I had a chaotic childhood.  I wrote a personal blog about some of these experiences, which if interested, you can read about at Abductionsurvivor.com.  

 My creative skills are inherited, and by that I mean that I come from a long line of artistic women; my mother sewed, my grandmother liked to crowhook, her mother crafted 'Unique Pillows' and my great grandmother and great aunt before her made 'Cornstalk Figures' (see relevant blog posts on this page for details and photos).  

 I was raised, in part, by my mother's mother, I called her 'Grammy,' and she was my anchor.   We spent many hours sitting side-by-side in her old rocking chair; together we'd rock and I would watch the motion of her hands.  I apprenticed with her as hour after hour we rocked and hooked stitches beyond number.  My grandmother referred to this yarn and hook ballet as 'Crowhooking.' 

I recall the first crochet hook I held, and how awkward and heavy it felt, and most of all how Grammy chided me for not holding it properly -- I still hold the hook "the wrong way." We made flowers, carnations mostly, and roses too, but I recall being frustrated by the roses she made which didn't look much like real roses.  This frustration is what set me on my creative path; I have modified my grandmother's original pattern by varying the stitches to create new effects and textures.  I have spent many hours wielding a hook, and I still love to spend my time making flowers.  I am currently working on bridal bouquets. 

I use needlepoint floss mainly, because of its satin finish and lasting luster.  This medium requires very small hooks, but the result is fabulously vibrant floral creations with little maintenance and enduring beauty.  Because crocheting is so forgiving,  I am able to experiment with new ideas and suffer very little loss in materials -- except of course, time.  

Many of my 'Crowhook' creations are originals, one-off's made for a desired texture or color, which (because of unlimited options), I'm unlikely to duplicate.  Additional materials are required to achieve the final desired effect; rhinestones, crystals, pearls, gemstones, etc..  

Each idea manifests in its own individual style, and the perfectionist in me can be a destructive force, pulling out hours of work because it didn't match my so-called 'vision.'   This is probably why I have difficulty selling my work, I usually have so much invested in one of my pieces, that I decide to make it a gift.  

I have the greatest hope that you will find beauty in my art.  Not only because of the time it takes to generate, or the care I have given to every stitch.  But, I also carry a proud legacy of inherited skills of which I still feel a great sense of gratitude and loyalty, if not responsibility.  More than anything I want to carry on representing that legacy in each of my completed works.

I learned this skill from my grandmother, Thelma Rose Buckmaster Beadle.  I used to sit with her for hours as a child, watching her hands moving and looping the yarn -- A finger ballet.   My grandmother referred to this yarn and hook dance as Crowhooking.  The quaint term was hilariously funny to my child's mind, which conjured up images of large black birds plucking at tangles of gangling feet and yarn.  If you draw, perhaps send me a sketch for my logo?  (Logo contest?) 

I was her apprentice; I watched as she hooked and pulled the yarn, and I learned to make beauty from next to nothing.  Grammy was a ranch girl, raised on a homestead in a small town called Hydro, Oklahoma.  Her people weren't rich and she was made to quit school in the 7th grade to help with her siblings.  Though she had a whole life before I came along; a marriage, three children, six grandchildren, as well as the loss of her spouse -- She still made time for me.  It is important to mention how vital she was to me then, and now.  She was my north star, and I inherited these skills from her remarkable love and patience.