Encompassing Designs
  • Home
  • Shop
    • Kits
    • Patterns >
      • Christine Little >
        • Signature Designs
        • New Designs
        • Seasonal Designs
      • Deborah Sweet
      • Susan Leslie
      • Patricia Perry
      • William Morris
    • Supplies >
      • Backings
      • Frames
      • Hooks
      • Books
      • Extra
    • Wool >
      • Abrashed
      • Custom Dyeing
      • Dyed Bundles
      • Dyed Curly Mohair
      • Dyed Spots
      • Dyed Values
      • Dyed Yarn
      • Jacquard Dice Dyes
      • Natural & Colours
      • Plaids & Textures
      • Dye Books & Swatches
  • Ordering
  • Blog
  • Workshops
  • Our Story
  • Contact Us

Stuff.....who needs it?

10/30/2015

11 Comments

 
Picture
It’s a tough pill but I’ve come to the realization that I don’t want the same things anymore.  I’ve spend the past few decades building a  nest, placing it high above all else, but now as I look around my home I truly believe I’ve wasted my time and a whole lot of money. 

Why did I need a grandiose nest in the first place?  I’m not a Queen worried about appearances.  All the things I thought were necessities I could have lived without.  That doesn’t take away from their beauty; but at this point if something isn’t functional or practical, what purpose does it really serve.  I think maybe this is a sign of sometime, perhaps a brain tumor? This is so out of character for me, the gal that once screamed “It’s mine” as I spied a piece of blue and white china from across the room at a flea market now wants nothing, needs nothing, desires for nothing.  What happened to me?  Who is that gal staring back from the mirror that coveted things and went batshit crazy if I didn’t get it in my hot little hands?
 
Stuff does nothing to enhance or support my life, and maybe at this point my thoughts are mainly for good health and acquiring longevity.  Unless I’m buying groceries, everything else is a waste of money.  All the stuff in my house, except for the bed, appliances and toilet is just stuff, things, desires, unnecessary wants I thought I needed, thought I would die if I couldn’t have them, and became almost manic getting the deal done and hustling the object into the car or waiting for it to appear in the mail.  Surely, if I get the latest item, my home would be complete and my life would finally be fulfilled. I was deceived by my own brain into thinking it all mattered but it was all a big, fat lie.  

I’m not sure when this paradigm shift began to come about; it snuck up on me so gradually I didn’t realize it was here until it tapped me on the shoulder with its harsh reality.  “Hey there”, the little voice inside my head mocked, “this stuff doesn’t make you a better person!”

 The soup tureen in my dining room was the instigator of discontent.  The bitterness I felt when I looked at it shocked me.  What a useless piece of crap it turned out to be, and I shouldn’t be mean about it, I’m the one that insisted on having it and then never gave it a second thought.  It’s been gathering dust for several decades.  It’s a beautiful piece of china but about as necessary as breasts on a fence post.  I found a few dead bugs in it over the years, so at least it was enjoyed by something.   And while I'm on blue and white china how many cow creamers does one need?   The five that have never been used at my house?  Guess that would make the answer none!

Since the boat came on the scene I’ve changed.  Ironically her name is Catalyst, and she was just that, the catalyst of my transformation.  Yes, it’s true, she is yet another acquisition, an expensive piece of stuff to boot, but with her it’s different.  She actually gives something back unlike the stuff sitting on the mantel collecting dust.  The simple pleasure of being on the water is the only dream I need.  I can’t describe the feeling it wraps me in but I am contented at long last.  Finally an object, a thing, a possession that brings true bliss, the long lasting kind, not the temporary fleeting, Adrenalin rush high that burns out like a flash fire.   I can stop running on the consumer hamster wheel, I’ve finally found a purchase that really brings happiness.    The lifelong search for satisfaction is over and I can put away my wallet.    
 
George Carlin had a great stand-up routine about stuff.  I’d recommend listening to it sometime.  It’s hilarious because it hits the truth in us all.  Your house is only a place for your stuff, if you didn’t have so much stuff you wouldn’t need a house.  It’s a place to keep your stuff while you go out and get more stuff…and on and on the laughter rolls.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvgN5gCuLac

I used to think, how could I ever part with my stuff and better yet, how can I take it all with me?  Downsizing as an elder to a single floor dwelling with half the space I’m used to, how could I ever do that?  There was strong resistance to the idea and I usually fought it by hoping I’d die in my sleep, never having to part with all my little trinkets, novelties, ornaments, baubles, gimcrack, curios, tchotchkes, mementos and the wall to wall furnishings, the entire soup of meaningless items that fill ones house and leaves the soul empty.  

Now the list is small that I’d consider taking with us in a move.  My hubby and pups, a bed, dishes for four,  fridge, stove, washing machine and dryer and  clothing, one ½ ton truck worth of stuff to move into our virtual, bungalow style home built for ease of living instead of slaving away at maintenance and upkeep.  I’m thinking a brick exterior, strong enough to withstand the big bad wolf and Canadian winters.  I’m thinking one level, an eat-in kitchen, a bedroom with bathroom attached, a medium sized communal family room for crafts, TV, that would play double duty as a guest room with one of those Murphy beds and all open concept for better heating and cooling.  Why I ever needed two spare rooms for company that rarely visit and a huge bathroom that only hears a handful of flushes a year, I’m not sure. 

And even more questions persist.  Why do I own a ton of jewelry that is never worn and clothes, even though I pared them down there is still more that have tags or no longer fit the middle aged me.  Stuff with memories attached, my wedding dress and in that I mean just a regular off the rack dress, a handmade suit of Stewart Tartan wool that I fondle occasionally with pads that gave me the shoulders of a hulk.  Why do I need to hang on to things?  What does it say about me?   I have drawers full of stuff that are never used, in bureaus that wouldn’t be needed, if not for the piles of crap in them.  There are dishes in the cupboards that rarely fulfill their purpose. 

For instance, back to that soup tureen, I have three of them that have never seen soup.  One came with a hefty price tag of $300.00, the most wonderful Burleigh Blue Willow China with ladle and I remember lusting over it, needing it for the dinner party I never had.  It arrived, I took it out of the box, caressed it for a few seconds, and never thought twice about it again.  It sits on a shelf and I pay someone to dust it.   Now I see it for what it really is, a waste of our hard earned money.  It was a temporary feel good moment, a small drop in a bucket that had a big hole in the bottom.   

I used to think my home was a reflection of myself.  But that would make me hollow, a show piece on the outside that doesn’t get much use on the inside.  Who was I trying to impress?  I’m not a social butterfly and don’t entertain, only close friends get through the door and they don’t care what my house looks like. They’d come over if I lived in a two by four outhouse, the skinny ones at least.   All the fluff certainly doesn’t make me a better person.  If I lived in a cardboard box under a bridge and had dirt under my fingernails, I’d still be the same old me.  Why did I need to be surrounded by all this pretentiousness? 

It’s what we all do; buy stuff we don’t need, maybe even go into debt to acquire it.  Back then that $300.00 tureen was a bloody jab to our bank account.  I was immature and foolish and selfish; the trifecta of bad decision making.   It doesn’t make sense to me anymore.   Maybe I finally get it.  

If someone came to us and said I’ll give you X number of dollars for your house, take your clothing and the pups and leave I’d say, “Ciao Bella!”  If I could blink and twitch my nose and it would all be gone and I’d be living a simple life with few possessions, only the most prized and sentimental would remain.  I’d be a happy “Little” minimalist.  Hubby would appreciate it; he’s been hinting we have too much clutter for years.   I was always defensive when he said we had too much stuff and that was guilt thinking, deep down I knew he was right and that I was out of control.   I apologized to him the other evening, shed a few tears and he forgave me, probably did a high five inside that my reign of wasteful spending is over.  Maybe now we can put some money aside for retirement so he can stay home instead of working until his 90’s. 

Once I had a dream and someone asked, “How would you feel if your house burned down and you lost everything?”  I’ll never forget the answer.  I said, “I’d be relieved,” and woke up in a sweat. I wonder what Fraud would say about that?  Obviously my subconscious got all the brains.   

I won’t lie and say I don’t appreciate all that I have because I do.  I love my home and feel very proud and comfortable in it but, and there’s always the but to negate the previous statement…..I’m a slave to it all and I no longer want to be held hostage by stuff. 
  


11 Comments

A Mouse  by any other name could be a Vole.

10/28/2015

2 Comments

 
Picture
The other evening we took the pups out for their last pee of the night and Honey, our little hunter of the four, spied a fat little vole running along the rock wall.  She pounced and grabbed the little fellow, he wriggled and she dropped him.   By then Jake and Henri were nosing around so I had three to hold back while I shielded the little  creature. I had a good look at him with the flashlight and could see no blood or damage from Honey’s teeth but I did notice he was as plump as a rotund plumb, fattened up for the coming winter.  I was thinking, I wonder if Hope For Wildlife would have taken a vole to nurse back to health….or if hubby would have been happy to drive us to Dartmouth?  I was prepared to go all the way for the little guy but he seemed perfectly okay!

Hubby put the pups in the house and I was left with the vole. A vole has smaller ears, beady eyes and a shorter tail than its cousin the mouse and is sometimes refereed to as a Meadow Mouse.  

The little Vole started running around in circles, slowly moving away from me with each completed ring.  He seemed to be heading towards a lawn chair.  Not sure what that action was about, I would have been scurrying away as fast as my little legs could carry me.  I could have reached down and picked the little guy up at any moment so it wasn’t trying to escape.  Maybe the action was to confuse a predator, swishing its scent in all directions to keep from being detected.    This happened once before and a vole kept running in circles between and around Honey’s legs and she couldn’t find it so who knows?   I watched this little guy spinning like a top until he moved to the grass area next to the house, once under the cover of leaves he stopped the circling and burrowed into the dense grass. Excitement now over, I went inside.

The next morning the pups were out for their morning pee and didn’t they run to the grass by the corner of the house as if a neon sign was pointing to where the vole was hiding in the lawn!   I figured he’d be long gone but no, he was hanging out only a few feet away from where I left him the night before, surely the little guy had a death wish?  I shooed the pups away and took them to the top of the driveway for their pee and then hustled them inside, hoping the vole was using this opportunity head out of town.

I had my shower and readied for work.  As I was heading down the driveway I thought of the vole and something told me to stop and check out the road.  I didn’t want to see a pancaked rodent on the trip back home.  Luckily I took the time to look because it was in the road, waddling about without a care in the world right where my tire would have driven.  I beeped for help and hubby came out and stood beside the little guy.  It immediately started going in circles again, around and around until he reached the other side of the road and went over the bank into the grass.  Hubby stood there making sure he didn’t scoot back up on the road while I drove down the driveway.

So when I came home at 5:00 I didn’t see anything on the road and parked.  then I took the pups out for a pee and play ball.  They dashed out of the house and ran directly to the vole on the other side of the property.  What a sense of smell these guys have.  So I had to shoo them away once again. 

We went inside and hubby and I are discussed the vole dilemma and I said we needed to do an intervention and move him to the rock wall behind the house so I could be sure I wouldn’t be driving over the little guy.  And at some point his luck would run out if the dogs eventually got it, he'd already used up a few of his lives, how many can a vole have?   

So we went out and looked around the area he was last seen but the grass was high and the birch trees had shed their leaves all over the ground providing great camouflage.  I felt icky about stepping anywhere so I called in our best tracker.  Walking on the little guy wasn’t the rescue mission we hoped for and hearing a little squeak would have echoed in my head for days to come. 

So I released a hound and sure enough, Honey flew out the door and straight for hubby, immediately veered to the left and went straight to where the mouse was burrowed under the grass.  Amazing….a beeline, straight as a ruler right to the vole!

Hubby had a plastic container lined with grass and it was relatively easy to  get him in it and then we relocated him.   Honey was almost losing her mind from the potent scent of the vole; she wanted the fat little fellow for a snack.  So we had a little chat.  I told her I appreciated her hunting skills and she was a very big help locating the little guy, but she didn’t have to kill her own dinner; it would come neatly wrapped in cellophane on a Styrofoam tray from the store.  I explained Mr. Vole probably had a little family to go home too and Honey can relate, she knows how lonely it is when her daddy is away for long periods.  But just to be safe, we put her inside so she wouldn't see where we placed him.  So the little vole is safe once again, happy to live another day frolicking along the rock wall behind our house.  Except for the hawks, owls, snakes and coyotes, he should be fine.  


2 Comments

Beginners Class October 

10/26/2015

3 Comments

 
Picture
The Saturday before last was a beginning class at the studio.  It was the first teaching I’d done since the renovation to repair the water damage.  It didn’t take long to get into the swing of things.  It’s very nice having the classroom back and usable. 
 
It was a full house and each student was enthusiastic to learn rug hooking and some had that special glint in their eye that I used to see in the mirror when I started! 

Our Deborah Sweet, shop team player extraordinaire, also joined the students and being the artist that she is, designed a very neat pattern that we will share when it's finished.  She did double duty and occasionally helped Shane and hubby who were manning the shop downstairs.  It was a busy Saturday all around! 

Hubby snapped a few pictures of the newbies. They are all fully absorbed by their projects.  Everyone did very well and we are sending out a new crop of rug hookers into the community.   Old hands, take them in and tuck them under your wings!


Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Next beginner class is Saturday November 7th, 2015.
1:00 - 4:00 P.M.

3 Comments

It is with great pleasure that I share this artist's work...Opa!

10/22/2015

10 Comments

 
Picture
Picture
Recently I received some very beautiful photos of hooked rugs from a gal in Greece that I posted on my Facebook page.  Due to a bit of a language barrier I mistook them for being hooked because they definitely looked the part,  but they are apparently done by embroidery and ladies and gentlemen, this is not the embroidery that my mother used to make.  These pieces are outstanding, each one more beautiful than then next!  Incredible designs and colour choices make these gorgeous works of art absolutely breathtaking!  I am sure all you rug hookers will agree these designs are very conducive to both crafts.  I could go on and on about her unique style of design and impeccable sense of colour but I think the pictures will tell all, each one speaking volumes!

I asked her a series of questions and through an interpreter she replied.  I am so happy to introduce you to the work of Eυγενία Κούμπουλη.  I’m sure she’ll create a bit of fiber drool with this sampling of her work.  I find it very satisfying to share her accomplishments, women supporting women in our passions!    

This is what she wrote:

It is my pleasure that you promote my work! The designs are mine. I draw on canvas whatever come out of my mind and secondly I paint my designs with DMC product. I don't know what you mean by the hook, I am doing embroidery and I use simple sewing needles with DMC threads.
 
I embroider many years about twenty but I make my own designs since last year. Except those I give as a gift to my friends the rest of them I use to sell. But until now I haven’t sold any of my designs.  First I do the design on a piece of cloth, then I choose the colours and after I embroider.
 
Yes I am self-taught and there is nobody near me that is dealing with something like that. They only like it.  I thank you very much for your spontaneous interest about my work. It is very important for me to share my passion and love with other people with the same interests. I am really flattered that you are going to make a blog about my work!
 
I also want to take some good pictures to send you on doing my work to know better about the way and the steps I am following. I will send you the way I am painting on my table and the type of my needle.  With pleasure and respect,
 
Genny or Ευγενία

Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
10 Comments

A "Little" rant about being kind to one another.....

10/20/2015

5 Comments

 
Picture
It’s no secret I love to look at rugs.  Of course my heart beats a little faster when they’re hooked renditions of my designs, but truthfully, that takes nothing away from the admiration I feel for any rug, anyone’s design, anyone’s passion for this craft.
 
I use the word eye candy a lot and I can’t think of a better descriptor.  Seeing a completed hooked rug is the perfect medicine, bringing a smile to my lips and keeps me in awe of the fabulous talent we all share.   Sometimes a rug is so very fine, so well executed, a little green monster creeps his way into my thoughts and I have to give it a mental chop to send it away.  Sometimes a rug is so spectacular I moan how I wished I’d thought of the design idea first.  No one is perfect we can all wish for more, but that does not mean I’m not supportive or wowed to tears at another’s incredible good fortune. 

My eyes dally at beauty, drinking in the essence of a rug.  I‘m like a deer caught in the headlights, trapped by the colours.  Then I become tactile and caress the softness and texture and feel awed by its very presence.  Seeing what others do is what inspires me to be all I can be creatively.  I refuel off the talent of others, absorbing awesome energy until my batteries are recharged.  Don’t we all feel this way?  Are we not all eager to reward with praise and offer admiration, want to build other’s up for their artistic accomplishments?   

Every rug is more than a piece of art.  It is the heart and soul of its maker.  The artist has created an extension of their creative thought.  Our rugs are personal, they represent our love of colour, particular designs, love of textiles, they are as relevant as the clothing we put on our backs.   

How that can be wrong or unappreciated is a mystery?  Beauty unlocks an emotional damn, the same welling you feel from seeing a newborn child or puppy, being overwhelmed with the miracle of its creation. 

No man has the right to rain on anyone’s parade.  Maybe a colour doesn’t suit the viewer, maybe you don’t like the person doing the work, or the rug is executed in a manor not conducive to your style but none of that matters, each and every project is an entity onto itself and needs to be viewed as if it is the only rug in the world and the creator a grand master. 

Every action has a reaction, the pride one felt in the creating should be rewarded and fostered back.  Think of all the times your children brought home coloured pictures from school and you posted them on the fridge, maybe not sure if the little green thing was a dog or an apple, but you praise the child on how wonderful  and how very clever they are, building their budding talent and shaping confidence. I'll bet you would rather cut out your tongue than say something negative to that little face looking at you for approval.   Remember this when someone shows you what they've created. They might be grownup now but they are still that same little child needing praise and acceptance. 

I was brought up to say nothing if there isn’t anything good to say.  For me, all handwork is beautiful and in all things there is a story.  There is no right or wrong and I will be an advocate for any artist that would like to share their work with me and I will then forward it on.  I don’t care if you send me a pair of your grandmother's thread bare bloomers decorated with a cross-titched paisley, I'll post it and call it art and admire your handiwork and thank you for making my day!  

I’ve been a big proponent supporting other rug hooking shops and hookers that frequent them.  If I see a rug posted on Facebook, I “Like” it, and many times have been inspired to leave comments as the awe of their work takes my breath away or simply made me smile when I might have needed it.  I have no problem complimenting a design that doesn’t come off of my drawing table, maybe I have a store but that is just rooms with walls and a bunch of stuff lining shelves.  I am Christine Little, a person, a fair and open minded, enthusiastic appreciator of anyone’s handwork.  So please, continue sharing your work with me so we can all bask in the afterglow of you.    



5 Comments

RIP Burlap.....

10/15/2015

6 Comments

 
Picture
Let's have a few minutes of silence for the passing of an era.
RIP BURLAP, you've had a great run!


Okay it’s official.  Encompassing Designs is out of burlap and there will be no more. We will begin removing the pricing on the website and only list the linen patterns.  We do have quite a few designs on burlap hanging on the racks in the back room but once those are gone, well so long, good-bye, farewell, au revoir, ciao, adios and sayonara!

I might be one of the few that are saddened; I liked burlap and thought it had a bad rap.  Burlap today was nothing like grandma had to use, it was woven specifically for rug hooking so how bad could it be?  Sure it smelled, being sprayed with petroleum based product for longevity, and yes it shed fibers all over your work and clothes like dog and cat fur, it turned yellow in the light, couldn’t be washed and became brittle with time but I never worried about any of those things.  I’m not one to control things beyond the grave so I’m not concerned about rugs being passed down, after all we are all potentially forgotten in only two generations. If one of my rugs survive it will be just a mat on the floor, not hey, “Great Granny Christine made that for ya! “

I’ll miss it and I’ll let you in on a little secret, I stashed a few yards away for myself and no one will be able to pry it out of my cold dead hands so don’t ask me to share. Sorry, ownership should have a few perks and this is one of them.

I like that burlap rugs hold their shape.  When I finish hooking a project it is completely square or round, whatever it was supposed to be.  And it had a stiffness to it that made the rug feel solid.  I’m definitely an odd bird because I’m pretty much sitting on this fence alone.  I’ve met few that agree with me although I do know there are a few tears or sorrow out there.

I’m asked constantly why I can’t buy it anymore.  The supplier that sold it to me went out of business and never shared the source. I’ve tried to find out but to no avail. And quite frankly, if it did come from Scotland as I’ve been led to believe, the cost of shipping has tripled and exchanges are out to lunch, I’ll bet the price would have gone up to the point where it matches linen and quite frankly, the biggest draw going for it was  the price.   I hear there are burlaps in the states that are of equal quality but getting it shipped here is not only expensive for the freight, the exchange is about 35%. No one in their right mind would pay a linen price for burlap.  Even I would scoff at the suggestion and I like it.   Businesses can’t afford to have product on the shelf that they can’t sell.

So let’s respectfully bid farewell to a part of rug hooking history, at least at my shop. Truthfully, in the last few years, since teachers have promoted linen as the best backing and the younger generation hookers prefer comfort and softness to our old time suffering with a scratchy, rough and shedding backing, we sell very few patterns on burlap anyway. Like the hundreds of species going extinct every year, burlap might soon be on that list.      
6 Comments

Rise up.....

10/14/2015

3 Comments

 
Picture
Today was a funny day.  Not in the jovial sense, but in a weird way.  Not all days are happy and bright.  I’m like everyone else and go through spells of lethargy and lack luster.  Days that make one forget how lucky and grateful we should be.  I have to keep a constant check on my outlook, I’m not a dark horse but I’ve seen a few bad times that conditioned me to know the dank corners of the mind exist and sometimes it takes a lot to pull up my socks and get out the big girl panties.
 
Usually I am fine and manage to feel personal joy, but when I’m feeling physically off, I can be gloomy.  Today I woke up with swollen neck glands that felt like the sacks of pollen on a bee’s leg.   I had a dull headache, my throat hurt, not only when swallowing but when I touched the side of my neck there was a sharp pain.   On top of that, my neck is stiff, unable to turn too far to the left, there’s definitely no looking over my shoulder.  Both of my knees felt like burning fire was searing across the backs, unlike the normal injury I usually suffer with, where the nerve feels like knives slashing at the muscle.   I was also extremely sleepy; of the Tsetse fly magnitude.  I woke this morning and the first agenda for the day was to take a short nap.   
  
Despite the rough start, the weather today was awesome.  Early morning was like summer, the coat I’d grabbed to take the pups outside wasn’t necessary so I stripped down to my jammies and welcomed the sun on my face.  I gimped around the yard and stared out at the harbour that seemed to call to me and an idea was born. Hubby and I decided to go for a sail, hoping the salt sea air would cure what ailed me.  So I played hooky and we sailed off the mooring out to the surrounding islands.   It’s the first time we’ve been out sailing in months and really, these beautiful autumn days are going to be few and far between in the coming weeks, and one has to take advantage because it’s going to be a long winter with out boat on the hard.   She’s been without purpose for several months while hubby was away, the poor thing was sitting and waiting, bobbing up and down in the wake of all the other boats that get to go out and have fun.  

The fresh air worked its charm.  My glands are still swollen but much less, my headache is gone and my knees are better.  I’m wide awake at last, the chill in the air after the sun hid behind the islands assured I’d be on my toes, frozen that they were.  My fingers were numb with cold and so shrunken my rings were loosely rolling around when they are usually a struggle to get off.  I took turns stuffing my hands in my pockets for warmth.  I was helming the entire way to the Lunenburg Yacht club where we moored for lunch and then back home and didn’t have gloves.  Who thinks of gloves in October?  It can still be beautiful during the day but as the sun dips the cold air of fall fills in quickly. 

It was a head clearing day and a much needed physical rejuvenator.   Now I’m excited to get back to work tomorrow.  Cobwebs are cleared and all stations are go. I have nautical risers to design and I also promised Sue an owl bell pull.   
​
I’m working on a series of stair riser patterns.   I’ve completed the Country Charm set that has a checker board edge to create a continuous pattern up the stairs and tie them all together. The next set is all about Nautical Flavour, of things on, around, or in the ocean.  Then I’ve been asked for a Jacobean set and I’ve been toying with the idea of drawing a tree of life from the bottom riser to the top in one curving, flowing style, maybe one long bodacious mermaid as well?   I have a number of ideas and requests are welcome.  The patterns will be for sale.  It seems no two staircases are the same height and I’ll be able to print them off for whatever size or quantity is needed.  If you only have 12 risers you can pick and choose the motifs you like best.  
Picture
Picture
Picture
A beautiful photo taken by Betty Freeman Meridith of our boat in the early morn. 
3 Comments

Thanksgiving feast...

10/13/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
I hope you all had a safe, fun Thanksgiving with plenty of bounty to eat! 

There’s always the decision each year, turkey or ham?  I’m not the biggest fan of turkey; I usually eat a bit of the dark meat and the neck so I can live with it or without it except of course for Christmas.  That day is more about a childhood memory with its fabulous smell permeating the house and that big golden breasted beast laid out on a platter.  Unless outvoted for Thanksgiving, I usually cook my favourite, the ham, basted with a glaze of pineapple juice, brown sugar and mustard and serve all the trimmings, a meal to be thankful for!    

This year I got the protein of my choice easily because we were invited out for turkey at a friend’s house Saturday evening.  Our ham was served Sunday.  I see it as the best of both worlds on our plates and  the two meals were certainly excellent. We walked away from the tables holding our belts, hoping they wouldn’t explode under the pressure.  They don’t call it a feast for nothing.  There’s gorging and ramming in as if there’s no tomorrow.  We always over eat on holidays and special occasions, it’s a rule!   It’s not a day to count calories or worry about sugar problems.  It’s a celebration!  There are so few special days and Thanksgiving is just that, a day to be thankful and we need to honour it with stuffing our faces and being grateful for the bounty we can afford to put on the table, a simple deed denied many.

By the lineups at the grocery stores, you’d think we were headed for a famine.  The rows of people waiting for the cashiers were brutal, the constricted isles barely wide enough to get through with a cart.  Somehow we are all programmed to think a long weekend is the end of the world.  Just because the store was closed Monday didn’t mean we’d starve for that one day, after all turkey or ham usually mean leftovers, surely there would be food in containers to get them over that hump. 

I usually go to the grocery store every second day because I don’t stock anything prepackaged.  All the food at our house is made from scratch with fresh ingredients. I don’t have canned foods or boxed anything to fall back on but I see what others put in their carts, surely they have frozen things or something to open instead of panicking that the store is closed for one day....but what do I know? 

The second best thing for a holiday meal is the desert.  My interest was piqued by a video going around FB last week for Apple Roses.  The recipe looked simple and who doesn’t like apple pie for Thanksgiving?  We had traditional, homemade and delicious pumpkin pie with the turkey meal so it was fitting to do something with apples with the ham.  Once again we were so lucky to score all the favourites! 

So I made my pastry and set it aside to prepare the apples.  The recipe called for a microwave to soften them in lemon water.  We don’t own a microwave so I put them in the oven on 300* for 15 minutes and that offered the same result.  The apples have to be soft enough to roll inside the pasty.

The only sweetener was apricot preserve, smeared along the length of the pastry and I think perhaps a bit of brown sugar would have sweetened the pot a bit more.  If I make them again I’ll do that but the ice-cream we served worked well to sweeten the taste. The company didn’t rave about them but everyone agreed they were tasty and absolutely lovely to look at. 
 
Being a person that leaves nothing to chance, I made butter tarts as a backup in case they fell short of their advertised goodness. I think everyone was happy with both pastries as they disappeared faster than wool at a fill your bag for free sale.   
 
After the dishes were cleared we played Euchre, a card game that originated in Ontario.   We played guys against the gals and tied three for three.   All in all, a great weekend! 


To view the apple roses recipe click here.
https://www.facebook.com/JustEatingRealFood/videos/vl.949328228421779/696922263768544/?type=1&theater
0 Comments

Another fun-filled Wednesday Hook-in...

10/9/2015

5 Comments

 
Picture
Being the first Wednesday of the month, here was a hook-in this week.  I was practically brain dead after a day of painting window frames and bleaching the dark mold off the main entrance porch but managed to sit and sew up some of the fifteen Ornamental Santa’s I’ve hooked.  Unfortunately, the chore came with a great deal of suffering.  Sewing these little rugs takes almost as much time as hooking them, which is tedious but not the suffering part.  The pain came from stabbing myself repeatedly with the needle, once through the soft fleshy part of my thumb right to the bone.  I’ve mentioned before how I hate hand sewing and no wonder, I’m a danger onto myself.  Charlene was also using a needle to mend a rug for a client and she was all thumbs as well.  There were ouches in stereo from both sides of the table and blood flowed freely.  

Sue is back hooking.  She took the summer off to paint furniture for her venture Perfectly Imperfect by Sue.  She sells her repurposed and upscaled furniture out of Come By Chance Antique Barn and is quite successful at it.  I tell her, “everything you touch turns to sold”.  She has a good eye and great taste, the perfect combination for success.   She’s hooking our “Backroads” pattern with a simple colour plan that speaks of years gone by. 

Simple geometrics work in any home, covering the floor they lend to an overall feel while blending with its surroundings.  I once visited a very eclectic antique dealer’s home and he had hooked miles of geometric rugs, all end to end throughout the entire house.  Each one highlighted different colour plans but they all blended together like dozens of identical siblings.  No particular rug jumped out, providing a bridge from wall to wall that showcased expensive and perfectly appointed antiques.  If you want to fill your home with rugs but are undecided on the subject, worrying that too many different designs will create a cluttered look, stick with the geometrics, they are perfect for underfoot, understated décor.  They allow the furniture and artwork to steal the show and rightly so.  A rug is the foundation for the room’s ambiance not the be all and end all.   They will shine and get the ooh factor, but a home is much more than what might lie on the floor. 

Barbara is hooking Sue Cunningham’s’ Coastal Quilts and her colour sense is fabulous.  Heather is working on a couple of colourful roosters.  Ginny has started our pattern called “Noah’s Ark” and her little piglets are darling.  If they are any indication what the rest of the rug will look like it’ll be a winner.   So much detail in such little faces, these piglets are adorable. 

Armenia is tackling another Initially Yours letter C in her beloved blacks, grey and whites.  This one is a keeper as she gave the first one away.  Pam is reaching the end of her circle pattern, it’s going to be a stunner in their new digs.  Charlene is repairing a rug, a little sideline business to support her rug hooking habit, and Audrey is whipping her latest, a delightful geometric to match her bed quilt and previously designed and hooked her morning glory rug, which will add to a custom, coordinated bedroom.


Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
5 Comments

Sayings.....do they make sense?

10/8/2015

1 Comment

 
Picture
I’ve had a rough and tiring week in my personal life. Way too many things to list but believe me when I say I’ve worked harder than a squirrel gathering nuts for the winter.  If not for toothpicks, my eyelids would fall and I think I could sleep for two days before feeling rested.  Once again, my private life is too big for me and thoughts of simplifying and downsizing are more frequent and lasting. 

The cons go on and on, but on the pro side of the list, hubby came home last evening so reinforcement has arrived.  I now have someone to share the work and contribute more blood, sweat and tears to the bucket I’ve been filling.  I get so tired of being a Lone Ranger and his presence lightens the load mentally as well as physically.

I usually don’t mind being alone, I like beating to my own rhythm and this is our life, so I either like it and be happy or lump it and be down in the dumps.  Being alone, at times, can have its advantages or maybe they’re disadvantages, depending on whether the glass is half full or half empty…actually I don’t get it….either way the glass could use more of something, it’s less than all it can be.  How is it good to be happy with half of something?  Aren’t we supposed to shoot for the stars instead of settling for the clouds?   
 
So….I’ve been exhausted and wallowing in self-pity and that’s best done in private.  No one wants to look at, or be with a wallower, unless of course they’re misery….apparently misery loves company.   Not sure where that saying came from either because when I’m down I want to be left the heck alone.  

When alone, I can be lazy without a witness, in those rare moments when nothing presses to be done.  Yah right….like that ever happens!  I would kill to have a rare moment to be lazy and then you’d see some mighty fine do nothing, be slothful, sluggish, lethargic, languorous, award winning lazy.    I would give a finger and a toe to have a few days that didn’t have lists or appointments attached to it.  No stress, no pressure, do whatever I want kind of day.  Like lying in bed staring at the ceiling until my eyes cross or bedsores attack me, whatever comes first.  But enough about me……. 

Just when things couldn't get worse....another joy of my life pops up….. ticks!  I picked one off of a pup this morning.   This is the fall cycle, harder to find in the longer hair. Luckily I’m a mighty flea and tick hunter! My fingers are like brail readers, the tiniest hump can’t hide from their sensitivity.   If a tick bothers my pack, they don’t stand a chance and end their life on the water slide, swirling down the drain. 

Speaking of arachnids, yesterday, one of the jobs was to wash the spider crap off the window ledges, clear away the webs and the carcasses of the hundreds, perhaps thousands of victims that got caught in the webs. The spiders are those fat bodied ones with hairy legs. They’re so large it’s like murder if you kill them.  I tried the relocation program with varying degrees of success.  It’s absolutely gross to squash a spider that large so I avoid it whenever I can but they have to go, it’s my house and I need to paint.  The painter’s slogan is “If it doesn’t move, paint it and if it does moves, paint it!” but that’s just mean and I’d end up with a lumpy job.   

I’ll get a good night’s sleep tonight and be back at my post tomorrow, hopefully bright eyed and bushy tailed…another stupid saying......



1 Comment

Rug Hooking Reference Book Library

10/6/2015

7 Comments

 
The below picture is only a few of the books that would be available for perusing. 
Picture
For some time I’ve been thinking about starting a library, here at the shop, of rug hooking reference books. I’ve been collecting books on the subject since I started this craft as well as a lot of Rug Hooking Magazines, ATHA and Nova Scotia Guild newsletters.  Some of these books are out of print so therefore our out of circulation so this way we can continue to enjoy them.  Unfortunately I sold a few to nice folks over the years but I still have quite a collection that I would like to share with you, the avid reader. 
  
Reference books are always great to peruse.  There’s nothing like sitting in a comfy chair with a cup of tea or coffee to quietly leaf through and get lost in the interesting stories and pages of the beautiful colour plates of artistic and well executed rugs.  In my private collection I have a full range from very old publications with ink drawings to modern day beautiful coffee table books, and all else in between. 

I plan to set aside a corner of the shop to shelve the books.  They will be labeled for reference only and not for sale.   And then I thought this could be a good community project, perhaps some of you might have a book or two lying around gathering dust that you might like to contribute for others to enjoy.  I would put a card in the book to say it was donated by you.  If anyone is interested, bring in what you have and I will begin to get everything together and open the library!  

As in any system, if you want to check out books you would be required to join by filling out a card to become a member and then be free to take out books to peruse in the comfort of your home for a specific period of time.  Of course anyone can pop in at any time, sit upstairs in the classroom, in the back pattern room or at the front table. Relax and surround yourself with a cornucopia of colour, read about and look at fabulous rugs made by like minded artists to inspire creative thought.   Not exactly a difficult way to spend a couple of hours!  
    
I welcome thoughts on this proposed venture.  If anyone has run a library of reference books before or if you’ve been on the reading end and like the way a particular system works, your thoughts and input would be greatly appreciated so please make comments.  Is this a good idea?  Is anyone interested in checking out out books they may not have seen before?  Let's make this a fabulous project for all! 

Maybe someone out there would like to donate a bit of time to share, keep track of the inventory, incoming additions and organized on the shelves in alphabetical or numerical order.  An hour every week or two would be all it would take to keep things in order.  We could all pitch in to make this work!  The shop is really busy so any help would be greatly appreciated, a fun little group effort for all to benefit from.  Anyway, please let me know what you think and if I receive lots of positive response I’ll get to work building the first Rug Hooking Reference Book Library! 


7 Comments

Cotton versus flannel...

10/2/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
It’s that time of year when I play tug of war with bed sheets.  It’s cool in the evenings and throughout the night the pups try to snuggle so tight they pull the covers off of my one side, exposing my leg and whatever else is hanging over the edge of the bed.  I awake chilled and have to pull the blankets out from under them, they roll and tumble to settle further away and I go back to sleep wrapped in a little cocoon of bed sheets.  It’s getting close to the time when I change to flannel and give up the cotton altogether but I’ve been waiting for the temperatures to settle on one or the other.  Like having the snow tires put on, I never know when to actually make the transition because the weather is so unpredictable.  Some nights have been cooler but then hot, muggy ones still sneak in. 

Until I finally go over to the flannel side, I’ve been changing up my nightwear to compensate.  I switch between a cotton nightie to two piece flannel jammies. Last night I greatly misjudged the temperature and found myself waking chilled and pulled the covers out from under the pups to cover me.  They must have been cool too because all four of them were pressed up against the length of my body to share the warmth.  The window had been open all night and I could feel the cold and dampness down to my bones. 

I’ve made a fire a couple of evenings to warm the air but generally it's still nicer inside than out.  We snuggle on the sofa and share the warmth of all our bodies like a big poodle/momma casserole, covered in a layer of polar fleece blankie.  It’s easy to fall asleep when it’s cozy so we’ve spent a few nights there instead of going upstairs.

I took the pups outside this morning and was surprised to see the driveway covered in golden leaves from the shedding birches.  There was a lot of wind yesterday and I’ll admit I hardly noticed they were turning colour and now they are already beaten to the ground.  It seems like autumn is on the fast track.  The season is certainly  a rude visitor, it doesn’t knock on the door respectfully, but barges in unwanted as if it owns the place.  We had such a short summer I hoped that would reflect in the length of fall.   Maybe it’s too early to tell and this morning might not be a full representation of what is ahead. 
 
There's no denying times have changed.  Gone is the gentle transformation of season to season experienced in my childhood.  Now the four bully one another out of their respective times, overlap and disrespect one another.  One day you wear short sleeves and crop pants and the next thing you’re rummaging around in the closet for winter attire.  Global warming has made our planet fickle, jumping from season to season without any regard for the old rules or taking turns.  We Nova Scotians are used to experiencing four seasons in one day.  We even have a saying, “if you don’t like the weather, wait ten minutes”. 

With the really cold weather looming, I sure hope we get to do a bit more sailing before we put our boat on the hard at the end of this month. Surely there will still be a few nice days to extend the fun.  It’s going to be a very long winter and spring until she is back in the water.  Be warned, there will be the occasional moaning until she’s launched.  This year, Newfoundland’s colder climate delayed getting the boat here sooner so the season started late for us in the middle of July and then Gregg was called away for work in August so we only had a few weeks of bliss.  I drive by her every day and say “hi girl” or “hi baby”, and because I talk to the inanimate objects in my life, I wish her well and promise to see her soon.  I think another trip out to sit in her beamy cockpit is overdue because I want her to feel loved, not neglected. Hey, every one of us has a few quirks....mine are reasonable, and besides, it’s not like these objects talk back......

So I can’t believe I had to put on socks this morning.  Socks!  My feet were freezing so now the sandals and canvas shoes are over and the leather slip-ons are back on my feet.  I also looked for a jacket, something of medium weight, what I call a car coat. And on top of that, the phone rang this morning.  The Subaru dealer wanting us to make an appointment for the winter tires next week!  Like HELLO….that seems awfully premature, last year it was well into December before we switched.  I better not see snow for a very, very, very long time!

So the Annual Scarecrow Festival & Antique Show starts today and runs the entire weekend.  The town will be crawling with visitors snapping pictures and ooing and awing over the creative minds of the townsfolk.  I missed out again this year.  Not sure what’s going on but every year I am out of commission for one reason or another and don’t get to make a display.  This year I was sick which made me too far behind at work to be messing with a scarecrow.  Hubby is away and I’d have to do it all myself and there’s no fun in that much work.   I’ll stick out the photo board and dress it up with seasonal things and call it a day.  It gets plenty of attention, the kids love it and the guilt is lessened but I have this idea to do a hooker standing up against a lamp post. She’ll be dressed in sexy attire, a black feather boa, black bra and garters and she’ll be hooking a rug.  A double entendre for sure, a hooker hooking.  I built one back at the old shop but threw her away thinking I would do something different for every festival.     I definitely wasn’t firing with a full gun that year. 

So stay tuned, one of the years I’ll whip her up and be on time, but to be safe, don’t hold your breath…. 



0 Comments
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Christine Little has been ranked #5​ out of the 60 top rug hooking bloggers by Rug Hooking Magazine!

    Picture
    Picture
    Max Anderson, Australia, recipient of my Nova Scotia Treasures rug.  An award of excellence for promoting Canada through his writing.  
    Picture
    Picture

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    July 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    November 2021
    October 2021
    July 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012

    Picture
    Picture
    Gift Certificates are available for that special rug hooker in your life!  Any denomination, no expiry date! 

    Picture

    Categories
    (Click on the categories for past blogs)

    All
    Announcements
    Beginner Class
    Christmas
    Colour Planning
    Contests
    Copyright
    Coupon
    Customer Rugs
    Cutter Servicing
    Dyeing
    Equipment
    Featured Hooker
    Giveaway Draw
    Guest Blogger
    Guest Blogger
    Health & Fitness
    Home & Heart
    Hooked Rugs
    Hooking Groups
    Hook In Talk
    Initially Yours
    Jibber Jabber
    Just A Bit Of Fun!
    Life's Experiences
    Life's Experiences
    New Design
    New Ideas
    Pattern Of The Week
    Patterns Hooked
    Pets
    Rants
    Recipes
    Rememberingfbe7326ff7
    Rug Schools
    Show & Tell
    Show-tell
    The Rant
    Tips Technique
    Tips Techniquef0cd117ab4
    Visitors
    Workshops

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture





















    Picture
    We have a pot to "Fiz" in!

Shop Hours:
Monday - Friday 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM 
Saturdays 12:00 PM - 4:00 PM
We are closed during ice and snow storms
​so please call ahead.  If school is cancelled we probably are as well.  

Toll Free: 1-855-624-0370
Local: 1-902-624-0370​
encompassingdesigns@gmail.com

498 Main Street
P.O. Box 437
Mahone Bay, N.S.
Canada B0J 2E0

​Follow us and keep up to date
on our specials, new products
​and events!
Picture
Picture
Picture


Home
Shop
Ordering
Blog
Our Story
Workshops

Contact Us




​​​© Copyright 2023 Encompassing Designs. Website by SKYSAIL