Winter blahs!!!

I've got nothing!! No pictures of new patterns or cute dogs to add today. LOL! Sounds like I'm in a funk. I'm not, but I am sure sick of winter. As with most of you we are preparing for the big storm coming Wednesday. Actually my mother got back from Vermont yesterday determined to lock herself in her room and not come out until she finished all her loose end projects. I always joked with everyone that in the middle of winter I'd have to hand her her meals through the window in the door, but, I don't think that's a joke right now. At least she did get out of her PJ's and she did come downstairs for a bowl of soup for lunch!!
I must admit that with my husband in Afganistan I knew we were going to have a rough winter. You knows those old wive's tales that if the squirrels are busy during the summer or if the caterpillars have more brown on them (or something like that) it's going to be a rough winter? Well, we don't believe those, but I can sure tell you that if my husband is going to be deployed, plan on shoveling!! LOL!
So, I just wanted to update my blog to tell you that from here in northern NY we are at the "WINTER SUCKS" stage. It's early too! Share your thoughts on winter by hitting the "comment" button. We can all commiserate together. Until next time...

Creating today!!

Well, Mom has gone to Vermont this week for a concert with my sister, bluegrass, not my thing, so I decided since we dont have any hooking classes this week, that I would paint. Well, it's Thursday and it hasn't happened yet. But, I do feel like I'm getting there little by little. You can only do what you can do right? Just so happens that my son's school has regents this week and he doesn't have any, so he's been home all week. I say home, but since he's 17 (today is his birthday), that means, "mom can you take me to the mall, can you take me to my friends, can you take me to school for practice?) So, needless to say, painting has taken a backseat. But, he is scheduled for his license in a couple weeks. I'll have gray hair knowing he's out on the road, but at long last I will not have to be anyone's chauffeur. I don't know what I'll do with all my free time..............right!
I've show you two of my newest designs. The Old Glory is from a painting I have done in the past and did again recently, I've also included the picture. PBS contacted us for a donation for their antiques and collectibles auctions, so I did the painting and Mom did the hooked rug, the larger one.
Both the large and small are available as patterns and kits, I am off to ebay and the website to list them both. I've decided to call the sheep rug "Shelter" as he is standing under the big flower for protection from the night or rain, whichever you choose. At first I wanted it to be a night scene, but sometimes the design changes as it's being made and we decided to go with a brighter flower and the brown background really seems fitting. This one will also be available on ebay and the website today as well.
That first photo is "the pack". We've gone from two dogs to a pack. They are funny!
Well, off to chauffeur again and then back home for a quick workout and some painting. Until next time.............

New Year busy state of mind......

I know that when you run a small business it's good to be overly busy, but I just can't shake this feeling that I am never going to catch up. I'd love to hear from other business people........do you ever get caught up? I read magazines where they feature artists and think, "wow, they look so "together"." Surely when the camera isn't on them their workspace or house is a mess right. Quite a few blogs ago I showed you a picture of my studio and said that since it was clean I better snap a picture and truthfully I can say, it has never looked that way since. I know it's a good thing to be busy, but just one day I would love to wake up and not think, "ok, what's next." I know, Julie, stop complaining. How do starving artists do it? If I only had to just be "creative" it would be wonderful, but daily I have to update the computer, print out labels, do paperwork. It leaves barely any time for the "fun stuff". To lighten my grumbling I added a picture of our new dog, baxter to sum it up. My mother was measuring wool and adding it to the shelves and when she came out, there he was, plunked in the middle of the table. The dog has no bounderies, he'll stop on or over anything to get where he wants to be. It sure does make it fun and interesting around here. So, I don't mean to grumble, please, keep those orders coming in, if you are a customer reading this. Because on the day I wake up and have nothing to work on I'll wonder what I'm doing wrong.....
Until tomorrow.......

It's been awhile...........

Phew, made it through the holidays. I haven't had time to blog since December 13th. Every year I say I'm going to stop working on Dec. 15th and take time to enjoy the holidays; bake, wrap, shop, enjoy Christmas movies. Well, it just never works out that way, such is the story of a mom I guess. In addition to the craziness of the holidays my patterns are really taking off. I can't tell you how good it feels to have a design in your head and see how other people love it. The picture I have added today is of an AWESOME rug that my mother hooked for my sister. The story is that they were yard saling in Vermont this past summer and came across a bunch of wool. Since my mother has a wool addiction she of course decided to purchase ALL of it. The lady selling it said, here you can have this too. It was the braided rug but the center section was all missing. It looked like at one time there may have been some kind of needlepoint design. So, my sister told my mother that she'd love to have it. So, mom asked me to design something for the center. We knew we wanted a design that would work from all angles. Mom cut out the old ruined needlepoint section and we fit my design in the center. She hooked it using all the wools we sell in the studio and "OH MY GOD". It is gorgeous! With light heartedness I have called my sister a bitch several times for first dibs. Side story is that whenever we go yard saling or antiquing the standard line for both of us is, "don't get ahead of me bitch". We both love the same things, LOL! So, she got first dibs on the braided rug and it made a wonderful Christmas gift for her.
So, I now find myself in that traditional New Years "organizational" mode. I am desperately trying to catch up on everything and do things right. It is my intention to get all my designs in hooking and punching done up as samples so that when we do shows we will have a sample to show.
The other two pictures are of the newest addition to our family. Meet Baxter, he is another Puggle that belonged to a friend of my son. They are moving to Germany and wanted him to have a good home. What have we done?? My gosh he is just so full of never ending energy. It's like having a toddler in the house again!! But isn't he cute?? Until later......