Rughooking

Rughooking is a craft that I learned from Steve's Aunt Ginger, from Arkansas (yes, my Arkansas aunt taught me to be a hooker!). I've enjoyed taking old wool strips and creating beautiful pieces of primitive art from them. Many of you have probably heard of latch-hook, which uses canvas and yarn. Rughooking is similar, but also quite different. I use a base fabric of burlap, monk's cloth, or linen, and use cut wool strips to hook my designs. Unfortunately, I have not done as much "hooking" as I would like...but I have 2 projects I'm currently working on, and plan to post my progress as I go.

Following are some of my completed projects...

This is the very first rug I completed. Back then I used a quilter's hoop and hand cut my wool. I have since added a sturdy frame and wool cutter to my rughooking supplies.



This is by far my favorite creation so far...primarily because it's the most personal rug I've completed. I purchased a pattern of a dog drawn on burlap. I then took a picture of our dog Kersee, and customized the rug to look like him...right down to the bright orange collar. Once the hooking was complete, I turned it into a pillow. It was a lot of fun.



This is the first pattern that I drew on monk's cloth. I got the idea from a Christmas card we received one year. It was quick to hook up, and I had a lot of fun with it. You can't see it in the picture, but there is a swirly detail that makes the snowflakes come alive!



This angel rug I made for my mom. I bought the pattern in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, and think it came together nicely. Thanks to Ginger, I was able to use some beautiful dyed wools that she had on hand.



This is another rug that I designed myself. I got the inspiration from my brother-in-law Billy Curry, who recently completed his teaching degree. The schoolhouse was fun to do. I gave it to Billy and Sandy for Christmas a few years ago.