Classes and Teachers

2013 Teachers and Workshops
October 31, November 1, 2 & 3, 2013

Rae Harrell - How to Turn Your Concept into a Rug

Do you have great ideas but don't know how to make them come alive in real time? This workshop is for you! Rae will skillfully help you make reality those wonderful but hard to pin down concepts. Visualization and getting down to the bare bones of what you really want will become easy. Next step, get it on the backing. Rae will guide you through all the steps it takes to draw, begin and brainstorm through the processes. This class will be filled with joy and laughter as we go down these roads together.

Rae is a free thinker and knows no boundaries in what can be done in hooking. As a teacher she is available to you on all levels of the creative process. Laughter and new possibilities are her tools. Rae has been a "Featured Artist" and has won often the "Viewers' Choice" award at the Green Mountains Rug Hooking Guild's Hooked in the Mountains Rug Shows. Visit Rae's website: www.raeharrell.com

Anne-Marie Littenberg - Perfect Pictorials that Pop!

Join Anne-Marie Littenberg for her new class, "Perfect Pictorials that Pop!" Whether you are working on a landscape, cityscape, or portrait, or trying to achieve a painterly effect, Anne-Marie will provide a wealth of new information to help with your composition and execution. Color, design, and tips and tricks for achieving perspective and lighting effects will all be part of the curriculum. What is too much design? What is too little? We will be sure to spend time on the concept of editing our work. Are you struggling with how to translate images inspired by a photo or painting into a pattern? Are you struggling with a commercial pattern that you are having trouble executing? Do you have general design ideas of your own, but don't know how to translate them into a workable design for your rug? Do you have ideas you have tried to hook; only to find that what works in a photo or painting is very difficult to translate to the medium of rug hooking? If you are stuck and need some problem solving, this is the class for you! If you want to venture out and try something outside your comfort zone, this is the class for you! Traditional and punch needle rug hookers are all welcome. As long as you know how to pull or push your loops, feel free to join us. Bring a blank piece of backing and start from scratch. Or, bring a pattern and let's get to work! You can even bring work that is already underway; the choice is yours! Anne-Marie says, "I often hear from rug hookers that they feel they aren't 'good enough' or 'experienced enough' to take one of my classes. I don't know how that concept got started, but some of the best work to ever come out of my classes has been from people who are either fairly new to rug hooking, or brand new to creating their own designs (rather than using someone else's patterns). I do not teach the basics of rug hooking; I do assume that you will know how to prepare your backing and work your tools and strips. If you can do that, you will do great in my class!"

Anne-Marie is a frequent contributor to Rug Hooking Magazine, the author of Hooked Rug Landscapes and Hooked Rug Portraits. Anne-Marie is frequently named "viewer's choice" winner at the Green Mountain Rug Hooking Guild's "Hooked in the Mountains" exhibits. She is also a recipient of the prestigious Sauder Village Award. She has taught throughout the United States, made videos for HGTV, and participated in a number of exhibits including "The Art of Playing Cards" and "Stripes." During 2011--2012, her work was included in an exhibit of contemporary hooked rugs at the Farnsworth Museum in Portland, Maine. If you are trying to decide whether to take this class and wish to ask Anne-Marie questions to help you make up your mind, please email her at: amwlittenberg@comcast.net

Jennifer Manuell - Bibs, Belts, and Other ‘Baby' Projects

Are you ready to be carefree, to play and try something a little different? Reluctant to start yet another big rug? Want to return home with a completed project, for a change? In this class we will create small, unique, functional projects.... that make a Statement! We will combine techniques, textures, mediums and colours in new ways, to create new forms. Bib necklaces that pair hooking with other handwork, such as: beading, embroidery, needle felting, and/or appliqué.... fashion belts with hooked panels and/or or hooked belt buckles.... key chains... small pouches...broaches...and even coin purses. The key is that the projects are small (less than 100 square inches of hooking - and many are considerably less that that!). You don't need to be a master rug hooker or a professional seamstress to create a distinctive bespoke hooked accessory.
You just need a sense of adventure, some good materials and a little bit of patience. There will be lots of samples to inspire your designs, basic supplies and tools.... and you will learn various tried-and-true finishing methods. Some special one-on-one time will ensure that everyone leaves with at least one finished project.