Uncle Sam and 'repositioning' . . .

This is "Uncle Sam". I found him in the January/February 2010 Rug Hooking Magazine (volume XXI, Number 4). It is by Sally Kallin of Pine Island Primitives. He was fabulous to hook and I enjoyed hooking him up. I will probably hang him on a wall since he is so tall and skinny (15 x 44 inches).


If you choose to hook a pattern from rug hooking magazine, the instructions are always very thorough with colors of wool used and enlargement of pattern per cents provided. The place you choose to enlarge the pattern will help you to figure out the percent of enlargement when it is not easy to understand. I enlarged my Uncle Sam by 200% (just a little larger), but had I enlarged the pattern like the directions stated, it would have been easier to hook the flag and other details since Sally designed it for a #8 cut. My flag is a little fatter in places than hers. Live and learn! However, I wanted him a little larger.

"Measure" and draw the rectangle first. The lines of the border need to be straight on the grain, so do not try to draw the straight lines from the pattern. The rest of the design can be drawn from the pattern itself. I use red dot when transferring a pattern onto linen. I do not have a light table and my space is limited, so I use my kitchen counter top, lay the pattern down, put the red dot on top of the pattern and trace it. Then I place the red dot on the linen and re-trace the pattern, checking to make sure that the permanent marker is going through to the linen. If I need to, I go back over the markings on the linen to make them show up better.

If you do not know what red dot is, here is an example. I free-handed drawing my initials and date on the linen and got the date noticeably off. Here is how I corrected it.


Now go over the orange marking with the pen to 're-draw' the date on the linen.


Happy Hooking everyone!