A Quiet Day At The Patch

Saturday 25th of May was a quiet one at my home in The Patch (Victoria, Australia). Anne, Katherine and myself (Robyne) were joined briefly by my friend Nicole, who had a little go at hooking. I want to convert her of course, but two dogs, four young boys and a full time job keep her busy enough and she said she despairs of any poor rug that lays on their floors just now. I do assure her that children grow (and, shhh, eventually leave home).

I hope the rest of our team were too busy to get along, rather than didn't realise we had a get together. Sooorrryy!! I forgot to send out a reminder....

Katherine working on her Magpie Rug (below). 

Getting there with the Footy Rug. I find if I leave it in the lounge room, I go to it more often, rather than away from the tele in the sewing room. Boring!

Nicole and I are each making 'Calla', a lovely patterned shawl. I dyed some Bendigo Woollen Mills alpaca in two shades of this lovely teal. Mine (the darker) is finished (I started way ahead of Nicole, who is the far better and more dedicated knitter).
We're going to swap our leftover yarn at the end to make complimentary cuffs.

Jennifer Walton, who joined in in spirit from the Atherton Tablelands in FNQ, has finished her first combined proggy/hooky rug! Excepting for the binding (which will no doubt be done by now).
Such finesse! Jen said she spent an aeon preparing the flowers beforehand. So proud! 

Calla. The colour is much darker than this really. It was useful yesterday, out and about in the freezing cold.

Meeting of the Yarra Valley Rug Makers

With only three of us present we nonetheless had a great time together. The first couple of hours were spent discussing our upcoming Hand Hooked Rug Exhibition of our work at Coal Creek, Korumburra, Vic.
As you can see [on left] our graphic designer, Joy,  did a fantastic job of designing a poster for the event and as yours truly- Chris, lives close to the venue it will be my job to place them around the district to give the exhibition as much exposure as we can.
We hope you will come and support us by attending this very first exhibition of the Yarra Valley Rug Makers.
After lunch Joy and Anne got stuck into their rugs while I caught up with some work that needed doing.
 If you would like more information about our exhibition, please do not hesitate to leave a comment.

Joy's stair tread

Next meeting of the Yarra Valley Rug Makers

The next meeting of the Yarra Valley Rug Makers will be held this Saturday 13th August at Chris' home in Loch.

Don't forget to bring all your lovely rugs in readiness for our Rug Exhibition on 12th September at Coal Creek, Korumburra. The exhibition runs for two weeks and we will hold our next meeting at the Coal Creek venue on the 17th September.

Please come and support our small group with your presence. 

All welcome.

October meeting of the Yarra Valley Rugmakers

Hi all would be rug makers and old time rug makers.

This is just to let you know that instead of the second Saturday of the month as per usual, our meeting will be held on the third Saturday- 17th October, 10AM at Anne's in Warrandyte.

We hope to hear all about Anne's adventures of the Triennual meeting of TIGHR conference in Victoria, Canada.

Also, just a gentle reminder that we all need to bring along our rugs, wool, and whatever you have for display at the Stitches and Craft show in Caulfield on October 22nd to 25th, from 10AM to 4.30 PM.

 Click HERE if you would like to have a little look.

The Yarra Valley Rugmakers will be representing the Australian Rug Makers Guild at the Stitches and Craft Show and promoting the craft of rug making in Victoria

You can find them HERE

September meeting of the Yarra Valley Rug Makers

Hi Folks

The next meeting of the Yarra Valley Rugmakers will be held at Chris' home in the beautiful town of Loch on Saturday 12th September. New members always welcome. 

If rug making interests you and you would like to have a go, you can contact us on contact form. 

August meeting of the Yarra Valley Rug makers

What a wonderful day we had on Saturday. Even though there were only three of the original group present, we enjoyed the presence of three new ladies, ready to learn all there is to know about the addictive art of Rug Making.

Joy, explaining the use of colour to eager Jane

Anne Marie, comes from a spinning background and was more than happy to show Chris how to use her borrowed from Joy spinning wheel.
Jane joined us from Mooroolbark and came 
along with Joy, who picked her up along the way. Slow and steady was Jane but this woman is persistent to say the least and we expect her to be up and hooking her kit which she plans to purchase before the next meeting.

Kerry  came all the way from Mornington on the peninsula. Kerry met some of our ladies at the Westernport Craft Fair and had been wanting to join us for some time. She was already working on a proggy rug of her own and doing very well too.
With three new students to teach Anne and I seemed to be running around most of the time and didn't get much time for hooking. Joy seemed to be able to fit in both teaching and hooking, like the clever woman she is. Time is short for a lot of our ladies and hooking time precious.
One of the highlights was unpacking all the gorgeous wool which finally made it's way from Strathalbyn to the YVRMs. What a feast this was. We are all indeed very grateful to Judy for thinking of us ladies. The wool will certainly be put to good use. A great big thank you to Judy from each of us.

As from next month [provided they have arrived all the way from Ireland by then] Chris will be selling hooks of all kinds. Straight short hooks, curved hooks, 6mm and 8mm, ball handles and pear shaped handles as well as wooden proggers. You can contact me via the contact form on the Victorian Rugmakers Blog HERE
Photos will be added to this post as soon as the hooks have arrived.
Anne still found a few minutes to work on her 'Fowl Mood' rug, which has been hiding away for a while. Well, we had a busy but thoroughly enjoyable day once again. We hope to have more ladies join us next month at Chris' home in Loch. Cheers for now. :)

May Meeting of the Yarra Valley Rug makers

There were five members present at the last meeting, with I-Chris, still galavanting around our fair country, but still keeping the group  up to date with my rug hooking adventures.
Joy is still working on her lovely stair treads, while Sandra has almost finished her Shawn the Sheep rug and  just deciding on what colour to use for a border.

Wendy  was working on a sampler of all different techniques that can be used in rugmaking, which should be interesting. I am sure we will know by the next meeting what her different techniques are. Anne decided to drag out her Gene Shepherds 'Fowl Mood" rooster rug, which she started a few years back but never got around to finishing, even though it looks like she hardly started it.

This is the oriental rug Yours truly is working on at home- even though I am not at home right now to work on it.
I am however working- even though spasmodically- on the last of my portrait rugs. This is Milly, grandchild number six. I admit I haven't done a great deal on it, being occupied in other ways while on holidays, buuut little by little.

X

Our next meeting, Saturday 14th June, will be at Sandra's home in Hastings, depending on how many might be able to make it.  Cheers until next time :)

NOTE: If anyone is interested in rugmaking, you are most welcome to come to Sandra's home in Hastings on Saturday 13th June. We'll begin about 10.30am. See comments for details. 

Christmas meeting of the Yarra Valley Rug Makers

Another year gone by. We had so much to talk about at this meeting, but that is nothing unusual off course.
As we belatedly celebrated International Rug Hooking day, held on the 4th December, we shared about how we got started, and the international influences in our work that made us who we are today. Having said that, each of us has really developed our own Aussie style as well, which sets us apart from hookers across the waters. It is still so much harder for us Aussies to get hold of tools and materials though, and the cost of postage from the States, the UK and Canada often make it prohibitive. However we are thankful that a small handful of women in SA, Sydney and Q'land have done some of the hard work for us and a limited amount of tools available. Thank you ladies for that.  So we are not totally isolated.
Joy brought her lovely mum Margaret along again, who sat knitting away while enjoying the company of the 'hookers'. She is also a crafter and a very good one from what we saw. She had a happy surprise to tell us but I had better not tell as I am not sure whether she wanted this fact published on the Blog. Maybe next time.
Anne worked on her lovely colourful Santa Rug...will she have it finished for Christmas...I wonder? We will see.

Joy had finished her gorgeous 'The last leaf' rug. It is surely a winner and also started whipping her Manet Melon rug. She checked out Simone Vojvodin's Herringbone whipped edge video, for instructions, and for which we have a link right here on the Blog.  She completed quite a bit of it before home time. The herringbone stitch, worked in a matching rug wool makes a lovely finish to her rug. She certainly picked it up quick smart.
Jen joined us just after lunch as she had to work in the morning but didn't want to miss out on our special Christmas meeting.

She is adapting her daughters lovely painting into a rug. Check out that lovely sun, it will be very different from her carpet rug that she had been working on previously.
Leeanne came and joined us for a short time, just in time for lunch.
Sandra is doing magnificently with her Shaun the Sheep rug. Her young grandson has already claimed it. He certainly has good taste as Sandra is doing a wonderful job on it.                                     
Our lunch was to 'dye' for with everyone trying to accommodate special gluten free foods for our dear Joy. I think she appreciated that. :)
Chris had finished her last Grandson's Sam rug and also had the finishing edge to do. As she did on her other portrait rugs, she used a thick, wool, piped edge in a matching colour to her hooking. It is a lovely edge and quite quick to do. Only one more of her grandchildren to go and she is pleased to do a little girl for the last of her portraits. This will be a challenge.


We missed Robyne, who has been faithfully looking after her ill dad, bless her.  Hope you come back soon Robyne.
All too soon we departed again, each to their own home. 

At this time on behalf of the Yarra Valley Rug Makers, I would like to wish all our followers and readers a Blessed Christmas as we celebrate the reason for the season, the birth of Jesus, as well as a happy, joyful 2015.
Keep coming back to the Blog as more will be added before our next meeting in January.
Cheers

left to right: The last leaf by Joy Marshall; Joy and Chris working on the herringbone stitch; Sam by Chris Noorbergen

October at Anne's

We had another lovely play at Anne's house in Warrandyte Saturday past. Anne is here Still working on her pear chair pad. The colours are amazing (hand-dyed). I've thought I could quite happily nick those greens many a time.

Here I am (Robyne, on the left wearing Grandma's shirt, which I pulled out of my stash when I started my new rug, but kept to wear instead of cutting it up with the rest of her clothes) with Sandra from Hastings. Sandra seemed a little daunted, as I did the first time I tried hooking and got the hook in a tangle and thought it seemed harder than it is after an hour on my own. I sincerely hope Sandra stays and gets the bug. We have a lot to talk about... crafts of course, but also Sandra is keen on Genealogy and so am I. Mad for it actually (me that is, at least). I didn't have time (in my brain) to stay long enough to really chat (too much to do at home)... so maybe next time??
We all hope so. This is a most satisfying craft. I love the practicality of it and plan vast floor coverings for when we've finished renovating (haven't started on the house yet so have time to work towards it). 

Joy is our resident teacher. She patiently goes through the steps (difficult to do with me offering helpful advice at every step) (You can see me here watching and being terribly ready to jump in).

I found Joy, then Gene Shepherd, very helpful to watch and listen to... but found my stride after it,  seeing Heather Ritchie, who 'just goes for it'.
Joy explains the technique patiently and clearly so one understands the concept and practicality of the loop, which is the basis from which to jump. Heather isn't so precise in her tutorial (and you need the basic understanding) but 'paints' and jumps in in a way I love. When I say precise, I mean that some hookers like the even-ness of same sized-same direction loops and others don't so much. Of course there are no rules, only interesting 'marks' or textures.
Anyhow... on I go as usual.
Our little group is little, but so fond and warm and delightful. I can only manage to get there every couple of months, and perhaps not for a whole day (sniff!), but I look forward to it and feel renewed by the nice, enthusiastic, happy crowd that we are.
Thanks Blossoms!! xx

P.S. I think we have another dyeing day looming. Not next month, but soon.

Hi everyone
A couple of things for our blog today. Firstly we had the most wonderful meeting in Warrandyte today. There were only four of us with Leanne joining us for part of the day and Robyne not being able to make it, but we still had an enjoyable time of hooking and knitting, while three of us shared pleasant memories of trips overseas.  So we chatted and drank [coffee], ate and generally a good time was had by all.

  Joy has finished her lovely Anne of Green Gables rug and starting her Botanicals rug for Strath, Jen started a poppy rug using the most gorgeous dyed wools [recycled off course], Anne was working on her Pears rug and Chris was knitting for charity and brought along her finished rug entrant for the Botanicals competition in Strath as well. 

And......talking about Strathalbyn, you'll most probably want to be reminded of the Rug Hooking Expo to be held there in S.A on 11th and 12th of October, [info below]. It promises to be such an exciting weekend, with the competition, I just talked about, good company with fellow fibre artists and lots of workshops to attend. Here are the details just to remind everyone; If you click on the links below you'll get a description of  each of the workshops available.

STRATHALBYN RUG HOOKING EXPO

 Saturday & Sunday, 11th & 12^th October 2014

Town Hall, High St. Strathalbyn, South Australia

All welcome

Workshops available

1. Waldoboro (3D)/ Sculptural hooking; Judi Tompkins Profile Workshop Description
2. Hooking an A3 sized facial portrait from a photograph; Portrait Workshop Chris Noorbergen
3. Fibre Sculptures; Maggie Whyte Artist Profile & class description
4. Braiding Techniques; Kathleen Smith & Barbara Philllips Profile and Workshop Description
5. Proddy;   Miriam Miller
6. Punchneedle Hooking; Jacqui Thomson Profile & Workshop Description
7. Dyeing Safely in the Kitchen;  Joy Marshall Class Description
8. Traditional rug hooking; Jo Franco Profile & Workshop Description
9. Toothbrush rug making;  Judith Stephens Profile & Workshop Description

So there you have it...be there or be square. Book a workshop right now, you won't regret it.

Anyway, onto the next thing. I would like you all aware of the Simone Vojvodin -Herringbone whipped edge Youtube tutorial link on the left side of the page.
If you really hate finishing your rug as many of us do...I know Joy, not all of us do, then this tutorial is for you. How to finish a rug with a herringbone whip-stitch. From far off it looks like your everyday ordinary whip-stitch, but on closer inspection you'll see a lovely herringbone pattern on the edge. I love it and it gives a nice finish to the rug. Go on, have a look. 
So, as the saying goes...there's your lot for today. Cheers :)

The next get together of the Yarra Valley Rug Makers is at Anne's home in Warrandyte on Saturday September  13^th. Everyone is welcome. For more information please fill out the contact form and we'll get back to you asap.

Looking forward to seeing you all there. :)

Next Meeting A Bit Later Than Usual

We are having our next get together on the 16th of August in Chirnside Park / Lilydale.
Usually we go on the second Saturday of the month but with lots of gallivanting going on around the traps and our wonderfully flexible natures, we decided to go for the third Saturday! Just like that!

So, it's gonna be at Joy Marshall's home and there'll be lots of exciting stories of her trip to the UK (ruggy stories too), and more than likely too much food.

 

Please ring Robyne on 0410876096 or email here or at r.m.square@bigpond.com

Step right up!

Next Rug meeting for the Yarra Valley Rug Makers

It's that time of the month again when we meet together for chatting, hooking and fellowship.
Wouldn't you just love to learn how to hook a rug? Well, the opportunity to do just that plus meet lots of interesting new friends at the same time, while enjoying lunch together, will happen next Saturday 12th July at the home of Chris in Loch, South Gippsland.

We also have the privilege of having Miriam Miller and Jacqui Thompson join us for the day. Miriam is the author of Proggy and Hooky Rugs. For further details of her book click on the 'Book Review' label on the right side of the page.
'Proggy and Hooky Rugs' Books are available on the day as well as one copy of Heather Ritchie's book 'Hooked Rug Story Telling; The Art of Heather Ritchie' by Lesley Mary Close, which features  comprehensive record of beautiful story rugs. hooked by Heather.

For more information contact us at victorianrugmakers@gmail.com or leave a message in the contact form. 
Hope to see you there. Cheers

June meeting of the Yarra Valley Rug Makers

Aaah, winter is on the way. The road to Warrandyte was wet and long from Loch, but a warm welcome awaited me when I got there. A cup of coffee later and a catchup with the girls and we were ready to get stuck into our rugs. Robyn's gorgeous Foxy Rug was coming along in leaps and bounds while Anne just kept plodding along on her lovely Santa Rug. I'm sure it will be finished for Christmas 2014...well she hopes so anyway.

Joy's beautiful Anne of Green Gables rug is stunning and almost finished, just a bit of sky to go. 

Chris continued on with her 'Blake' Rug, the fourth in her set of six rugs of her grandchildren. Two more to go after this

Next month will be a smaller group as Joy will be over in Ireland with her daughter living it up. However we will have the pleasure of enjoying the company of Miriam Miller and Jacqui Thompson from  Narrawilly Proggy Ruggers, in Milton, NSW.
Miriam is the author of Proggy and Hooky Rugs. This lovely book is an introduction to the old skills of rag rug making, particularly proggy and hooky rugs. It has instructions for rug making, pictures of different kinds of rugs you can make and lots of colour. There is a knitted rug pattern as well as ideas for quirky projects (such as a tea cosy and a hat) that you can make using the rag rug method. 
We hope to have lots of people come and join us to welcome Miriam and Jacqui to Loch in beautiful Sth Gippsland.  Till next time. :)

May Rug meeting

Once again our wonderful group met at Joy's home in Lilydale for a very enjoyable time of fellowship. Only a few short hours together but lots to catch up on. 

Joy shared her proposal for her Strath workshop on dyeing with us as we sat around munching on delicious food, drinking loads of coffee and teas, and hooking away at our current projects. 

Robyne's gorgeous fox rug is coming along famously, while Joy's 'Green Gables' rug was mostly completed but for the sky.

Jen and Chris are working on their ' Beautiful Botanicals' entries for the Strath Rug Expo in October while Anne was continuing her project. Leeanne was having a day of and just enjoying the company.

While there is not so much 'new' news this month that certainly didn't make the day any less enjoyable. Between friends there is always lots to chat about and catch up on.
Feel free to join us next month in Warrandyte.

May meeting of the Yarra Valley Rug Makers

Hi Rug Hookers
I can't believe the month has flown so quick. This month's meeting will be held at Joy's home in Lilydale on 17th May. All welcome, young and old, experienced or beginner. If you would like to know more about the art of Rug Hooking feel free to drop us a line in the contact form on the right of the page and come join us. We'd love to meet you. :)

Ruggers April meeting in Warrandyte

Our group was small, but the atmosphere was warm.
What a wonderful time we had at April's meeting in Warrandyte.
As usual Anne greeted everyone with a smile and a cup of coffee.

Leanne knitted, Joy hooked, Robyn chatted; and Anne and Chris chatted, tried out various punch needles and  hooked all at the same time. As Chris had a lesson in punch needle embroidery from Jacqui while she was in Milton, she was keen to show off her newly purchased punch needle. Anne then brought our her stash of punch needles and we talked about the pros and cons of each model. She had needles for both embroidery and for rug making. What a handy little tool that can be used in such a variety of ways adding a different dimension to hooked rugs.

We then had the fun job of dividing up our beautiful, made in the US [that's what it said on the invoice], wool fabric which had arrived at Anne's while she was away enjoying the retreat at Narrawilly in Milton, NSW. Yards and yards of soft, beautiful wool dyeing to be changed into works of art.

 

 The day went much too quick, and after a lovely lunch we packed up our tools and left for home until the next month.The May meeting will be held on the 17th at Joy's in Lilydale.
Cheers from the Yarra valley Rug Makers.