The following meetings were held during the 2016-2017 year.
This gallery page has slide shows with the rugs and other hooked art displayed at these meetings.
Welcome Back and Guest Speaker, September 17, 2016
Our September meeting is always a great time to reconnect with old friends and see what everyone is working on.
Mayflower was very fortunate to have Loretta Scena speak at its September meeting. Loretta is a certified McGown teacher and she told us that she loves color and likes to use her hands to make things. She likes sparkly things and jewelry, commenting that she must have been a crow in a past life. Even as a child, she chose to create jewelry on cardboard to sell, while her peers sold lemonade. Loretta describes herself as a crazy person, very fidgety. She likes creating ornaments, spirit dolls and bead embroidery. She does not like precision, and therefore likes crazy quilts and the opportunity to “play”. She calls herself the “queen of the unfinished”.
What led Loretta to rug hooking? She was interested in making medieval tapestry and around 1997 learned to hook over the phone with a friend’s mom. She started with a 3 cut because it allowed for greater detail. Her teacher was Helen Connolly When Loretta finds herself stuck, her teacher seems to be there in spirit to help. Helen is her inspiration and what keeps her going.
Loretta shared with us some of her techniques and lessons learned. She first learned to hook on burlap and showed us how that early piece had deteriorated over just a few years. The pattern she used was called “Jennifer” (see picture) and she included a marbleizing technique using peaches and purples near the edges to add interest to the rug. Loretta has incorporated crocheting, beading, ribbons, nylons, etc into her pieces.
In her “Southhamton” shoreline piece, she used yarn with multiple strands, wool made to look like pebbles, felted wool shells and beads. The beach scene is absolutely wonderful and inspiring. She discussed the use of quilly (those little rolls) that can be stitched through and then stitched down into a piece. If you remove a couple of threads, it makes the quilly a bit fuzzy, like a flower would look. She has also experimented with using the reverse side of crocheted loops to give a rug a different look.
Loretta showed us a tree trunk scene she made, which she termed a triptych as the picture is divided into three sections, one of which includes a written saying called “A Little Nut”. The tree piece was part of a group project started by Lisanne Miller.
When hooking animals, she advised us that the wool needs to be hooked in the direction of the animal’s fur growth; this is called “directionality”. She will sometimes use multiple strands at a time. She noted that color doesn’t matter, but value does. Loretta also discussed some dye techniques, such as casserole dyeing.
One of her methods for working through problems is to hold the piece up to the mirror to find the problem. Doing this makes your brain see the piece differently. Loretta told us she constantly tweaks her rugs.
Thank you, Loretta! The Mayflower chapter thoroughly enjoyed your visit! You can visit her webpage and view some of the pieces she brought to the meeting.
Display Your Challenge Rugs, October 15, 2016
The meeting was held from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM at the St. Agnes Parish Center at 186 Woburn Street in Reading, Mass. Members whose last names begin with the letters D–I provided refreshments.
Members displayed and spoke about their challenge pieces for the Fish challenge and we had several show and tell items as well.
We also held elections and are pleased to welcome two new Co-Presidents and a new Vice President. Additionally, we have added much needed help in the areas of Programs and Hostess.
Next year’s challenge was discussed and we decided to go with two choices:
Mystery Artist piece — select an artist you are interested in and hook a piece that is inspired by that artist. All artists are welcome, but it would especially interesting to select an “unknown” artist that you can research and share what you learn with our group.
Celestial — design something that relates to outer space, stars, planets, etc.
Pieces will be displayed in October 2017.
Bring Your Own Work, November 19, 2016
The meeting was held from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM at the St. Agnes Parish Center at 186 Woburn Street in Reading, Mass. Members whose last names begin with the letters J-R provided refreshments.
The chapter elected Sue Sweetser as Secretary/Newsletter Editor – welcome aboard Sue!
Christmas Celebration and Gift Exchange, December 3, 2016
The meeting was held from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM at the St. Agnes Parish Center at 186 Woburn Street in Reading, Mass. At the December meeting, the Mayflower chapter enjoyed its annual Christmas celebration which included a Potluck lunch and two gift exchanges – one traditional exchange, and one handmade gift exchange. Members enjoyed a fun get together.
There was a vast and sumptuous array of potluck food.
Sandra Porter, January 21, 2017
The meeting was held from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM at the St. Agnes Parish Center at 186 Woburn Street in Reading, Mass. People with last names beginning with S – Z brought refreshments.
We had a fun time at our January meeting. Sandy Porter gave a great talk about borders, where to find ideas, designing them, transferring the design onto your pattern and everything in between. She said there are many places to look for design ideas – books, magazines, museums, fabrics, and even the borders on dishes. Borders can be hooked, crocheted, braided, wool tongues and wooden framed. You’re limited only by your imagination.
Bring Your Own Work, February 18, 2017
The meeting was held from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM at the St. Agnes Parish Center at 186 Woburn Street in Reading, Mass. Members whose last names begin with the letters A – C provided refreshments.
Sarah Guilliani, March 18, 2017
The meeting was held from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM at the St. Agnes Parish Center at 186 Woburn Street in Reading, Mass. Members whose last names begin with the letters D – I provided refreshments
Our guest speaker was Sarah Gulliani, and she gave a great presentation on how to hook faces. She covered everything from how to start, making sure that you capture how the light falls on the face, hues and values, how to give the impression of noses and ears without really drawing them, and a lot of other useful tricks. Sarah provided a detailed and lengthy hanout, “Hooking Faces by Sarah Gulliani,” with useful information if you’re contemplating or already hooking faces.
Big Bee and Auction, April 22, 2017
We had a good time at the Big Bee and Auction. Things were a little quieter than we had hoped for but a fun time was had nonetheless.
Idli was our auctioneer, and she did a fabulous job with the live bidding and silent auction. We’ll book her again next year!
Bring Your Own Work May 20, 2017
The May meeting was held at the Reading Public Library on May 20th. It was a nice place to hold the meeting, and it’s good to know we can use it as a backup location if needed.
Strawberry Festival, June 17, 2017
Despite some weather inconsistencies the Strawberry Festival was a great success! There were about 25 attendees, which was up from last year. Good food, good friends, good times!
A big “thank you” to Diana DeRoche for hosting the event at her beautiful home, and to all the people who brought such delicious food to share. All of your contributions and efforts are greatly appreciated!