New Books

Here are a few new rug hooking books recently released.

From "Rug Hooking Magazine" comes Celebration of Hand-Hooked Rugs XIX. Always a joy to look through and draw inspiration from. I love looking through quickly at first to see if I know any of the hookers.



The new book by Jane Halliwell Green called Pictorial Hooked Rugs was released in October. The description from the amazon.com Web site follows:

One of the most challenging of all rug styles is the pictorial rug or wall hanging. This full-color book guides readers step-by-step through the process of how to create pictorial rugs. This book is the definitive instruction manual on how to create the elements of a pictorial rug. Each section contains a description of techniques, materials, dye formulas, and hooked illustrations of the elements described. It contains tips and tricks for the rug hooker to take the guesswork out of planning a personalized rug.



Check it out. I'm always fascinated with a book on pictorials. It's a goal of mine to create a rug of the neighborhood I lived in while growing up.

Amy Oxford's new book is entitled Hooked Rugs Today IV: Expect the Unexpected. Here is a description of the book I found on an Italian (!) Web site:

Explore expertly crafted, contemporary hooked rugs with designs ranging from abstract to political statement, and from adorable pet depictions to painterly expressions. The Green Mountain Rug Hooking Guild mounted a great exhibit for a few short weeks in November 2008 at Shelburne Museum in Vermont, and now displayed forever in the pages of this rich book. Two featured artists - Rae Harrell and Diane Kelly -display their personal styles through retrospectives of their work. Members from the guild were challenged to think "outside the box," and they came up with a variety of imagery and form ranging from lifesize, three-dimensional sheep to extraordinary miniature punch-needle works. Other categories include animals, florals, landscapes, penny rugs, and even a small section dedicated to the smallest members of the group: the children. The colors, forms, and variety will astound and inspire anyone with an interest in fiber arts.