When I was a kid, and someone would skip classes, they were said to be ‘playing hookie’. Do they still say that?
Anyhow, while the servers were down, and I couldn’t work on my blog, I finally got to work and pulled together all the pics of the new crochet hooks  that I have been carving.
I had kind of lost track of them! LOL!
I had to rummage around the studio to find them and get them organized and measured and photographed and photoshopped and finally up on my website.
(I have been neglecting my website because of focusing on blogworld, so when …read more

I got all excited about being nominated for a blog award (could you please vote for me? Ooooh that was shameless! eep!) that I carved myself a teacup crochet hook. You have to celebrate these things!
I was so delighted with the teacup crochet hook that I did another one.
This time, it’s a heart hook, with a teapot on one side

and a teacup on the other

Speaking of teacups…. I think I hear mine calling me right now!

I am a total Jane Austen freak.  I got addicted to Jane Austen when I was 11 years old, and I have re-read her novels hundreds of times.   I still have my first copy of ‘Pride and Prejudice’ that I bought from the book club at school.
I have designed all kinds of dolls in homage to Jane Austen, including a :knitted Jane Austen doll:

Sooooooooooooo………
I am utterly ecstatic that PBS is running a series on Masterpiece theatre, showcasing all her novels.
Persuasion  was brilliant. Perfecto!  
Ditto for Northanger Abbey. In fact, it’s my least favorite of all her novels…. BUT, this …read more

I’ve been feeling quite upset this week about a rather negative experience I just had in the publishing world.
When I am upset, I spend a lot of time working with wood in the workshop. So, I have got a lovely stash of new crochet hooks happening.
AND… Last night, I had the best dream! It was full of joy and delight, and it just knocked me right out of my dismay and despair.
So, today, I celebrated by painting and burning one of the new heart crochet hooks with images of delight.
Here’s ‘JOY!’

And, here’s to  j o y! 

I’ve been carving crochet hooks with hearts on them.
There’s the Ladybug Valentine Heart hook

and a few other ones
AND…. I have just finished painting and burning one of the new Heart hooks:

I have been mulling over and contemplating lots of issues-
Like….. what is home……. (we’re in the process of getting ready to move a BIG big move…). How do we create home when we leave a place that has been home, to make a new home….
Also, a door just snapped shut on a project that I’ve been very hopeful about.  Rats.
So, to re-group, I have really …read more

About a week or so ago, I asked for advice about images to put on some new heart hooks that I am carving.
I’ve got a real bee in my bonnet about heart shapes on hooks, so I have been working on the two hooks from that posting. Now, there are 2 more that I have just started- I am learning how to turn crochet hooks on the lathe.
Here are the ones that I have done a combination of turning and carving on:

and here are the first two that I was wondering about before….

Now…… I need to start drawing, burning and …read more

Woohoo!
I am so excited!
For the past year or so, I have been carving all the one of a kind handmade crochet hooks I make without having Jim turn them on the lathe.
It struck me that I should probably learn how to use the lathe to shape the length of the hook. I figured that it might save some time….. so I asked Jim to show me how to do it.

At first, I was very timid in my approach, but soon, I was just having a whirlietwirlie happydancing time!

OH! this is BLISS!
I am totally addicted to woodworking….. well that’s not quite …read more

I was so excited about being nominated for a blog award that I had to make something to celebrate.
I thought about it for a minute, and decided that my usual form of celebration involves making myself a really good cup of one of my fave teas…..
soooooooooooooooooooo……..
I decided that I should carve a crochet hook that is a teacup!
I don’t think they actually give people a REAL physical award, so I figured that I would make an award cup!
Who needs a big old trophy sitting on their shelf?
Nah, don’t have room on the shelves……
but a crochet hook – Oh …read more

We’re in the middle of a blizzard right now. The snow is so intense that I haven’t been able to see out the studio windows all day – they’re covered with snow!  (good insulation!)
Actually, I’m not all that thrilled with what I CAN see, as it is mostly white, fierce and blowing horizontally! We can’t see to the fence line, the snow is so bad!
The high today is – wait for it:  -25 with a windchill of -38.
oi vey. 
It’s too cold to go outside to build a snowman, so I have been working in the workshop all week, to carve …read more

I got all inspired about carving cat crochet hooks.  When I get inspired, I can never stop at just one…..
Especially since it was a fairly arduous journey to get to the shape that I loved for the hooks!
I had a happy old time out in the workshop:

and eventually, another fine and fancy feline was beaming out at me!

Mrow!
Speaking of cats and all things feline, did you know that b5, the blogging company that I write for, has a pet blog?
AND a very cute blog focused on goofy cat pics?