witch, cat, jack…..

i started this piece a year ago…. a YEAR ago.  how embarrassing!  however, i did, finally, finish it and in time for this year’s halloween…..

“witch, cat, jack” on the mantle

this little witch is backed with black and white ticking….

ticking, ticking, ticking

lilly, what do you think of ticking?…..

“ticking? is that anything like cat food?” ~lilly

the base, which resembles a rocker but acts more as a stand, is also finished with ticking, as is the handle of the “jack”….

more ticking

how about now, lilly, any further thoughts about ticking?….

“oh! ticking! yes, i LOVE ticking!” ~ the lilly-kins

now that i finally have lilly’s approval and understanding, here is the finished Witch, Cat, Jack in all it’s glory….

done!

 

you can visit this piece, along with my other offerings, in my etsy shop by clicking here.

may the witching season only cast the most happiest of spells!

 

rebecca

united?……

I’ve been aware, lately, of a slight, ever so slight, feeling of division in our country.  A bisection, a breaking up, a partitioning, if you will.  Have you noticed it?  I mean, it’s ever so subtle, sort of like a rumbling of far off thunder….. hmmmm….

Actually, a better way to describe it is to say that it’s about as subtle as a hurricane, and potentially as destructive.  So, during this season of election, I punched Lori Brechlin’s, “United”…..

united

I wanted to remind myself that regardless of how vicious and dangerous the political stage is, right now, we are still a great country, filled with quiet, compassionate and decent human beings.

So, hang in there!  November 9th will, hopefully, find us on the other side of this troubling and desperate time, and on the road to healing our nation and, once again, see us united.

 

You can find Lori’s “united” design in her, “American Folk” pattern book on etsy ~ click here.

 

think happy thoughts!

 

rebecca

marion’s polly’s parade…..

Marion shared her finish of Polly Minick’s “Polly’s Parade” months ago, but I’m only just now getting around to sharing it with you……

marion’s polly’s parade

didn’t it turn out beautifully?  This is a design I’ve been wanting to punch and Marion has inspired me to actually get to work!

You can find the pattern for Polly’s Parade in Polly Minicks, “American Summer” design book, available on etsy ~ click here.

 

enjoy the day!

 

rebecca

my summer vacation….

Well, hello!

I didn’t realize, in June, that I was going to take the rest of the summer off blogging, but that appears to be just what happened.  What did I do while I was away?  Not much, I’m afraid.  At least, not much as far as punching goes.

However, I did go to Ireland….

ireland!

…and, I went camping twice, and I spent a lot of time sitting in the shade reading.  That about sums up my summer!

Now, I’m working on some Halloween projects which I’ll be sharing with you asap.

wishing you a delightful September day!

rebecca

patterns….

I’ve been wanting to get all of my patterns ~ the ones I’ve created and the ones I’ve made from antique hooked rugs which are in the public domain ~ in one place so that they’re more easily accessible for those who want them.

You should be able to click and drag these to your desktop for copying (or double-click or right-click or just click ~ I hope!).  If the browser you’re using won’t allow you to access the photos try another browser.  Usually, from Chrome, I’m able to access the photos on my blog, but other times Chrome won’t let me.  So, I try Safari and sometimes Safari cooperates and sometimes not…. then onto Firefox, etc.

You have my permission to use these patterns for your own personal use, for creating limited number of finishes for sale.  Mass marketing of either patterns or finishes is forbidden.

Please give credit to me if you use one of my personal patterns or give credit as inspired by antique original if you use the patterns I’ve provided from antiques.

 

Thank you much and good luck!

 

summer swimmer 2

summer swimmer 2

summer swimmer 1

summer swimmer 1 pattern

hearts in hands pattern

hearts in hands antique original

2 chickens pattern

2 chickens antique original hooked rug

two chickens one horse finish

“two chickens one horse” pattern

“two horses” pattern

“two horses” original antique hooked rug

we win finish

“we win” pattern

2 cats 2 birds finish

2 cats 2 birds pattern

rabbit and sheep greetings

rabbit and sheep greetings reversed

rabbit and sheep greetings finish

santa pattern

santa finish

ticking horse pattern

ticking horse finish

family tree pattern

family tree ~ punched but not aged

2 horses 6 birds

2 horses 6 birds, reversed

2 horses 6 birds original antique rug

antique cat and dog pattern

original antique cat and dog rug

 

Magdalena Horses

Magdalena Horses reversed

 

magdelena horses original antique rug

 

enjoy!

 

rebecca

 

 

merrie’s swimmer…..

merrie’s swimmer

Merrie, of Maggies Farm 1846, sent me this photo of her hooked rug from my pattern, “summer swimmer”.  I love her wool version ~ all that movement in the water ~ just gorgeous!  Merrie graciously gave me permission to share her finish with you… thank you, Merrie!

You can see more of Merrie’s beautiful work on her etsy shop ~ click here, and on her ebay shop ~ click here.

As you know, I am TERRIBLE at getting my patterns drawn on paper, but here, for what they are worth, are the patterns for my summer swimmers…

summer swimmer 1 pattern

The above is sometimes called “summer swimmer 1”, and sometimes called, “summer swimmer 2”.  You can title it any way you’d like!

summer swimmer 2

And, the above also goes by, “summer swimmer 2” or “summer swimmer 1”!  Again, you can call it what you like!

I believe you should be able to right-click, or double-click, or click and drag, to get these patterns to your desktop so that you can print them to your desired size.  I know! it can be an exercise in frustration trying to get photos to the desktop, sometimes!

If you’d like to see my punch needle finishes from my original post where I share the patterns and the Valdani colors I used, click here.

It’s raining here today, so I’m not doing much swimming, but maybe I’ll pick up my punch needle and create a new Summer Swimmer….

 

enjoy!

 

rebecca

 

 

spring seeds…..

My dear friend, Diane, sent me some sunflower seeds from her garden in Minnesota…

diane’s seeds

Aren’t they sweet?

Now, I am not much of a “start from scratch” kind of person, but these seeds are special.

So, I decided to make some little bitty newspaper pots and plant them right away.  I gathered my supplies….

all set

Newspaper, water, soil, seeds, scissors (which are around someplace), a scoop and a bottle.  I have to show you the little jar that I put the seeds in….

just a wee little jar

I love this vessel!  I’ve had it for a few years and haven’t figured out what to do with it, so it’s been sitting in a drawer, waiting.  Thanks to Diane it finally serves a purpose.

My foreman checks my supplies…

“looks like you’ve got things under control.” ~ lilly

I get started by cutting the newspaper into quarters…

all cut up

Fold a long edge twice…

twice is the charm

Find the bottle that I’m using….

rhubarb hops

This little bottle was filled with Rhubarb Hops ~ oh yum!  If you ever make it to Grand Rapids, Michigan, stop in at the Downtown Market.  It’s full of food shops and restaurants.  There is a distillery that carries all kinds of Michigan liquors and also a variety of hops syrups!

On to the newspaper pots…

all wrapped up

I wrapped the newspaper around the bottle with the folded edge toward the bottom of the bottle.

ready to fold

You can see that the newspaper hangs off the bottom of the bottle a good ways.  That’s so the paper can be folded to make the bottom of the pot….

ready

Now I’m ready to remove the bottle upon which, the paper pot immediately unfurls and is useless.  That’s okay!

I just fold it back up and hold it together with one hand while scooping in some soil with the other….

soil scooped safely

Now, I can add a wee seed….

black on black ~ not easy to photograph

…cover the seed with a bit of soil and just add water!

just a splash, please

I go through the process a few more times and….

planted perfectly in paper

I soon have 4 little seeds planted somewhat neatly.

I need to keep the seeds warm and moist (and also out of paws reach), so I cover them with a cloche….

voila

…and I’m done!  Now, I wait patiently for a few days, whiling away the time picking daffodils….

daffys

…which, Otis believes, mistakenly, are for him….

“the only thing prettier than a flower is me” ~ the oatbran

These daffodils immediately relocate to the mantel, out of nibbling reach.

It’s a thrilling morning when I come into the kitchen to find….

hello

…a sprout!

 

wishing all the things you plant grow into beautiful possibilities!

 

rebecca

phm and cathy update!….

I am sooooo excited!  Not because of my own Primitive Handmades Mercantile offerings this month, which are my typical sheep…..

ewe

(… you can click here to see my items…)  But, because Four Ewe Farm is a member of PHM!  You probably already knew that Cathy was participating in Primitive Handmades, but just in case you missed it, here’s her link! (click here)

I’ve shared Cathy’s work on the blog before (click here for the Thanksgiving pattern she shared. Click here and here to see some of her fabulous creations), and she continues to AMAZE me with her talent!  She is super, and all her creativity is poured into people she loves.  She’s an inspiration to me!

 

wishing you a happy weekend filled with blue skies!

 

rebecca

 

polly minick designs….

You probably know by now that I love Polly Minick’s patterns…. especially her American Summer designs (click here).  I’ve punched her Moby Dick pattern before…

big whale

This is one of my favorites.  I just love the simplicity of it… don’t you, Lilly?…

lilly? is that you under there?

Lilly is usually a lover of Polly Minick designs…..

“did you say polly minick?” ~lilly

Ah ha!  I knew Lilly’d come out for Polly!  Of course, sometimes Lilly needs a wakeup call…

“lilly???” ~ellis

Ellis is the busy-lizzie here-abouts.

In addition to Polly’s Moby Dick, I also put together a few others…

“up north”

This, “Up North” pillow is stuffed with lavender.  I don’t know about anywhere else in the USA, but in Michigan, if you’re going on vacation May~October, you’re goin’, “up north”!

to the beach

Randy and I used to have a place, “up north” and we had a sign just like this, pointing friends in the direction of, “the beach”.  This piece was inspired by Polly’s designs and by my own….what do you guys think?  should we go to the beach?….

“are you kidding?” lilly, ellis, otis

After all, it is only March and this is what March on the beach looks like ’round here….

my sister, her children and randy

lighthouse

I altered this Polly Minick pattern a bit, but love it just the same….  here’s the back…

lighthouse back

I mounted the finished embroidery on a piece of found wood and added a tiny pocket to the back.  Here’s what the lighthouse down the road from our house actually looks like in March…

lake michigan at her gentlest in march. she can be MUCH fiercer!

 

You can see these pieces on my etsy shop by clicking here, if you’d like.

It may be only March, but I am ready for summer!  How about you?

 

rebecca

merrie wynter….

Just in time for Spring!

 

Lori wrote and asked me if I would share the colors I used for the Kelley Belfast design, “Merrie Wynter”.  Of course!  I’d love to share!  Then, I started looking for my photos of my “Merrie Wynter” so I could see what colors I had used… ha!  I thought for sure I’d posted my finish here at one time or another, so I did a search on my blog.

What an exercise in frustration my blog search is!  I don’t know if the problem is how I label and tag things, but I do know I can never find what I’m looking for, and it’s my OWN blog!

Anyway, I asked Lori if she had a photo of the piece she was interested in, and, thankfully, she did…..

merrie wynter

 

Lori also shared the link to Kelley’s blog where she found “Merrie Wynter”.  Click here.  Kelley graciously shares the pattern and gives her permission to use her design in that post, so definitely check it out!

Here are the colors I used:

background ~ 5

“merrie wynter” background ~ p3

“merrie wynter” ~ o510

snowman ~ p4

snowman hat/features ~ h212

snowman nose/scarf, moon and star ~ o154

trees ~ o41

I used two strands of Valdani perle cotton size 12 in my medium Cameo needle on the lowest (#1) setting.

The snow has melted here, and the sun is shining ~

Spring is in the air ~ tra la!

rebecca