Karen D. Miller

Ottawa, ON

email: marzipanroadATbell.net
web: www.marzipanroad.etsy.com

I have always loved needlework like knitting, cross-stitching and crocheting since I was very young but when I discovered Cheticamp rugs on a trip to Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, I found a whole new art form. Rug-hooking is a forgiving art that lets me make fresh looking natural designs.  Sometimes I want to try to capture the lonely chill of a crisp ocean breeze and sometimes I just want to be whimsical and playful.  My inspirations come from everywhere:  my garden, my travels, my young daughter who always makes me laugh, even the cardinal who thinks he owns my yard.   And I love collecting the yarns and wools that I just know I will find a use for after not too long. My daughter and I love hunting for old wool clothes that I can turn into works of art and my husband knows to plan for a visit to the local wool store or alpaca farm whenever we travel anywhere. Most often, though, I find that the strong natural colours and clear earth tones that best match my moods are made in the rugged places around the North Atlantic- in Maritime Canada, in Newfoundland, the Faroe Islands and especially in Iceland.