Pumpkin mat

I finished hooking my little pumpkin mat! It measures 11 3/4" x 8", and was done in a #6 cut. (I figured a 6 would be easier for beginners to start with)  The colors are more muted in person, but I had to use a flash to get a quick photo. For the wing,  I ended up choosing a black/brown/with a hint of blue wool texture. It blends in, but yet is different from the body.  Much nicer than the gray wing I had first hooked.  (I really like having  a stash of wool for those situations) Now to decide how to finish it. Cording? What color to whip stitch over the cording? Add a hooked border of 1-2 rows around the edges to set it off more? I'll have to play around and see what I like. 

~*~ Laura ~*~

Pumpkin mat

 Well, it's been a couple months since I last blogged. I'm still working full time, which is really a change for me. It's been harder than I thought to go from an overactive/sensory kindergarten classroom to a very quiet office. Then add learning a new job, more computer skills, etc. Let's say it's been challenging. There have been days where I have second thoughts about changing jobs ( I loved being a kindergarten aide, it just didn't pay), until I get a paycheck every 2 weeks. Somehow that paycheck really helps.

I have been working on a small hooked mat for the fall. I will be teaching a beginning/introduction to rug hooking in the fall. I drew up this pumpkin and decided to see what it looks like. I'm still playing around with the wing of the bird. The grey is too light. I don't know if I'll keep the wing, or take it out. I tried to keep the design simple, not a lot of colors/wool to buy for the students. If you have any thoughts, please let me know. Is it to challenging for a beginner? Trying to work around the curves? Although I found it was easier to bind an oval compared to a small square mat.

I did manage to crochet a baby afghan and sell it on Ebay in the past month. I'm almost finished with another one, but in ivory. It's so easy to transport, so I can work on it at lunch.

 Last week I made a ruffled scarf for Rachel. It's made from Sachey yarn. It would be fun to make in them in school colors for the fall.

 In April, Andrew had his Eagle Court of Honor, where he received his Eagle Scout Award. We originally thought that maybe we would have 40-50 people. Nope. We had over 80 people come to see him get his award!

Last weekend Rachel and I went to do a little geocaching. We're new to it, so it takes us a while to navigate and locate the cache. Along the way, she spotted this little garden snake on the path.

We did manage to find the cache in the dead tree. It's a fun activity, especially before all the bugs come out in the summer. 

I'll try to update more often. (hey, I don't get paid to blog, so there's no incentive!)  I do try to read and browse other blogs. I still have to have my craft eye candy.   :)

~*~ Laura ~*~