Rural Art Center

What should we call ourselves? The Lorane Hookers?

In 2015, coming on 10 years ago, a group of Rural Art Center folks decided to get educated on rug hooking so we could bring the art back to share in Lorane. We took lessons to get started, built some frames, ordered backing and hooks, and started scouring the racks at the St. Vincent de Pauls for used woolen clothing. We turned the clothes into thin strips that we could pull through the burlap or linen backing with our fat little modified crochet hooks. Eventually we went big time and purchased a crank gadget that would cut 6 strips at a time.

We ordered books, subscribed to magazines, and held gatherings at the Lorane Rebekah Lodge or various kitchen tables in the area. Once we even had a public hook-in at the Camas Mill Schoolhouse and Bakery. Gatherings were mostly monthly, except when they weren’t. Some stuck with it while others concluded that it was not their art form. Rugs, chair coverings, upholstery, wall hangings and coasters were produced. But really the best bit was the tea and conversation. Every get together would have unpredictable discussions. And laughs. While some continued to pull loops through fabric, some opted to set aside the hooking and bring hats to knit or weavings to make.

So it is in 2024 that we are calling these Hook or Handwork Meet-ups. We are meeting in our new “home”– the Crow Grange. We are moving the times around to see if there is a good fit. Friday afternoons are our starting point.

Recently, my husband and I were in Poland visiting friends and touring. When we got to our hotel, he asked if I had seen the hooking shop on our road. “It’s called hookaholics.” When we got settled and went back to check it out, this is what we found.