Hooking Impressions

I adore hooked rugs that have subtly shaded flowers and details, hooked with fine cuts, like the rugs of Pearl Mcgown, or Joan Moshimer. I would spend hours looking at them, delighting in their visual softness and realism. At the opposite end of the spectrum, I love primitive rugs, hooked in wide cuts, with simple naive forms like the rugs created by Magdalena Briner Eby, or the rugs created by Kathy at the Grinning Sheep, or again the ones created by Karen at Primitive Spirit.

When I set out to design, and then hook my" Roosting Hens in a Bleeding Heart Bush", I knew right away that I would not be opting for fine cuts with subtle shading. Just the fact that my hens decided to roost in a bleeding heart bush made the rug one of fantasy, not reality. I knew that my rug would have to follow a more primitive path, where the elements of the rugs are" impressions" of themselves. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the hooking of the flowers.

My first thought when I start hooking a flower is to color, not in terms of shading, but rather in terms of what will make that flowers pop against the background.

If I think about our night vision as humans, objects at night loose their definition, we register them for what they are even though they only hint at what they are. The flowers in my rug, are hints of flowers at night, reflecting the moonlight.

Hooking each flower is pure delight, it feels so free. I love not being trapped by the need for realism. I love letting the simple hand-dyed colors do all the work for me.

I wonder if you feel the same way I do. I wonder what guides you when you hook.

A Little Progress on the Moshimer Rug

I did find a little time to hook the strawberry Moshimer rug yesterday. And I am so glad I did. Even if I only have time for a few loops, it is always a pleasure to hook. I put on an oldies radio station, and I am in my own little world. I get into a rhythm pulling little pearly loops, never bored, entertained by the changes of color.

When I work on a rug, I forget time. So before I knew it, a flower and part of a leaf were hooked, and and it was time to prepare dinner for the family, before heading out to teach a French class.

The happy felling I got from my afternoon of rug hooking stayed with me throughout the evening, even when I had to remind my students, as I do every week, that they should learn to conjugate their verbs!

Rug Hooking Memories

I have been wanting to have a "real" studio for me to create, and craft. Up till now, I would say that I have been a nomadic crafter, planting my craft tent in this room or that room... Yesterday, as I was gathering stash and projects, I found a project that is full of memories for me.

This project is special in two ways. It reminds me of a lovely trip my husband and I took to Maine, and of discovering rug hooking. We stayed in a bed and breakfast, the Hearthside Inn in Bar Harbor. One morning, after breakfast, I was sitting in the parlor cross-stitching. The owner of the Inn came to see what I was working on. We started talking about crafts, mine and his. He said he liked rug hooking, and asked me if I wanted to see his work. I of course agreed, always wanting to discover a new craft, but naively not expecting that I would fall totally in love with it. He was working on a geometric rug in lovely fall tones. I marveled at all the perfect wool fabric loops, at the depth of the colors. He gave me a crash course in rug hooking, and gave me addresses for two stores he liked in Maine. We decided to visit the one in Kennebunport,W. Cushing & Company. The store was full of hooked rugs, florals, geometrics, animal patterns, and a rainbow of wool fabrics.

While still in denial, on the way to the store, I had told my husband I just wanted to look, but that I really was not going to take up another craft. When my husband saw me in the store as happy as a little girl in a candy shop, he whispered in my ear, "pick a project."

I did not resist, I picked one. I picked a small strawberry chair pad project, that had been designed by Joan Moshimer. I bought the project as a kit with all the wool already chosen for me and cut. I purchased a simple Joan Moshimer hook.

As soon as we got home, I started working on the project ... I hooked, and hooked, following the directions provided in the kit. The strips of wool were #3, and I found it hard to bring them up through the linen backing without twisting them, or shredding them. In retrospect, this might not have been the best project to start with. A primitive rug, with wider strips, and a lot less shading might have been a lot better for me. I did learn a lot, but at some point I started feeling restricted by the project. I put it aside, and started creating my own patterns, and my own wools, embracing the old traditions, recycling woolen fabrics, and creating simpler more organic designs.

When I found the strawberries yesterday, I decided it was time to finish it. So this is what I will be working on for the next few days. This piece has a special place in my heart. I would love to have it adorn the top of a shaker box. I could use the box to store notions, in my soon to be studio ...