Framing My Bathroom Mirror

It's finished! I removed the tape today, and the molding is nicely adhered to the mirror. It really changes the feel to the room. Makes the counter seem higher, and a finished appearance to the mirror. Why did I wait so long to do this project?? It was SO easy. I think I might do the lower level bathroom, but with narrower molding (it's a small room).

I did some rug hooking this afternoon, but not at the group. I went to the location where I was told they meet, but the house was empty and no cars in sight. ???? So, a trip to the grocery store and home to work on my own.

Still one more day off work tomorrow for me!

~*~ Laura ~*~

Weekend Warrior

I'm a weekend warrior, or at least a weekend warrior according to Home Depot. I have a 5 day weekend due to parent teacher conferences plus President's Day. So, I've put the time off to good use. I've wanted to frame my bathroom mirror for the past year. So.... I started. This is the before photo. A large (as in 6 feet long) plain, boring mirror.

I also tackled the ceramic floor. I had sealed it with grout paint last year, but the sealer doesn't fix the cracking. Some of the tiles were loose underneath. So, I started to dig out the old grout on about 10 of the tiles.

Now back to the mirror and how to frame one. I got some 3 1/2" square corner blocks that were already primed and painted them white. I did put a coat of paint on the back side, as just a hint of the edge shows in the mirror. I started with the far corner block, as it is against the wall. Used some clear Liquid Nails and stuck it to the mirror. I then measured how long the fluted board (the cheap, already primed board) should be if I left 1/2 of the other block over the edge. It helps hide the edge of the mirror. I used a mitre box and saw, and cut 2 pieces the exact same size (one for the bottom, and one for the top). I glued the fluted molding in place and then put on the other bottom corner piece. Since the molding is 1/4" smaller than the corner block, I stuck a quarter and a dime under the molding to hold it up 1/8", so that it's centered on the corner piece.

I then cut the side pieces, so that the top block would go over the mirror by 1/2" or so. I glued these pieces on. I then glued on the far corner block, the one that goes against the wall. The long top piece was next, leaving the upper left corner piece for last. Some painter's tape is holding the pieces in place while the adhesive dries. I was surprised how easily the pieces adhered to the mirror. Since I used the clear Liquid Nails, so glue shows in the reflection.

Here is it drying. Can't wait to take the tape off tomorrow! The floor grout is also drying. I'm hoping my repair job will hold and that the grout won't crack.

I've worked a little on the rug this week, filling in the background. As I'm working on it, I'm finding I want to re-work certain outlining that I've done. I hope to get more done tomorrow afternoon, as I'm going to try a rug hooking group that I found.

I"m off to finally relax this evening!

~*~ Laura ~*~

Nothing.

Nothing. That's how much rug hooking I accomplished this week ~ nothing. Not that having 4 kids that need to be places has anything to do with it. Or the time spent grocery shopping, since 4 kids eat constantly. But, I did mange to try dyeing some wool today! I started with 1/2 yard of khaki/tan wool and some Jacquard dye that I found at Joann. I normally would have chosen more of a brick/barn red, but the darkest they had was crimson. So, I used the khaki wool to tone down the red a bit.

I didn't stir the pot at all, but just let it simmer. I wanted a heavily mottled look, and that's what I got. Since it's a solid wool, I wanted some variation in the color. I'm planning to use this as the background for the snowman rug.

I also threw in the dye pot some cream twill tape for the binding. It didn't come out red, but pink. Maybe because it's cotton and I didn't add salt? I'm not afraid to show my mistakes, as I like experimenting. Maybe I'll try a little more dye for the twill tape and see what happens.

Last week, my older kids went rock climbing with the Venture Crew at an indoor climbing place. It reminds me of all the climbing they did when they were toddlers (climbing out of their cribs, on top of tables, and one tried to get on top of the refrigerator!). I think I'll let them stick to the indoor places. :)

~*~ Laura ~*~

This weeks rug progress

I'm showing this week's progress on my rug. I started hooking around the stems and flowers with 2 rows.
It's such a contrast to hook the black/brown wools against the cream foundation. These rows are pushing the other loops into place, so the leaves and flowers are even more defined.


After finishing the outlining, I took a Sharpie and drew some squiggles. I'll hook around the squiggles to add some movement into the background.

Here's one small section that's done. The 3 wools give a black/dark brown and a hint of dark blue and tan. Very stubtle, but I like it. Now that I see how these 3 wools look together, it's given me an idea of how other colors might look. I'll be looking for more plaids to use in other projects.

~*~ Laura ~*~

Dollar Saturday

I stopped into my local thrift store yesterday. All orange tag items were only $1.00. I found a green plaid wool skirt for only $1.00. I also found a Woolrich plaid pair of shorts for only $1.00. Not too bad for wool items. I think the green (very pretty in person, I just don't want to mess with my camera and adjusting colors now) will look great as leafs or grass in a rug.

We didn't have a snow day on Friday, but did get about 7 inches of snow by Saturday morning. So, I spend Friday evening hooking my new dark wool. I did an experimental row at the bottom of the rug, just to see what a row of each looked like. I wanted to make sure I was going to use all three plaids. (which I am)


I then started outlining the edges with 2 rows, then outlining the flowers with 2 rows. I cut equal amounts of each wool, threw it into a basket, and am randomly pulling out worms to hook. I like the look of the black/brown ~ it's very subtle. I'm hoping to get more done today. Once done with outlining, I'll add some interest to the background by drawing some s's or c's and going around them. I haven't attempted that before, so yet something new to experiment on.

Have a great weekend!

~*~ Laura ~*~

Hoping for Snow

While thinking about my floral rug, I started a snowman rug. Its was in an older issue of Create and Decorate. I've always admired the hooked rugs, and kept certain patterns in mind. (I've also used them for punch needle) I used a tan/grey/brown mini plaid for the scarf. This plaid was previously a Talbots skirt that I found at a thrift store for cheap. Because the plaid is so small, it hooks up very textured/bumpy looking. I'm not sure that I like the brown for the twig arms. It's a piece of reclaimed coat wool. I have a darker piece of brown that I might try on the other arm and compare them. I also needed a light pink for the cheeks. All I had was some left over hand dyed wool from a penny rug.

I also needed a light pink for the cheeks. All I had was some left over hand dyed wool from a strawberry penny rug. I was thinking the pink was a bit too deep, so I tried some dyeing without dye. I threw the piece of pink wool into a pot with some off white wool, and let it simmer. I now have a light pink wool to try. (I'm getting closer to really trying some dying)

I got home from work today, and found a package that I had ordered from Designs in Wool! More wool. Dark, primitive wool. I really like the wool on the right. I can't wait to see how it hooks up. The wool on the left I wasn't sure about when I ordered it, but am giving it a try. It's so much darker than in the photo when I ordered, which is a good thing. It's a dark blue, but almost looks black. It might give a different color once it's cut and next to the other darks. (thanks for suggesting it, Mary) Now to wash it to full it, cut, and hook.


I also ordered a cream/beige plaid. It has softer colors than I expected, but again, that's a good thing. I want to use it for the snowman and have subtle variations.

All this new wool will keep my busy. All I need is a snow day tomorrow, but it's not gonna happen. We do have a winter storm heading our way tomorrow, but not enough to close schools. But, I can hope.

~*~ Laura ~*~

Monday's Finish

I just finished my little (12x15) rug. I really liked how this one turned out. I didn't do any color planning, just followed the photo on the pattern. I wish all color planning was that easy!


I love the grey border and roof on this rug.

The back. I used strips of wool fabric instead of twill tape. It's a bit softer than twill tape. Since it's a small rug, and will most likely be put on a wall, I'm not worried about the durability. The binding is matching wool fabric strips.

This is the wonderful striped wool fabric that created the roof and border. The photo shows it a bit brighter than it actually is. It hooks up grey, with hints of brown/gold and blue. This has made me re-think about mill dyed fabric. I'm now going to search for more plaids that can be used in other rugs.

I almost want to make another one just to see how quickly it can be made. I do have a piece of monks cloth large enough to make another one. I'll have to see if I have enough of the wool.

~*~ Laura ~*~