Gene’s Rug Hooking Blog

Since I was shooed out of the house last night, so my wife could wrap Christmas presents, it got me to thinking about possible Christmas and Hanukkah gifts – particularly the printed and bound kind.  Of course, I just assume that everyone either has, or has already placed, both The Rug Hooker’s Bible and Prodding Hooking for a Three Dimensional Effect on their holiday list.  Today’s blog is about a set of books that is much harder to find than those two (available in my store) as they are out of print.  In addition, they happen to be my favorite (old) books on hooked rugs  … and two of them ( one copy each) are available with today’s post.

The books to which I am referring are those by William Winthrop Kent.  Mr. Kent, a noted architect, was fascinated with hooked rugs and did a lot of research on the subject in the first part of the last century.   I probably like him because I, too, often see rug designs in architectural elements.  His first book, The Hooked Rug, was published in 1930.  In 210 pages, with 172 black and white illustrations, he traces various origins of the hooking process, classifies designs and discusses the art form in the US and Canada.

Rare Hooked Rugs, his second book, first published in 1941, has 220 pages with 240 illustrations – some B & W and others in color.  The chapters in this book cover various genres of design: Primitive, Floral (Natural and Conventional), Floral Geometric, Geometrical, Animal Life, Still Life, Nautical & Landscape.  In addition, he also has some concluding chapters on suggested designs both old and new.

Book #3, Hooked Rug Design, 1949, also comes with a mixture of B & W/color illustrations (140) contained in its 190 pages.  As suggested by the title, it is more about the design elements in a good hooked rug.  It also includes several designs by the author.

Although Kent’s writing style does sound a bit dated, the fabulous illustrations and anecdotal information certainly make these books a must have for any serious rug hooking enthusiast.  Obviously, all his illustrations and photos are pre – 1949.  If you don’t like old rugs, you probably won’t like these books.  However, if you feed on old designs, as I do, you will find these books to be a treasure trove of information.   Additionally, to anyone who is familiar with the work of contemporary designers, it is quite fun to flip through the pages and see how liberally Kent has been … adapted for the modern market!

I am selling one copy each of #’s 2 and 3 – Rare Hooked Rugs and Hooked Rug Design. Each copy is $25 plus shipping and handling.  First come first served by contacting me via my email address at gene@geneshepherd.com so we can work out the details. These are not my books – I am selling them for a reader.  While they could have been sold in other venues, I appreciate the ability to offer them first to my blog readers as I know they will give them a good home.  Please note they are old books, in very good, but not perfect shape – one has a dust jacket and the other does not.

Why was book #1, The Hooked Rug, not offered for sale at $25. Because I bought it for $25 … after all, I did say first come first served! FYI: my copy of book #2 was an inheritance from Miss Weigle and #3 was a gift from Jane Olson – some thing which makes each a little more special.

Because I do, from time to time, come in possession of good used books and equipment, I have added a Used Equipment page to the heading of the blog so that I can keep a list of used items available to readers.