Rug hooking novice Sturgis Haskins of Sorrento pulls a loop of wool through his rug. Haskins said he chose a “manly” subject of a boat for his rug.—STAFF PHOTO BY CYNDI WOOD

Rug Hooking Enjoys a Renaissance in Downeast Maine

There’s nothing quite so friendly as a room full of hookers.

Rug hookers that is.

More than two dozen hookers from around the state attended a Jan. 17 hook-in at St. Andrew Lutheran Church in Ellsworth.

They came to hook, socialize and check out each others’ projects. The air was rich with the smell of baked goods and buzzing with the sound of chatter as the hookers — mostly women — gathered around several long tables.

“For me it’s therapy,” said Martha Whitehouse of Hampden as she worked on an under-the-sea rug for her sister. “I call it my winter gardening.”

Whitehouse began hooking three years ago after the death of her daughter. She said the craft gives her a creative outlet and a sense of camaraderie with fellow hookers.

Hooking and other fiber arts have risen in popularity in recent years.

Right, every rug hooker has a stash of wool on hand for projects.—STAFF PHOTO BY CYNDI WOOD

“It’s an old art that has recently been revived,” said Ann Verissimo, president of the Downeast Chapter Two Chapter of the Association of Traditional Hooking Artists. The group was founded last year and meets weekly in the Gouldsboro village of Corea.

“Self-Portrait,” Rosemary Levin—STAFF PHOTO BY CYNDI WOOD

Rosemary Levin said that before opening the business, she invited hookers to informal hooking sessions in her basement.

She has taught many people the art of rug hooking and sells hooking supplies in her shop.

The premise of rug hooking is simple — pulling loops of wool or yarn through a stiff, woven backing with a hook. Most types of fiber would work for hooking, but wool is most often used because it holds its shape.

Hookers can use their own designs or purchase patterns.

But before the hooking comes the stripping. Wool must be cut into strips of the desired width. Wider strips are used in primitive-style rug hooking, while thinner strips create a more traditional look.

Stripping can be done with a machine or a pair of scissors.

Wool can be pricey, starting out around $20 a yard, so some hookers scour thrift stores and yard sales for gently worn wool clothing.

More than two dozen artisans turned out at a Jan. 17 hook-in at St. Andrew Lutheran Church in Ellsworth.—STAFF PHOTO BY CYNDI WOOD

A Pendleton-brand kilt would be the ultimate find, according to one hooker, because the kilts are made with lots of high quality flannel.

Martha Beals of Sidney (above left) hooks an intricate Oriental rug at a hook-in held Jan. 17 at St. Andrew Lutheran Church in Ellsworth. —STAFF PHOTO BY CYNDI WOOD

Once hooked, each loop is held in place by the densely packed loops around it.

The task requires patience and is not for everyone.

Years ago rug hooking was a necessity: if you needed a rug, you made it. The craft has been around for centuries but arose in its modern form in the mid-1800s in New England and the Canadian Maritime provinces.

It began as a way for poor women to make their own floor coverings. Colonial women would hook scraps of their family’s old clothing onto used burlap bags.

By the 1940s, the former necessity had emerged as a popular hobby.

Today, it has become a way to express creativity.

“There are no rules,” said Jean Girmscheid of Sullivan. “Everybody does their own thing.”

Girmscheid began hooking a couple of years ago with borrowed equipment and $12 worth of supplies.

She was soon “hooked.”

This Townsend wool stripper (center), slices wool into uniform strips at the turn of the handle. Rug hooks (far right) come in a variety of sizes.—STAFF PHOTO BY CYNDI WOOD

Rug hooks start out at about $6 and a simple rug hooking frame could be made for around $10. Using recycled wool can also keep costs down.

Searsport Rug Hooking, now closed for the season, is a major local source of hooking supplies.

Avid hookers are often drawn to the finest wools or lust after expensive frames.

How much money and time is invested is up to the individual hooker. A rug could take weeks or years to complete, depending on the hours spent making it.

Some hookers just can’t put their rugs down.

Girmscheid took along her latest project on a trip to the mechanic.

“They thought it was hysterical that there was a hooker in the waiting room,” she said.

Rugs are not the only items that can be hooked. Table runners, pillow cases, chair mats, stair treads and even Christmas ornaments can be created.

The applications are as diverse as the hookers themselves.

Ken Carpenter of Brooklin was the lone male at the Jan. 17 hook-in in Ellsworth.

He learned to hook about seven years ago after taking an adult education course. He now teaches his own classes.

He and other area hookers and crafters gather on Tuesdays in Brooklin to work on their various projects.

Both his personal taste and skills are reflected in his rugs.

“I like to do more geometric stuff because I can’t draw for beans, but I can do the math out,” Carpenter said.