Tag: contemporary rug hooking

January 4, 2021

IN THE STUDIO – January 13 with Tracy Jamar

Tracy Jamar gives a peek at several pieces of her most recent works.

Poster for In the Studio with Tracy Jamar

Join Tracy Jamar as she shares what brought her to rug hooking and the trajectory that brought her to the work she’s doing now. She will give a peek at several pieces of her most recent works conceived by current events in her life: from the requirement to stay in place due to Covid to downsizing after the sale of her home.

About Tracy:

Tracy Jamar is familiar with traditional forms of needlework as she has been a restorer specializing in antique textiles, especially quilts and hooked rugs, for over 30 years. She started in 1979, at America Hurrah Antiques in NYC and, in 1985, opened Jamar Textile Restoration Studio, also in NYC.

In 2006, she returned to school to complete an undergraduate degree, an independent/individualized study of American history through women’s handmade textiles at Goddard College in Plainfield, VT. Soon after graduation, Tracy set her restoration business aside to make contemporary fiber works using traditional textile techniques.

Her works have been in juried and invitational exhibits: at the Farnsworth Art Museum; in a traveling exhibit to Japan; in exhibits in South Korea; and in a national tour with the Textile Study Group of NY among other places.

Tracy’s book, Coils, Folds, Twists and Turns: Contemporary Techniques in Fiber (2017) explores many of her techniques. She also contributed to American Sewn Rugs: Their History with Exceptional Examples with Jan Whitlock in 2012. They exhibited some of those rugs at Sauder Village in 2013. She appeared twice on the Martha Stewart Living television program and in Mary Sheppard Burton’s A Passion for the Creative Live: Textiles to Lift the Spirit and other publications.

Tracy was the keynote speaker at the Association of Traditional Hooking Artists (ATHA) Biennial in Denver, 2019. Her most recent award was for Best Sculpture at the Guild Hall Members Art Exhibit 2020 in East Hampton, NY.

You can learn more about Tracy Jamar and see her work at www.tracyjamar.com, and on FB and IG @tracyjamarfiberworks.

Find tickets for this event at Ticketscene.

IMPORTANT PLEASE READ:

The Zoom link for this presentation will be emailed to you the day before the talk (or after you purchase your ticket, if you purchase on the day of the event). If you don’t receive it, you can contact the organizer at info@karendmillerstudio.com.

Tickets will be on sale until 10am the day of the event. After that time you will no longer be able to purchase tickets.

FAQ’s

* Will this talk be recorded for viewing later?

Unfortunately, no. Due to the logistics involved, we decided some time ago to keep these events live. Hopefully if you can’t make it to this talk, you’ll be able to make it to a future talk.

* It’s the day of the talk and I’m having trouble finding or using the link for the talk. How can I find help?

It is very advisable to LOG INTO THE EVENT A FEW MINUTES EARLY to be sure that you have no trouble with the link, and if you are having trouble the organizer can help you out. You can email or message the event organizer up until 12:30pm Eastern on the day of the talk for help. ONCE THE EVENT STARTS, however, messages and emails are not able to be monitored.

* I’m finding it distracting during the talk seeing all of the other participants on my screen. What can I do?

During the event the organizer will put the screen setting on “spotlight view” so that the presenter is the focus on your screen. Depending on your device, you may still see audience members on your screen and changing your setting from “gallery view” to “speaker view” should help with that.

December 16, 2020

Winter Teaching Schedule

High on Hooking’s Winter Teaching Schedule (thus far)

I thought that, as we close out 2020, perhaps it would be a good thing to summarize our winter teaching schedule as it currently stands. We do plan on adding more workshops. Unfortunately, Covid still requires that classes occur online, but that just means no hotel reservations needed, lower costs, and the ability to take workshops anywhere with all kinds of new people!

Small hooked rug — You too can “Build a Baby Boucherouite” or, as I like to call it, Barbies Magic Carpet. New class coming January 16, 2021. See the winter teaching schedule.

BUILD A BABY BOUCHEROUITE
Saturday, January 16, 1:00 p.m. Eastern

Boucherouites are having their day! They’re so trendy that you can’t look at a Better Home and Gardens magazine or watch an HGTV show without seeing them. The Berber tribe of Morocco has been creating Boucherouites, one-of-a-kind, hand-knotted rugs, since the mid-20th century. Traditionally, they’re made using old clothes and other textile scraps. They’re a pretty freestyle form of expression often looking as if the weaver started with one color scheme and pattern, got bored, and moved onto something else. They’re fun in a colorful, spontaneous way and are easily adaptable to rug hooking.

In this workshop you’ll design your own “Baby Boucherouite” rug and start to hook it with textile scraps you have on hand be they cotton clothing, old bedsheets, and/or leftover wool noodles. The sky’s the limit! We’ll also discuss how to prepare, cut, and hook with non-wool materials. This class is designed for a student proficient at rug hooking basics, particularly the mechanics of pulling loops through a backing. You need not own a cutter to participate (or even to hook rugs!).

Because this is an online workshop, students will supply their own materials. Materials needed:

•Hooks;
•Backing of choice to allow for a rectangular mat at least 12” by 6”;
•A frame;
•A pencil (or “magic” pen) and Sharpie to draw rugs straight onto backing;
•Fibers of choice (wool, yarn,old clothing/textiles, whatever); and
•A mind and spirit open to experimenting and FUN.

Class Fee: $45 US. For more information or to register, please contact me at Laura@highonhooking.com. Class limit of 12 students.

INTRO TO PUNCH NEEDLE RUG HOOKING
Sunday, January 31, 1:00 p.m. Eastern

This class is being taught as part of In the Studio’s WORKSHOP WEEK 2 which I wrote about last week. Find the info HERE. Please take a look there to see not just the punch needle class but all seven (yes, you read that right, 7!) workshops going on that week. Seven different instructors offering seven very different classes all through the week! There are also two bonus sessions – an evening gathering to hook, knit, crochet, chat, or just hang AND a panel discussion.

A caveat, my punch needle class appears to be full now. I am taking names in case of cancellations. And if there are enough interested (by that I mean as few as 2 and up to 10), I will be happy to run the class again later in the winter. Just give me a yell!

Other workshops are filling; if you’re interested, please contact the instructors ASAP. I should know; I’m a student in Nadine’s class!

HOW WILL YOU SPEND YOUR WINTER? IT’S TIME TO TRY SOMETHING NEW WHILE WE WAIT FOR THE VACCINES TO KICK COVID’S BUTT.

December 9, 2020

In the Studio’s Workshop Week 2 revealed!

Workshop Week 2 poster

In the Studio’s inaugural Workshop Week last October was such a hit that we’re doing it again: Workshop Week 2, January 31 – February 2, 2021. You are cordially invited to join the original five of us AND two additional teachers: Nadine Flagel and Donna Mulholland.

Again, all classes will be conducted on Zoom. I know, I know, it’s not the same as being there in person. But think of how this not only keeps costs down, but allows for people to join us from ALL OVER! And we will have the two bonus sessions again during the week – an evening gathering and a panel discussion.

NEW this time around are two official vendors: Parris House Wool Works in Maine for our US students, and Martina Lesar Hooked Rug Studio in Ontario for our Canadian students. Both shops are offering our students a discount coupon that can be used in their stores to stock up on supplies.

Teachers include: Karen Miller (who started this whole In the Studio thing!); Susan Feller; Meryl Cook; Beth Miller; myself; and Nadine and Donna. Class info is below and, if you prefer it a little larger, here.

There’s a wide array of workshops available, and you may take more than one. Email individual instructors for registration and more info. Don’t tarry, as classes filled up pretty quickly last time.

Hope to see you there. It’s a great way to start the New Year, which is something we all need!

December 5, 2020

The Angel of 2021 – Notorious

Hooked rug - angel of 2021 — “The Angel of 2021 – Notorious”

As I promised the other day, here is High on Hooking’s annual angel for the coming year. Because last year’s “Angel of 2020 Prays Very, Very Hard” clearly did NOT pray hard enough, this year’s celestial being had to be a bit more…forceful. Enter “The Angel of 2021 – Notorious” who has arrived to kick 2020 ‘s butt to the curb. “Notorious” sports a hand-crocheted jabot as well as wire-rim glasses. In each corner of the piece is a symbol of RBG’s life: scales of justice; a courthouse; the sign for equality; and the spiral of life. That last item can be found on the petroglyphs here in New Mexico where the great lady spent a significant part of the year.

Card featuring The Angel of 2020 — This is a card featuring “The Angel of 2020 Who Prays Very, Very Hard.” She sold right away last year, but she clearly needed some better prayers.

“Notorious” is 22.5 inches by 16.5 inches. She was hooked on my usual monk’s cloth using: wool yarn, wool strips, and ribbons.

Hooked rug - The Angel of 2021 — A close-up of “Notorious”

I’d like to say that she’s available, but she sold almost as soon as I loaded her up into the Etsy shop. (I still can’t get over that!) The base angel pattern is available to be drawn up on request (linen, monk’s cloth, or rug warp). Email me if you’re interested.

Along with the “Angel of 2021 – Notorious,” I wish us all a much brighter and happier 2021.

December 3, 2020

What’s next for High on Hooking?

Two dogs and a crocheting project — Tynan and Bowyn present “What’s on the Hook” this week. By the way, the little guy is feeling much better and is back to all his mischievous ways.

What’s next? Why we’re officially into the holidays! Interestingly, that means that, at the moment, there is absolutely nothing on the frame. Not that I’m sitting on my butt, eating bon bons. No! Especially since the damn Coronacootie has seen fit to provide me an extra five pounds given how it keeps me at home. New Mexico has been pretty much locked-down till yesterday. Even if it wasn’t, the surge numbers scare the crap out of us.

Uncharacteristically, there’s absolutely nothing “On the Frame” this week. (Yet.) There is, however, something on my crochet hook. I’m making a cute basket-bag; the pattern and yarn are courtesy of We Are Knitters, if you’re interested. And I’m putting the finishing touches on “The Angel of 2021.” Will show her tomorrow, I hope. That almost-lockdown made it difficult to get a couple of items.

And we’re getting some classes ready for the New Year. God knows it’ll be a l-o-n-g winter, so we need something to keep us busy.

Baby Boucherouite class is what's next for High on Hooking — You too can “Build a Baby Boucherouite” or, as I like to call it, Barbies Magic Carpet. It’s what’s next on Zoom for High on Hooking.

First class up will be BUILD A BABY BOUCHEROUITE on Saturday, January 16, at 1:00 p.m. Eastern. Email me at Laura@highonhooking.com if you’re interested in coming. I ran that class in October during In the Studio’s Workshop Week and it was well received. More info to come, though you can see the basics here. If you’re on my waiting list from last time, no worries, I’ll be contacting you.

Speaking of Workshop Week, in the Studio’s Workshop Week 2 is coming! We’ve got a couple of new teachers this time around, so be watching for registration info too!

Let us not forget that it is the season of gift-giving. Remember that old adage: RUGS MAKE THE BEST GIFTS! Especially, hand-hooked rugs. Check out our Etsy shop to see what we have in our section of Santa’s Workshop this year. Spy something you like, you can buy it there or contact me directly at Laura@highonhooking.com and get $10 off the Etsy price for items over $50. As usual, I’m also open for commissions.

I wish everyone a safe holiday season. Although I’ve removed “autumn” from the house, I haven’t put the tree and other Christmas decor up. I suppose that’s really what’s next here. I have time; Advent just started Sunday. Besides, it’ll be a “small” Christmas this year, only the favorites will be out. What about you? Going all out as usual?