Prairie Rose Rug School 2014

Assumption Abbey in Richardton, North Dakota is the perfect setting for a successful rug school. You can't ask for better hosts than the Monks who call the Abbey home.

Patty Tyrrell , Barb and Craig Pearson, and I, along with another Wyoming rug hooker Sue Cunningham, from Laramie, Wyoming, all shared Joan Reckwerdt as our teacher. On our first day of class Joan told stories that were so funny my stomach hurt from laughing so hard. Besides her ability to tell a great story, she is an outstanding teacher.

 Joan is the teacher behind Barb Pearson's crewel rug. Barb has taken classes from Joan at Friends, in Oregon as well as at Prairie Rose. Joan has been the teacher throughout this outstanding rug.

Below is the rug Craig Pearson was working on and below it is a pictorial he got a little help with also. The pictorial is mind blowing. He also did another pictorial that is in the rug show but my picture turned out very blurry. Maybe Patty took one that turned out better. If so, I will show it later on.

Joan color planned and dyed the wool for Patty Tyrrell's Lacy Heart by Bea Brock. It has a stained glass feel to it. I can't wait to see it finished. We made the comment that Patty seems to like burgundy since her last rug had burgundy also. 

 I know the angle of this photo is upside down but I wanted to show the pattern right side up. On the left is my Sheep and Sunflower rug. My other two sunflowers will both be red. I learned one major lesson on this rug. Never draw on your pattern with colored Sharpie. It will bleed on to your wool when you steam it! Since I will be adding a dark background to the rug, I will be hooking a white face on my sheep. I changed her face with the red sharpie so I spend the first night of rug camp washing the red out of my face.

The rug s next to mine are done by Katie Knoelke. She was in Ingrid Hieronimus's class and I was so impressed with the backgrounds she used at Ingrid's suggestion. One stripe went horizontally and one went vertically with a red line and the background extending out from it. Ingrid has a plethora of background and border ideas as well as being a fabulous teacher.

Carol Messerli, our other Wyoming rug hooker's elk came to life in Ingrid's class. Carol learned so much from Ingrid and I can't wait to see how this rug looks when it's finished.

Our other Wyoming gal Sue Cunningham, who has been going to Prairie Rose for years, was working on a beautiful Poppy design that Joan was helping her with. Sue's work is meticulous and I will show more rugs from her and others in another post.

The week went so quickly. The company was wonderful, the food amazing, and the teachers were all top notch. Suzy Jones did a fabulous job as our Director and we can't wait until next year.

Post written by Sylvia Gauthier

Prairie Rose Rug School Here We Come!

All 5 of the members of Wild West Rug Hookers are going to be traveling to Assumption Abbey in Richardton, ND to attend the Prairie Rose Rug School. Barb and Craig Pearson have been attendees for many years, Patty and I were newbies last year, and Carol will be attending for the first time this year.

This is the beautiful Assumption Abbey where we will be hooking and eating. The monks take such great care of us while we are there serving the most amazing meals and snacks.

This is our view looking out of the wall of windows in the room where our classes are held. We see wildlife strolling the grounds as well as may visitors that walk by while touring this amazing facility.

The dorm rooms we sleep in are beautifully decorated and the beds are so comfy. I can't say enough about how wonderful Assumption Abbey is and how great we are treated by the monks while we are there. All five of us are so excited to spend the week with great friends, old acquaintances, and new faces.

Post by Sylvia Gauthier

Prairie Rose Rug School Rugs

I (Sylvia Gauthier) finished by Button Basket rug! The pattern is designed by Susan Quicksall. I chose this design to take to Prairie Rose Rug School at Assumption Abbey, in Richardson ND. It was so hard to pick a design to take to the rug school. Patty Tyrrell and I were headed into the unknown of rug schools and camps. Neither of us had ever been to any kind of hooking events and quite honestly we didn't know what to expect. You would have thought it was the last rug either of us would ever make! Patty finally chose Quaint Town by Karla Gerard and I chose the Button Basket.

Button Basket had several lessons I wanted to learn at rug school, especially the Bead, or Seed Stitch. That is the stitch on the basket and in the flowers that looks striped.

Once the pattern was picked, it was time to choose the wool colors. I dyed several colors and several shades of each color. With the help of Michele Wise, our teacher, I made sure I had a light, dark, bright, and dull.

I have worked on this rug since August. While I was binding the rug I laid it on the floor to have a look at my work and my son's black lab laid right on top of it, of course. I decided right then that it wasn't going on the floor. I will hang it on the wall. I love it too much for it to be covered in hair, and he really loses hair!

Patty's choice of Quaint Town was the perfect design to take to rug school too.

Karla Gerard's patterns are on paper, which makes it really nice if you want a larger rug like Patty did. She had the pattern enlarged, drew it on her linen, sewed around the edges and started picking out, and dyeing wool.

During our class, Michele gave Patty some sparkly ribbon like stuff to try in the church window. It truly looks like stained glass. I think I'm most impressed with how the moon glows, which is another lesson from Michele.

Patty finished her rug long before I finished mine. It was smaller but she is faster and more experienced than I am.

Patty and I both have plans to attend Prairie Rose Rug School again this year. Two of our other members, Barb and Craig Pearson, attend Friends by the Sea Rug School every year. They have attended Friends for something like 15 years. No matter how long we hook, or how many classes we take, there is always more to learn.

Post written by Sylvia Gauthier.