Dedication--Love-Inspiration-Motivation

Dedication is getting up at 6 am driving one hour to run in a 10K Road Race...hubby is running this morning...Turkey Tea Ten....

LOVE is getting up on this beautiful Sunday morning at 6  and going with him...

Practice takes Dedication.

Which starts my mind wandering....

Both of us run our Running Career highlight being the Ottawa Marathon.

Hubby did the full 42K ....I'd ran the half 21K.....17 weeks of training six days a week through wind, snowstorms, bitter cold and dog attacks :).

But what a feeling to cross that finish line..

Many times on the course I was needing a push and then along comes Inspiration.....I spotted hubby across the Rideau Canal he was still in the race.....this was my 50th year and the race was a gift to myself....I was celebrating 5 years of being Cancer free...how inspiring is that!

As I write this we are driving East towards the city a beautiful crisp fall morning 5 degrees and the fiery ball of sun is rising over the harsh barren land that is our home. I have a lot to be thankful for and that's what provides my Motivation.......

And they are off!! 

My Jack Russell Shiquita is feeling cheated as she was both inspired and motivated.  She went on the training runs with Hubby but gets left at the start line with me.

Always so much to do....I only have 99 skiens of wool to ball now....really don't like to waste a minute of my day so while I wait to cheer my runner on I  work  on a blue baby blanket I am crocheting (I crochet while Hubby is driving). I did have a fleeting thought of bringing my hooking.... The blanket doesn't have an owner yet but with our large family there is always a baby on the way.

The Race is Run... 47.28 mins!

Hubby is happy.He took four minutes off his time from his last 10K Road Race.

And I am proud! Hubby is seven months out of surgery for Prostate Cancer......what a come back :)

Its only 9:30 and I have a full day ahead of me.....I am going to work on my hooking. Wonder if Anne will get a reprieve from digging potatoes on this lovely Sunday. Now that swings my thoughts to my Grandmother Minnie....

There would be no work done in her house on Sundays...nor in her presence...work in her definition included any darning, hooking, knitting....

Times Change....

Paula

Paula Stacey-Flood

Wool.....have you ever thought about it?

Wool.....real wool....has been around since 4000 b.c and probably the first animal fibre to be made into cloth...guess our ancestors had lots of time to think and be creative on those cold nights in the caves...the first wool factory was established in 50 AD by the Romans in England....talk about staying power of a product...and its so versatile some of that is probably still around today :-).  They did find a piece in a Danish Bog that dated back 1500 BCE.  The British introduced the Merino sheep to Australia in 1797 and look at the industry there now.

Look at the properties of wool....it is hard wearing and absorbs moisture....it does not burn over a flame but smoulders instead...it is lightweight and versatile...Wool does not wrinkle easily....it is resistant to dirt and wear and tear.


I have to confess I am a wool addict.....every city and town  and cove I visit...I quickly scan to see if there is a "Wool Department"  I have trunks of it and bags of it... in so many colors....but I know there are more colors out there and I have to have them.  Wool colors are glorious :-).. I inherited my mothers wool (Myrtle Stacey) which I am sure had some of my Grandmothers (Minnie Hiscock)  wool in it.  I love to create with it......I have two quilts they knit tucked away not to be used...(two dogs here)..Look at all the things you can make with wool.
Below are some of my wool creations
Starting with one strand and you create a beautiful crochet baby blanket which speaks warmth and comfort

....needles and wool create a wool sweater or scarf to keep you warm on that fall walk or in the skating rink.  Or at the Santa Claus Parade!

 A piece of burlap, a design, wool  yarn of many colors and a hook and you create a piece of art.  Carpets, coats, suites.....us hookers love to recycle those coats and suits into mats.....oh I sigh (big breath) for all those wonderful mats that were created by our grand mothers and replaced by the store bought....

I hear the wool calling.......have 100 skeins to ball up!..and I know my friend Anne is busy at it....I'm inspired again!
 Nows wheres my hubby...I need a hand...

Paula
Paula Flood

Big Day.....

Ok so I have completed six pieces and working on two since this spring...now giving the fact that it was Sping and Summer that's alot of "Hooking" as I have also dedicated time to Kayaking, Biking, and visiting family and friends...and I work!...a wonderful summer but to tell you the truth I am thinking about and looking forward to those long winter evenings and all of the hooking projects I want to complete.  I digress....this morning a package containing four of my finished pieces went out the door on their way to St. John's (I am feeling the loss already). 

"Home, Change Islands"

"Stacey' Stage"

"In the Cove"

"In His Green Room"

No they are not sold! (wish) they are on their way to the Craft Council to be juried next week....big step. 

The Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador is a member-based organization that works to maximize the artistic and economic potential of the craft community of the province.  They operate Devon House.

As Thanksgiving weekend stretches out before me....it think of all the time I will dedicate to my craft....however I know that life will get in the way :-)

Remember ....A persons life is the ultimate road trip...

Wishing everyone a good Thanksgiving where ever you are....

Paula

Paula Flood
Firbre Artist
Newfoundland Original Hooked Rugs

So Now I'm a Blogger...

So Now I'm a Blogger in addtion to being a Hooker...a Biker...a Kayaker and a Runner...
This blog is to showcase my Original Rug Hooked Designs.

I am a native Newfoundlander whose love of the province shows in my work. My rugs provide color, warmth and texture in wall art of Hooked Rugs. I am mostly a self taught Rug Hooker and create my own designs and I work with wool yarn and recycled t-shirts.  I have always loved working with fibre and also enjoy crochet, knitting and cross stitch.  My Newfoundland roots are deep and my relatives arrived to these shores on Woody Island, Placentia Bay in 1773.  I love local lore and the rich history of the province I see a rug design in every cove, salt box house, church, and stage that I visit. 

Primitive style...For the beginner hooker, this style of hooking is probably the easiest to do. This style of hooking uses wide strips of wool, normally at least a 1/4" wide, and a very simple childlike drawing. It doesn't have to be realistic in style or coloring.

Barnyard King

Realistic style...This type of rug is hooked using a much narrower strip of wool... about 3/23" up to 1/8" wide. The object is to make the rug as detailed and realistic as possible.



In the Cove


Pictorial style...This style lets the hooker create a picture or scene such as a landscape. The width of wool the hooker uses may vary... it can be entirely wide, entirely narrow or a mixture. The object is to make the rug look real..

Change Islands

I just got home from a "Hook- In"  that I organized on Woody Island....we stayed at Woody Island Resort...and the stay was excellent!  Woody Island is very inspiring and you can't help from feel that "Hookers have Hooked here before" and of course I have a project that I want to hookfrom Woody Island...so I better get at it  :-)