Hook'n a Heart

I've started hooking a heart since I had the urge anyway, plus as luck would have it there was an inquiry about how to hook them.  The heart was just started this afternoon so not much has been accomplished.  For my first one decided to hook the traditional red heart but using various textured wools.  By the way, I'm using a #10 wool strip instead of hand torn but it still goes faster than using #8.

Perhaps the inquiries came about since my blog posting of my November class with Betsy Reed.  Among the great hooked items she brought for her trunk show these hearts were among them.

Well dang!!!!!!!!  I hadn't looked at her pieces again until tonight and see that she hooked hers across and I'm following the heart shape.  Oh well, I'll make do and decide how to proceed since I've only hooked two rows on one side and three on the other.  Hmm, guess that means a challenge.  Maybe I need to do another red one and have it hooked across after one outline row.  Sounds like a winner to me and you can vote on which version you like best.

Anyway, this heart was drawn out at Betsy's class and you can see the measurements by the rulers here.  This is the size hers were and what I'm hooking now.  Since this was for me to hook I used my scrap linen with a more narrow margin.  When I sell my patterns there is at least a 3" margin all around.  But since it is all cut away later I usually just sew on a piece of fabric to hold it to the frame and use my scraps.

Locker hooking uses a much different threader needle and TRADITIONAL rug hooking uses a hook similar to that in the first photo.  It resembles a crochet hook but I prefer the one with a ball hand.  Yet I have some friends who do use a large crochet hook. 

Traditional rug hooking should NOT to be confused with latch hook.  The way I'm hooking is the way our foremothers made their rugs.  Except their hook was usually fashioned out of a nail which had been bent or if a large nail was chiseled at the end to give it a catching hook.  It was then inserted into a hand carved piece of wood. 

This is the underside of my gripper hooking frame and you can see that the tail is now under the pattern.  So I will insert my hook (I'm right handed) and pull up the loop using my left hand to guide the wool strip.  Yup, it is a two handed job. 

In rug hooking you start with the 'tail' of the wool strip up, go over a few holes and pull up the next loop.  Be sure to lean your hook toward the previous loop so that it puts pressure on that loop so it doesn't slip down.

Hope this has helped a little for those of you who inquired and those who wondered.

Saundra