Starting with a delightful introduction to Judy Taylor's own sheep and goats, and covering the entire process of rug hooking, this video conveys a strong sense of tradition while suggesting unusual modern applications for an old craft. The narration is pleasant and effective, and Judy Taylor makes hooking look easy and appealing.
Taylor, a hand spinner, starts with a brief history of rug hooking, explaining its popularity and versatility. Using her own animals, she presents an overview of wool processing, from the fleece on the animal through shearing, picking, carding, spinning and skeining. While not intended exclusively for spinners, this tape emphasizes handspun yarns and discusses appropriate fleeces for rug yarn. Taylor uses her own yarns for most projects; she also mentions the use of commercial yarn as well as fabric strips and unspun fleece.
Taylor introduces hooking using one of her own kits, for a small wall hanging. She anticipates the viewer's questions and generally offers clear, concise explanations. Other sections of the film cover blocking and finishing techniques, care and cleaning, designing your own projects, and choosing appropriate backing fabrics and other materials. A display of finished items, from stuffed animals to Christmas stockings, gives the viewer inspiration for a wide range of projects using the same simple technique. Textile historians will appreciate Taylor's admonition to add dates and initials to rug hooking projects.
Taylor encourages her viewers to share with her their finished projects and to contact her for further information. She mentions, but does not dwell on, the kits and supplies she sells, and includes her catalog with the tape. (Her brochure would benefit from more professional production, to match the quality of the video.)
For the most part, the photography is very good. Unfortunately, a few of the close-up shots, important to show details of the process, are out of focus (repeated viewing helps). After seeing the tape twice, I still had minor questions: Do you work with the yarn from a ball? Do you sew on the piping binding before you overcast it? However, this video made me feel I could do rug hooking, and also made me want to try. Spinners who view this video will certainly be tempted to add rug hooking to their repertoire of fiber techniques.
Reprinted with permission from SpinOff Magazine, Fall 1996 issue. Review was written by Bobbie Irwin.
