Slow Stitches - Rug Hooking

In a world that is changing at speed in unprecedented ways, this week I have allowed myself the indulgence of slow working my makers hands.  I am very aware of how lacking this feels when so many people are giving and risking so much in the world.  I remind myself frequently that slow working with our hands can be vital to quietening the mind and maintaining general wellbeing while being apart from others.

As it happens, the rug hooking technique I've been using this week began in another challenging era.  During the height of the industrial revolution, 19th century Yorkshire mill owners allowed their  impoverished workers to take home 9" offcuts of wool called 'thrums' and the craft of rug hooking was born to add a little comfort to miserable living conditions.  Using a small metal hook, the wool lengths were 'hooked' onto old hessian sacks by pulling up loops of the wool through the small holes.  As this craft caught on, those without access to wool used thin strips of pretty much any fabric that would otherwise have gone to waste.  Being household items with heavy use, the examples of hooked rugs that remain are generally more decorative than functional.

In keeping with the initial using waste principle, my rug hooking experiments have been carried out with offcuts of English spun carpet wool from a kindly Somerset rug maker.  I was highly delighted on the happy the day of collecting my bag of wool - albeit that it quickly became clear that a tad of sorting out would be required!  Thankfully balling and skeining wool are both rather therapeutic tasks and with a welcome helping hand, I now have a colourful stock for my use and to help others get started.  Chunky knitting yarn could also be used and it's a brilliant opportunity for knitters to use up oddments.

The hooking technique is easiest to learn when the hessian background is stabilised on a wood frame - ideally of similar size to the desired final piece.  An old wood photo frame is a cheap and easy starter.  The hessian piece is best stabilised around the edge with masking tape or sellotape.  For anyone new to this technique, I recommend keeping to small sample size to start with - mine was 7" square.  The large lounge rug can come later!

Next up is to create or choose a design for hooking - the internet is awash with outlines for anyone who feels that drawing is not their thing. I have been drawing my designs on a piece of paper with a Sharpie marker and then trace onto the hessian, along with a square to denote the overall final size.  Here is the outline template that I created for this particular design.

Now to secure the hessian piece to the frame.  Modern drawing pins tend to buckle with even the lightest of pressure and I have found using upholstery pins or tacks is by far better.  The taped edge also helps to hold the hessian secure while working.

Now to get the hooking started - I treated myself to a traditional hooking tool with a very pleasing wooden handle to hold.  A small metal crochet hook would work equally well - a metal hook is best for plied yarn to help prevent it splitting as you work.  It's good to start in a reasonably central position and the first action is to bring up a tail of yarn that's a generous inch long at the desired point - I started at the centre of the spiral.

Then the first loop of wool is pulled up in a neighbouring hessian hole.  A very key point when you start is to work your fingers beneath hessian so that you are pretty much putting the wool onto the hook.  Whilst this may sound fiddly, doing this from the off will help to make each hooking action to be successful.  Pull up more wool than you want for the loop and then pull any excess back down with your fingers beneath the frame.

Drawing up the following wool loops can take a bit of practice - my top tip is to get your hands underneath the work doing the right thing.  As you pull up a new loop of yarn, put a finger on the last stitch you made and push upwards to hold the last stitch in place and stop it coming out.  You will almost feel a 'click' beneath your finger as the yarn between the last stitch and the one you are making pulls flat.  The aim is to keep the loops as even as possible and working in the same direction really helps - from right to left when you are right handed and visa versa when you are left handed.  To do this, turn the work as required - which meant all the time as I worked along the curve of my spiral design.

The aim is to make the hooking flat and even on the underneath side and while this feels fiddly at first, with practice it will quite quickly become second nature.  If you happen to split the wool as you pull up then pull the loop back down from the underneath and hook up again.  Another key point is that you do not need to put yarn in every hessian hole.  With practice, you will get a much more even and pleasing effect by 'eyeballing' where the next loop of yarn needs to go.

Here is my finished spiral line ready for the next stage.

Then I started filling in with a contrasting colour, again starting with a generous 1" tail - the starting tails can be cut off as soon as all of the loops in the surrounding area are in place.

While I started with a clear drawn design, I found it best to choose colours as I went to keep an open mind about tweaking my design as I went along.  Many who use this technique say that you should hook around the outline of shapes and then fill in.  Whilst this does make for a sharper outline edge, a single row of loops can sometimes start to unravel when there are no other stitches alongside to keep them in place.  Try approaching in different ways and see what works best for you.

I have also found it helpful and encouraging to work a section completely with the colours that I had in mind.  This gave me confidence in my colour choices and reduced the risk of changing my mind about colours at an advanced stage and lots of unpicking.

It's tricky to describe in words 'which way to go next' as you are working along.  Try different says of hooking the holes and pull back if you don't like the finished look.  Like all hand skills, it becomes intuitive after a while and you will find a way that works for you.  This photo of the back of my design gives a sense of the choices that I made when filling each section with colour.

This particular design is still a few days away from completion and in the mean time, here is an earlier completed sample.  I thought that the image was rather fitting for the resource I was using and those who know me well will confirm, sheep are a bit of a passion.  I'm looking at making a video over the next week or so to demonstrate the craft more fully, so do come back and have another look at this post.

As I complete this post with some degree of satisfaction, the inevitable feelings of helplessness start to reemerge.  I remind myself yet again that creativity will be a huge asset to all that lies ahead and that the task in hand for many of us now is to keep well and prepare for when we can reengage with our communities.  Stay safe and firmly focussed on the light on the horizon.