The Colors of August

The flowers in my window box on the front deck are doing pretty well considering the hot dry summer and they get the hot afternoon sun everyday. I planted a yellow mum plant the other day to add a little hint of fall color.  

We've had some beautiful rains the past couple of nights.  The landscape is green here but it's an "August green"  if you know what I mean.

I always plant marigolds in every garden because they add color when everything else has finished blooming.  The soft purple of the ageratum and the lavender buds compliment the pumpkin colored blossoms of the marigold.

The sedum will be turning to a soft rosy mauve in another week or so. The pink zinnia's have started to bloom again after the recent rains. 

You wouldn't think it's the time of year to plant strawberries.... but my Mom ordered some new plants last week and had too many for her little garden..... so guess who ended up with the surplus!  The bigger plants you see are the ones I planted this Spring.  I cut them back and replanted. I'm hoping for a bigger crop next year.  The few that I picked this spring were so sweet and flavorful!  I am going to be sure and tuck these new little babies in for the winter with lots of mulch. ( the holes next to the new little plants were made by the chipmunks investigating..... so far they haven't dug them up..... we don't have a swimming pool for which they can find entertainment so they stay busy digging in the gardens!!... :)) (for Robin at the "Cranky Crow"- click here if you missed her garden tour post...it was wonderful!)

Well I have to show you my new compost bin!  Mr. Orange sink built me this a couple of weeks ago from the old boards that used to be the front deck before he built the new one.  I've been wanting a compost bin for a long time but Mr. O thought the bears might find the kitchen scraps too tempting. This summer he caved and built me one.  Our yard is surrounded by chain link fence but bears would have no problem climbing over that.  So far no bears..... so maybe they don't really care for cucumber peelings, pepper seeds and lettuce. 

The naked cherubs on the new fountain I bought this Spring are still pouring their little hearts out! The never ending stream of trickling water makes soothing music while I'm hooking in the studio a few steps away. 

A rocky path will lead you to the back door of my studio should you come to visit and you  might be greeted by a friendly canine!

Mr. O likes to keep his wood pile covered when there's a chance of rain. Needless to say it sat uncovered for most of the summer.  He's been cutting  and splitting and stacking firewood on the hottest of weekends.  For him the saying is really true that the firewood " warms you twice"!  

The shadows are long. The days are getting shorter.  The colors of August are here but for a moment. 

Cathy G

Primitive Handmades Mercantile Update this Friday!

 This Friday the 17th is the Aug. update for our Primitive Handmades Mercantile selling blog already.  Mercy!  The days just fly by!   Let's see...... I do have something to offer this month.  I dug into my stash of vintage fabrics and found some pretty black and white calico and another black and white cotton with the neatest tiny stripe design.  I've  been thinking it's high time I quit hoarding some of this  fabric I've collected over the years and start using some of it in my designs.  The item I've created for the August update begged for this early black and white calico to go with a hand-dyed gold wool and some of Rebecca Erb's newest wool called Phantom Trail. What awesome wool!   I used it in the leaves for the "1820 Sunflower" rug!  So you'll have to be sure and stop by the Mercantile ( after midnight on Thurs.) to shop this months offerings!

 I want to let you  know how much I appreciate  your kind comments on my new "1820 Sunflower" rug design!  And a big huge THANK-YOU to all who have so kindly ordered the pattern!  They have all been sent and should arrive in your mailbox within the week! It makes my heart glad to know that so many fellow rug hookers will be hooking one of my patterns!  I do love to see how you interpret my designs so email me a photo of your completed rug and I will share it here on my blog if you like.

The paper pattern is still available on my selling blog "Red House Wool Studio" which is a "click" away in the upper left hand corner of this blog.  ( the Primitive Handmades Mercantile button is over there too). 
Our weather has cooled here in Wisconsin and we've been experiencing some gorgeous days and nice sleeping weather. But really..... who can sleep with all the work to be done and dealing with this "monkey mind" of mine that won't shut off!  I know I'm not alone in suffering from this irritating affliction.  It's really the left brain forgetting to tell the right brain "it's okay now...... you've conjured and created and played enough for the day! Get some sleep.... save some good juice for tomorrow's creating!"                                 
                                ( .... ah... let me know if that works for ya!)
                                                   Cathy G

New Hooked Rug Design~ "1820 Sunflower"

The more designing of rug hooking patterns I do the more I gain appreciation for my fellow designers out there!  From imagination, to paper, to rug backing and then hooking takes a good amount of hours. Add to that dyeing just the right color of wool for the look I want and before you know it a couple of weeks has gone by!  But when you finally get a finished product you love it's all worth it!

Here is my latest labor of love.

I call it simply "1820 Sunflower".

Primitive lovers...... I hope will find this design fun to hook and decorate with!  I have to say that no matter where I've displayed this in my home it looks wonderful...... 

......... in the studio hanging on an old cupboard door.....

What do you think?  If you would love to hook this rug for your own home then hop on over to my pattern selling blog: Red House Wool Studio  and get yourself a paper pattern. 

I have details there about the paper pattern as well as one drawn on linen if you'd prefer.

Thank-you as always to my readers and those who have purchased my patterns in the past!  It keeps me motivated to create more designs! For if you're anything like me I can't wait to have another new rug design on my frame!  

Keeps me sane my friends!

Cathy G

Hooking 'Till The Cows Come Home!

Saundra  and Lorena

"Till the cows come home!"  Ever wonder where that saying came from?  Having grown up on a dairy farm in northern Wisconsin I think I may know the answer!  I can remember our dear milking cows each summer being pastured in the "back forty" acres on the farm.  They had to amble through a couple of wooded acres to reach the pastures. I remember the dirt paths being worn smooth from the daily plodding of hooves  except for the  gnarly roots of some of the big oaks which stuck up out of the ground. We kids running barefoot to go fetch the herd back home for milking time had to step gingerly or risk broken toes. One summer a broken toe forced me to wear house slippers for shoes for most of the summer!  By the time school started in the Fall I was able to wear my regular shoes again.

But I digress!   The point is it took a long while for those cows to plod single file back to the barn. Sometimes my Dad would holler " Come boss" and bang on an empty  metal feed bucket and they would start the journey on their own.  But most days we kids and the farm dog would be forced to go the couple of miles through the woods to wave our arms and nip at their heels to try and speed them up a little!

Lately around the Red House Wool Studio here in my home the ladies have gathered less frequently to hook as the hot humid days have taken their toll.  But a few days ago Saundra and Lorena  stopped by and we had a nice gab session and some fun picking wool colors for their current rugs they are hooking. Saundra is working on a long rug for a bench that faces the lake scene outside her window. The design is of course the lake scene itself. Saundra drew this on the linen and is working with a size 6 strip for lots of detail. So far it is looking fabulous.  

Lorena who lives by a lake also is working on a rug for in front of their wood parlor stove. The design is depicting a loon on the water and she drew this design on the linen  also.  Theses ladies are artists!  They learned to hook in Florida where each of them spend a portion of the winter.  They found me through my blog and have been joining me and my students here for our hooking sessions. 

Hooking and hooking "till the cows come home"!  

As for me I have been hooking and hooking also! 

I finished a new rug I designed and have decided to release a paper pattern for it. The paper pattern is almost ready.......  hopefully by the end of this week.  In any event look for a post shortly where I will show you the rug!  

As you've probably noticed if you've been following my blog..... things sometimes take me awhile to get done..... like waiting for those durn cows to come home!

Cathy G

Alfalfa Fest! Come Join Us!!

Come August in most small towns across the USA there's usually a  Festival or two being held that is named after a local product or crop that is grown.  Here in northern Wisconsin we have Dairy Days, the Rutabaga Festival, and the one on which I am about to take you along......., the Alfalfa Fest! Located smack dab in the middle of farming country and held on a farm named Sunnyfields Farms  located near the Hay River..... no kidding!   Driving through winding back roads with our two pups in tow we parked along side the barn and headed to the open space all set up with tents and plenty of activities geared for kids and oldsters alike!  A few photos might help you get the flavor of what it was like!  Oh.... and you may want to dig out a couple of  bucks to throw down on the 

Chicken Poop Bingo game ! 

The minute we hopped out of our car  a group of kids came running towards us wanting to pet the dogs!  The rest of the day we had to stop as older people as well as every kid wanted us to stop so they could  pet them!  Gosh maybe we should have set up a petting booth!  

A familiar sight and almost iconic in this area... an old Allis- Chalmers WD-45  tractor.... we had one on our farm when I was a kid and my Grandpa worked as a welder in Milwaukee WI at the company where they were made.   And here come the horses and buggy...... how about a ride?

Over the Hay River and through the corn fields!  And what's an Alfalfa Fest without a hay ride!  The Allis will do the honors pulling the hay wagon later!

Dave captures a few shots for the newspaper! The guy just never quits working! LOL!

Misty and Belle all decked out in their horse finery!  

How about a little massage after that horse and buggy ride! 

Surrounded by cornfields and fresh country air!  What could be more relaxing!!

These lovely ladies were the volunteer dishwashers!  Probably in need of a massage after washing hundreds of plates and silverware.  They are part of an environmental group taking responsible measures making sure no plastic plates or utensils are being used to create waste and garbage for our environment!  How neat is that!  Good job Hay River Initiative Group!!

The very young and a few older ones enjoying the days festivities!

Do you still have your money ready for the Chicken Poop Bingo game?

The object here is to buy a number on the board and hope the chicken decides your number is the one she likes to drop a little poop on!  Oh yeah!  The designated watchers for the much anticipated poop had quite the tedious job as the chicken seemed not too interested in pooping in front of the crowd today!

This little guy had his number all picked out!  Now if the darn chicken would just cooperate!

Everybody could go home happy!

Hope you enjoyed the Alfalfa Fest!

Cathy G