The Art of Rug Hooking

Hooked rugs add more than color and warmth to a room; they lend a great deal of charm. In the hands of a skilled artisan they may be rendered in great detail and with subtle patterning, but even a novice can accomplish a nice-looking project with a little practice. A gallery of delightful rugs sets the stage here, depicting everything from fruits and flowers to teapots, cabins, roosters, and dancing bears. The instructional section explains the supplies and general techniques, from preparing the strips of wool (thrift-shop finds are a great source of material) to color planning and dyeing your own wools, and, of course, the hooking process itself. The specific project section is a bit too brief (only three projects are presented in full) and the pattern section somewhat vague (it consists only of color photos of six designs and the line-drawn renditions thereof), but the primer of general techniques is certainly thorough enough to get you started if you're keen on the craft. --Amy Handy