Blank Greeting Cards to Color

My friends and I hope your weekend is off to a great start~

Hope you're all staying strong and healthy.

Penny for your thoughts!

This dear little friend is keeping her prices low~ giggle... 

A new collection of greeting cards that you can color and mail~

Or send along the card as is for your recipient to color.

All of my pen & ink greeting cards are blank inside.

We're expecting winter weather this weekend.

December and January have been uncommonly warm and green~

Two lawn daisies have blossomed in our side yard!

I will pick them and bring them indoors before the snow & ice arrives.

Soup will be simmering and a new rug hooking mat started.

Take good care, Friends~

Wishing your hearts peace and happiness

 

"Neighbor to Neighbor" copyright 2020 Michelle L. Palmer

Punch needle pattern

Sharing what we have~

Gathering groceries for elderly friends, checking with

each other before we run errands to protect and connect.

How we love our neighbors, near and far.

Chickadee was wondering if Wren had a few

straight pins she could borrow...

Hope you're staying strong and healthy~

Take good care, Friends <3 nbsp="" p="">

Thanksgiving~

"Acorn Perch" copyright Michelle L. Palmer

No. 4 of 6 Fraktur Rug Series

Thankful for you~

Wishing you and yours a beautiful

Thanksgiving weekend!

Wool Hooked Rugs

"Dance of the Harvest Crows"  copyright 2019 Michelle L. Palmer

Hello, Friends!

Hope you have been enjoying beautiful Autumn days~

Praying for all affected by the California fires.

Hope they are contained and end quickly.

Prayers for safety.

I finally found my little book of passwords!

That is why I have been away~ I couldn't log on.

It is good to tidy the studio...

It is not good to reorganize the studio.

My mind is not good at remembering 'the better spot anymore'

Dance of the Harvest Crows is one of my most recent rugs.

I love to see crows perched on sunflower heads~

Dancing with delight at the meal they have before them!

I tucked apple trees in the corners.

"Orchard Santa" copyright 2019 Michelle L. Palmer

This jolly old fella looks to have his rain coat on!

Early American Belsnickel's had variety of coats~

He scooped up a basket of apples that had fallen from the tree

when he collected the hive from the orchard.

The skep will winter in the outer-barn where it will be

protected from harsh winter winds.

Just a few doors down, a vegetable stand had harvested the most

beautiful painted corn! Flint corn, Indian corn, Calico corn...

I was taking photographs of several different subjects

on the same sunny day~

The colorful corn had been set next to my hooked rug...

Aren't those blue, black, periwinkle, olive, taupe, umber,

plum, maroon and salmon kernels beautiful?

A pretty side by side.

We have two craft & fabric thrift shops in our area.

Craft Bits & Pieces and

SewGreen

The stores are brimming with donated supplies. The proceeds are

used to support, care for and educate the local community.

Orchard Santa's background is a remnant from one of the shops.

It is a little bit thinner than wool milled specifically for rug hooking.

The results came as a complete surprise to me!

Here you can see the original patch of wool

next to a small hooked sample,#8 cut loops.

I wash all wool before adding it to my existing stash.

Making sure it is clean and clear of any unwanted clothes moths

or carpet beetles. I make a sample patch of the plaids and textures.

The wool looks different when it it is hooked in curvy lines!

Since this was a fabric remnant, we don't know how old it is.

I have searched the web for it~ I have not found a source.

The wool in the image below is currently available from Dorr Mill Store.

My friend Caryn shared the photograph with me.

It looks to be similar~

Autumn is golden~

Wishing your hearts joy!

Punch Needle Patterns

 'Stitching Bird' copyright 2019 Michelle L. Palmer

Good Morning, Friends!

I hope your Friday is off to a great start~

Feathered friends are always invited to help around the studio!

Baby Robin has grans button jar tucked under her wing.

She sure loves to scatter buttons... like fairy dust.

Blogs and social media sites are such fun in the Springtime~

There are so many wonderful images of baby birds peeking out

from their nests... their little beaks reaching up for their tummies 

to be filled.

'Stitching Bird' is on a mission... 

Her sewing needle is threaded and she has her emery strawberry

filled with straight pins!

I frame most of my punch needle pieces.

Frame shops carry an acid free 'spacer' that aids in keeping

the floss loops from touching the glass surface.

Depending on your loop length, they come in various thickness.

The spacers allow me to add extras, too~

My little button jar looked like a pickle jar before I added MOP buttons.

The jar could be punched with an aqua, pale blue or pale purple

floss... the look of old glass without canning vegetables... giggle.

 "Crow" copyright 2019 Michelle L. Palmer

A second new release!

We have seen a lot of crows this spring... 

With all of the rain, wind and cold weather the songbirds seem to

be a few weeks later than normal.

'Crow' has been collecting wishes again!

She keeps her stars inside her titled spice jar~

Her sunflower perch creates the perfect lid!

'Baa Baa Blackbird' copyright 2019 Michelle L. Palmer

Little brown sheep and friends are available in the

Summer 2019 issue of Punch Needle & Primitive Stitcher Magazine!

That should be arriving at Barnes & Noble, JoAnn Fabrics,

your favorite stitching & quilt shops and mailboxes any day now.

I hope to add more punch needle patterns to my shop over the weekend~

Seem to say that every week and the hours just disappear!

A few hours set aside for yard and garden work develops into

full days of hauling, cutting, pruning, pulling, planting...

I get lost in the bird songs...

The hum of the bees...

The weeds...

The blossoms....

Wishing you beautiful summer days~

Thank you for stopping by!

Land That I Love~ Memorial Day

  "Land That I Love" copyright 2019 Michelle L. Palmer

Honoring and remembering

soldiers and service members who

gave their life in service...

Memorial Day and every day.

'Patriotic'

'Land that I Love' is No. 3 in my Fraktur series~

Each rug measures 24" x 22"

Hooked with wool strips. I used #6, #7 & #8 wool cuts.

I am having such a fun time with this collection!

There is something about wool...

Warms ones soul~

 "Blackbird on a Sunny Perch" copyright 2019 Michelle L. Palmer

'Summer'

No. 2 in my Fraktur series...

This design was inspired by walks along the Erie Canal Path...

Beautiful poison sumac blossoms with their long and draping leaves~

Green, deep sage with a hint of chartreuse... with a little wheat, gold, salmon..

They are fond of color changes!

Birds & chipmunks live along the pathway... waterfront real estate~

They must deposit sunflower seeds for snacks and 

then forget where they stashed them~

Every now and again a brilliant yellow sunny flower will peek up!

"Robin Red Breasts" copyright 2019 Michelle L. Palmer

'Spring'

The illustrated collection is titled Frakturs & Flourishes.

Red Rooster Fabrics designed a fabric line from them.

I love putting down lines with my dip pens and homemade walnut ink.

Lines flow naturally, unevenly...

Curves and swirls fall into place as if they were following

the trail of a butterfly.

Tulips in Springtime and my mother loved bleeding hearts.

Purple crocus peeking through just as Robins are building their nests!

Earth day is in April... I thought the dome with the sun would

be a nice way to cover the birds just as treetops do.

Wool is a flourish of its own~

No extra effort needed!

Gold Star Families~ remembering you, too.

Peace and love~

Fraktur wool hooked rug

"Robin Red Breasts" wool hooked rug copyright 2019

Illustration copyright 2010

#1 of 6 Fraktur theme rugs translated from my original illustrations.

I used #6, 7 & 8 cut (wool strips) for my model.

I have the second in the collection finished... I hope to share it tomorrow.

The designs are very similar to each other when drawn with

walnut ink and painted with watercolor...

They are so much warmer and rich with texture when hooked~

the wool rugs look completely different from each other!

I began drawing Fraktur and flourish elements in 1989 when I was a

graphic design student at R.I.T.

Through studying cobblestone structures for American Architecture I found

the most beautiful barns with hex signs and painted quilts.

With more research I became very distracted by Fraktur illustrations!

Fraktur sketches filled my notebook margins... ideas swirled in my mind!

I did my best to focus on the professors lectures...

I tried...

Through the years all of my college sketches,

interpretations from early works, have shared inspiration!

Inspired by the early treasures but never copied... 

Nothing so beautiful as original frakturs and the history they recorded~

Illustrated history...

My frakturs, with a twist of whimsy, record favorite birds in

childhood gardens, perennial beds~ the beauty of season changes. 

I draw my patterns by hand on primitive linen.

Finished rug size is 24" wide by 22" tall (actual hooked area)

3.5" to 4" border around the entire design

allowing ample room for your frame.

I take care to keep the lines straight of the grain.

Linen edges are taped to prevent fraying. I use green Frog Brand tape.

It is available through my Etsy shop:

"Robin Red Breasts" Fraktur theme wool rug pattern

Hope your week is off to a great start, Friends!

Thanks so much for stopping by~

Punch needle Holsteins & Chickadees~

'Pumpkin Tea Collection' & 'The Girls in August'

Copyright 2018 Michelle L. Palmer

Punching projects!

I added new patterns to my shop this week~

The chickadees are five separate patterns, a collection.

I punched my model of them as one long piece... something different.

 Punching is relaxing... but I don't know when to stop.

Hands and fingers grow weary~

Nexcare by 3M makes a wonderful tape~

has a little cushion to it!

Found in most drug stores.

Apply the amount that works best for your comfort.

It stays put and stays clean...

No sticky residue.

Wrapped around tiny needle felting tools~

Good to go for hours!

Did you say laundry? Dishes to wash? I'll get to them...

I had to get my August girls finished before September arrived!

A very painterly piece~

Now that they are finished I wish I would have punched them

twice this size so that I could add even more detail.

The perfect excuse to design a hooked rug of them!

I think miss matched tea cups are charming~

Antique shops are filled with single beauties just waiting to held again.

Always fun to see which cup friends choose. I gravitate toward the blue ones.

Chickadees love to perch on stems & tendrils when we decorate for Harvest.

I think they would enjoy some pumpkin spice tea on frosty mornings!

I have added a paper pattern of the entire Pumpkin Tea collection to my Etsy shop.

Punched in a row just as I made the models.

They're also available individually~

I thought this would be fun to offer!

Hope you have a wonderfully creative Labor Day weekend, Friends!

Thank you for stopping by~

Happy Easter!

Wishing your heart Hope!

Wishing your heart Peace!

Wishing your heart Love!

Wishing you a blessed Easter, Friends!

Wishing you joy-filled Spring days, too~

Calendar pages & watercolor palettes~

My little mushroom brush is just as important as my paint brushes!

Keeps the wool dust, lint, strings... 

All that crazy stuff fling around my studio, off my palettes.

I leave my palettes open to air dry~

It may be a few days in between painting.

If I forget to put my palette covers on (always) they get dusty.

I brush out the wells, brush off the little dishes...

I rarely wash my palette...

With a touch of water those messy puddles are perfectly usable!

Calendar time~

As I finish each month, I tack them up. It gives me a little distance

from my paintings. Sometimes they need a little more work.

Sometimes I soften an area...

The wintry months are still to be painted.

I should paint January & February mid-summer, on hot days~

When the winter cold seems like a welcome thought!

Just a few more paintings to go and

Outside My Window for 2020 will be complete.

Each year is a little bit different.

Always filled with my favorite things & feathered friends who visit!

I hope you have a wonderful weekend, Friends!

Thank you for stopping by~

Happy New Year!

Some of my favorites wishing you a creative New Year!

I hope your hearts are filled with fresh & unique ideas~

I hope your arms are filled with supplies that inspire you~

I hope your days allow you time to work on your favorite hobbies~

Wishing you happiness, love, peace & laughter~

It is such a joy to still find buttons in antique & thrift shops!

Sometimes the most amazing ideas started as daydreams!

Thank you, Friends for all the joy you share with me!

Wishing you great health and joy!

Happy New Year!