There are still a few kits available. This yarn knits up beautifully with very inspiring vibrant colors.

Fraser-500 Cutters are available through the shop, if not in stock there is a 3 week wait for
delivery.

The next meeting of Patchwork Rughookers is Jan 19th from 12-4 at the Superstore, all are made welcome, so feel free to join in.

So as you can see we are off to a very exciting New Year, hope you can all join us for the fun.
Have a Happy, Healthy New Years everyone, Karen

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone!
I have been reflecting over the events in my life in the past year and realize I have so much to be thankful for. This year did not start out as well as I had wished as I was quite unwell for the 1st couple of months and was forced to leave a job I enjoyed. It's funny how life works out because it brought me to the conclusion that I would have to change my vocation and I started the little shop on Main St.
To be honest I was quite fearful that it may not work out but it has actually been a godsend. The greatest gift it has brought is the wonderful people who come through the doors that bring their creativity and inspiration to me on a daily basis. It is heartwarming to see those of like mind and kindred spirit gather to share their wisdom and build friendships around the table as we drink our tea. I thank you all for this blessing and hope that you all enjoy your time at the shop as much as I enjoy having you there.

The Patchwork of Hookers will be meeting on Sat Dec 8, at noon-4pm for their Christmas gathering, they are having a Secret Santa and are asking that those who wish to participate bring a homemade gift valued no more than $10. New members are always made welcome.

The new dates for the Patchwork meetings starting in January are as follows: Jan 19, 2008, Feb 2, Feb 23, Mar 1 and 29, Apr 26, May 31, June 13 from noon-4pm.
April 17, May 31, June 23 from 10am-2pm
If you have any questions please call me at the store. Hours are Tues-Sat 10-5. 705-549-1060

Fleece Artist yarns and kits have recently arrived at the store. If you haven't heard of them the yarn is delightful as it is all hand painted. Come in and take a look, it is just nice to see and touch.

Hoops and Hooks have (finally!) arrived. Natural Woolrich and Houndstooth is now in and red dot trace-a-pat is on its way. We have had many of the ladies ordering cutters and blades. I will order these for people on request they usually take 2-3 weeks to arrive.

Beginner class will start Tues. Jan 14th, 1-3 pm. I will have! the project at the studio to view the 1st week back in January. Call for more detail if needed.

There are new soaps and teas arriving as well we have a new silversmith, Linda Neilon who has brought in some wonderful handmade silver and semi-precious stone jewellery which has been very popular.
Gayle Moon has brought in some lovely Christmal jewellery as well as some lovely new colors for winter, she has such flare that girl!

Well the snow continues to blow and pile up but that hasn't seemed to stopped people from coming out(except last monday, I stayed in my pj's all day working around the house,then showered and put more pj's on, it was wonderful!), so bundle up, keep warm and have a safe and wonderful holiday season. Karen

August 30, 2007-Studio Newsletter

Hi Everyone,
It's so hard to believe that summer is quickly coming to an end. It feels like it has flown by as it has been so eventful.
Our group met at the Penetanguishene Centennial Museum for our monthly summer hook-in this month. The Museum has been very welcoming and view us as a positive addition as we demonstrate this historical art for all to view. It was a very relaxing meeting and the weather was lovely.
Ann Hallett was working on a wonderful monochromatic piece in blacks/browns/greys and 1 added color "oranges" as she was doing a pumpkin rug-it was stunning.
Sandy Gow finished her "Hip & Hop" design from the shop, it is amazing thow thw same pattern turns out so different, it is so vibrant and whimsical compared to mine. Good work Sandy.
Barb Charlebois brought some beautiful fruit motif chair pads to show us and continues to hook on the floral piece she is doing, which is lovely, all the work was done in yarn.
Neva brought her "Jennifer Manuel" purse patter of houses which she hooked with dyed nylons and added beaded handles, it is delightful and I hope she brings it to RUG to show it off and to show Jennifer.
Gail Lawson has finished her 3 bears rug also done in yarn, and has started a new one. Gails rugs all have a wonderful naive look to them and are very artistic.
Eileen Powers was working on a nautical piece using shoelaces for the white rope which was very effective.
It amazes me how much creative energy is brought to the group by all the members. I always come away with an abundance of inspiration after a meeting thanks to all of you.

Eileen will be letting us know the dates of the fall meetings at the superstore soon.

The ladies at the last meeting were requesting we do another tour on the Georgian Queen to see the fall colors. Perhaps a Saturday would be best so that our members that work during the week can attend without losing time. We will pick a date at the next meeting....Please feel free to bring a friend along even if they are not a hooker they can do another craft or just enjoy the view.

Ruggers United Gather will be held on September 29th this fall. I hope most of you can make it as it is a great time.

On August 11th, I attended the Metis Day at Discovery Harbour to talk about the history of rug hooking and do a display of the antique rug patterns and tools, plus show the newer rugs and do demonstration. It was a very successful day as we had over 500 people attend. It is a celebration of the Metis Culture and very interesting to visit. I came away with a happy heart and a sore throat from talking too much (I'm sure you all find that very hard to believe,HAHA)

August 22nd, I was asked to speak on the History of Rug Hooking to a group of ladies at the Centennial Museum. I would like to thank Barb Charlebois and Louise Zoschke very much for all the help the gave me in helping to show the antiquie patterns and demostrating how to pull loops to the ladies, you helped make the night a success. I think you should know that we were complimented by some of the ladies who visited the store afterwards. It is very rewarding to pass on the history and have it appreciated. It's surprising how many people talk about their memories of their mothers and grandmothers hooking rugs and even helping to cut the strips. It's too bad not more of these people had the rugs to show.

The "Beginner Rug Hooking Course" being offered through the studio will start on September 18th. There will be an afternoon class from 1-3 and an evening class from 7-9pm. The course will take place at the museum if there are more that 6 persons in the class or at my home if there are 6 or less. I will let the students know the location closer to the date.
The course cost will be $50 for 5 lessons, one of which will be a 1:1 course to pick or prep your pattern and learn how to measure the piece for the wool required.
There is a $20 deposit required to hold your seat and to order your hoop/hook which will run approximately $35 for both. The price of the pattern will depend on what you decide on. I have been donated recycled material which I will share with you all to keep the cost at a minimum.
Students are required to bring a small pair of sharp scissors, a margarine container(small) and a bag to hold your project and supplies. I hope to make this a relaxed and enjoyable experience for all who attend, so sit back and enjoy.
Happy Hooking Everyone,
Karen