Resources on the Craft of Area Rugs

Meet Other Rug Hookers
Perhaps the best way to improve your rug hooking and do a bit of socializing is to meet other rug hookers. Luckily, Meet up is a site that joins people based on common interests, and rug hooking is one that is noted. There are groups cited in New York City and Montreal, with others out there. It’s easy to meet other rug makers with this useful Web site.

Braided Rugs
A personal history of braided rug making and instructions for making braided rugs. Using scraps, directions are offered to take the scraps and create oval or rectangle rugs. Pinning fabric together is essential for rug creation. Running and looping stitches are used.

Making Braided Rugs
This rug-maker chronicled her rug-making progress during the winter season of 2003 and 2004. He or she made braided rugs out of woolen fabrics found at thrift stores, and in the house. You can peruse the pictures in the gallery, as the rug-maker gives tips and tricks and guides you through her own rug-making hobby. A wide variety of rug-making concepts are easily presented here, with pictures that illustrate the production.

The Rugmaker's Homestead
The Rugmaker's Homestead is a resource to maintain the lost folk art of making rag rugs. The site contains everything visitors need to know when creating a rag rugs, including articles, directions, books, rag tools, rag kits and rag fabrics. Order materials and supplies through the catalog and read about the rag rugs tour. Rags include: Tambour rugs, Shirred rugs, Standing wool rugs, Chain Braid rugs, Amish Knots, Anchored Loops, Bodkin, Toothbrush rugs, Loom woven rugs, patched rugs, penny rugs, sewn shags, frame made rugs, wagon wheel rugs, and braided rugs.

Rug and Hooking Supplies
Past & Present Rug Shop is a fast growing traditional rug hooking supply business in North Rustico, Prince Edward Island. We offer a complete stock of rug hooking supplies including books, patterns, wool, yarn, printed patterns, bent scissors, hooks, hoops, frames, wool cloth cutters, thrummed knitting supplies and much more. Site features rug and mat hooking as a handcraft that originated more than a century ago. Today there is a growing interest in the use of many different materials to create original designs. Soon you will have your own collection of beautiful hooked mats and rugs that will eventually become your family heirlooms. Includes a gallery of rug patterns including landscapes, animals and other designs. Supplies include custom dyed wool, cutting machines, rug frames and hoops as well as rug hooks and prodders.

Braided Rug Facts
Braided rug facts are included on this website, which includes rug cleaning instructions, rug materials and rug production information. Rugs made of quality spun nylon rug yarn, which makes the rugs durable, stable and fade resistant. Also includes microfilament threads, and information about making rugs. Braids are made with a 5-carrier rug braider. There are only two types of braiding machines made specifically for producing rug braid. They are the 3-carrier and the 5-carrier rug braiders. We prefer and use the 5-carrier since it allows up to 5 colors in any strand of braid. Many braided rugs on the market today are braided using "harness braiders". If you take a second look at the rug and the braid does not appear as traditional braid or as you would braid someone's hair it was produced using a harness braider. These rugs are produced as cheaply as possible by wrapping a thin strand of inferior yarn around a tube. Tube rugs are hard to maintain and every time a strand of yarn breaks the tubular core starts to show. Also note the finishing technique employed with these rugs as well as the stitch length and stitch width. By using a long stitch length and a short stitch width these rugs can be sewn very quickly but quality is obviously sacrificed. Rugs are made using zig-zag sewing machine.