Some Thoughts On Proddy Rugs

Within the group, we have made a few Proddy or Proggy or Clippy or Peggy rugs. I’ve made two myself, with another on the frame. 

Whilst you can’t get the finesse or detail of hooked rugs, the ‘impressionist’ look you will achieve is lovely, let alone the beautiful softness. But I have some opinions on the matter, and for my own future reference and to share I'll stick them together and have a blether (something for the new Facebook page). 

Back

Anne Schafer's Liquorice Allsorts proddy rug. The colurs are well defined against each other. Each line is at least three rows of prods.

Next is Anne's Poppy rug. Again, even with the mottled background, the poppies pop. 

Inspired to try my hand and use up a substantial amount of stash, I worked out a design and began my own. The silky nature of the fabric gives it a lovely sheen.

I followed Anne's advice, making my sections each a good contrast and the lines three rows thick. The green lines separating the sectons and a dark brown behind it works quite well. I'm really happy with this one! So...

I started another... It looks brighter here I have to say. I’ll often start with a couple of fabrics (from my stash) that I want to design around. In this case it was the yellow and some pinks and lilacs (as per the centre of the first). I thought I’d cut my bits longer than the last but this was a mistake, I feel. It’s too shaggy! Mind you it feels lovely underfoot... Plus, the value or shade of the lilac is too similar to the yellow, so it’s not well defined. One of the pinks is a muted dusty colour (pretty in itself), but it looks a little muddy. While the back shows reasonable definition, the front doesn't. Still... it'll do...

To be honest, I started this one (below) second, but it's been rolled up for Quite Some Time. I do love using silks and exotic fabrics, old clothes etc., so get sidetracked, and whilst I like the colours, they're not really going to suit the house. I do that all of the time though, so what's new? It's all blanketing.

I thought that would make it tough and hard to step on, but it isn't. It's cosy.

  

OK so just get on and finish it! But, my point is (in writing this) the colour definition is nice. Note to self, take your own advice!
Chris Noorbergen is making this gorgeous tropical leafy rug. 'll get a better picture. Chris lives at lovely Loch, in West Gippsland (I'd say it's Gippy). Her strength of colour is beautiful and the dyed blackish background makes the design very strong.

Obviously there is a lot to be said for any type of design and we only have to follow our own taste. My hubby is always telling me to do a scketch first but the only one I have done is for the only one I'm not in love with. It's hard to know what fabric I'll find. If you are dyeing your cloth, then  you can colour in your drawing. But when it's all scraps and stash it's a bit more difficult.
I want to start another proggy now though. Now I know what I need to think of. Maybe I'll think through Where I want it, What is needs to go with and begin from there.
Or maybe I won't.

A Quiet Day At The Patch

Saturday 25th of May was a quiet one at my home in The Patch (Victoria, Australia). Anne, Katherine and myself (Robyne) were joined briefly by my friend Nicole, who had a little go at hooking. I want to convert her of course, but two dogs, four young boys and a full time job keep her busy enough and she said she despairs of any poor rug that lays on their floors just now. I do assure her that children grow (and, shhh, eventually leave home).

I hope the rest of our team were too busy to get along, rather than didn't realise we had a get together. Sooorrryy!! I forgot to send out a reminder....

Katherine working on her Magpie Rug (below). 

Getting there with the Footy Rug. I find if I leave it in the lounge room, I go to it more often, rather than away from the tele in the sewing room. Boring!

Nicole and I are each making 'Calla', a lovely patterned shawl. I dyed some Bendigo Woollen Mills alpaca in two shades of this lovely teal. Mine (the darker) is finished (I started way ahead of Nicole, who is the far better and more dedicated knitter).
We're going to swap our leftover yarn at the end to make complimentary cuffs.

Jennifer Walton, who joined in in spirit from the Atherton Tablelands in FNQ, has finished her first combined proggy/hooky rug! Excepting for the binding (which will no doubt be done by now).
Such finesse! Jen said she spent an aeon preparing the flowers beforehand. So proud! 

Calla. The colour is much darker than this really. It was useful yesterday, out and about in the freezing cold.

Jennie Walton's New Obsession

My dear friend Jennie Walton came to stay a while back, and I showed her my rugs and how to make them. I gave her a copy of Miriam Miller's fabulous book 'Proggy & Hooky Rugs' which is a clear and excellent cover-all of instruction.
Armed, Jennie went home and started! This, her first rug, has a hooked background surrounding prodded flowers.
Jen has always taken a new craft on like a crazy person, mastering techniques in her stride, without the timidity.  Growing up surrounded by the artistry of her father Brian Evans, she has a great eye for detail.

UPDATE: Made using scraps of silk, suede, felt, cotton, velvet, cotton/wool yarn, light blue satin dress, T shirt, and a piece of polyester! The backing is an old hessian curtain bought from the market (heaps left too). In other words, Every kind of  material is here!
Incorporating hooked, shorn-hooky and proddy work.

THE NEXT GET TOGETHER IS AT MY PLACE (ROBYNE'S) IN THE PATCH ON THE 25TH OF MAY. Phone 0410876096 or email r.m.square@bigpond or call any of us or comment here for instructions on how to get here. 10am onward.

No-Name Proddy Rug

Made using TONS of fabrics I've had for years and years and years (plus a little new). My stash is noticeably depleted, in a good way.  

It took almost exactly one month to make. Not a bad effort I do say so mesself.

The back's always more cleanly defined. Plus, the photo's are more distinct than reality. It's just a big fluffy pile of colour, but it feels amazing! So thick! 

Relates to previous post.

New Proggy Rug, Begun 24th September 2018

I started a new Proddy/Proggy rug at the Melbourne Show, got home and pulled it all out then started again with a completely new plan. The first one looked fine on paper, but seemed too abstract for my taste. Mud!

So here is the progress report...

Just so you can see the state of things around here. I keep putting it on the verandah (because of the mess) but in the end, I'm too keen to dilly-dally. So we're knee deep in thread and fluff and crazy. The One True doesn't mind at all.
The trolley was in use at my Granny & Gramps's pub (The Star Hotel at Yackandanhad). I used to roll it out with the bread and butter dishes to set the tables.
Some of the fabrics I have had since I was a teenager, or remember my Grandma having in her cupboard. I can point to the origin of most of it and so my memories are well and truly in there. I might be the only one who will ever know, but the family will have other associations in time to come, I guess.

It's around 80 x 150 cm.

The starting points, above and below.

'Buda' Traditional Arts Fair at Castlemaine

Anne and I spent a warm day at Buda yesterday, talking to people and demonstrating our rug making.
I managed to get some bad photo's of the rugs inside the old homestead. The tour of the house was taken by an Enthusiast of the history and she described a family of largely unmarried girls who were encouraged and educated in anything they fancied and led a very adventurous life. It's worth a read here, and definitely worth the tour, although I'd like to go back and look at my leisure (knowing the story). The whole place, inside and out, has been donated to the Castlemaine Art Gallery, which also hold a fabulous collection and is worth a visit.

These Hooked Rugs are made on the old latch-hook canvas (which is so much harder to use than hessian or linen). A lady did a demonstration in the garden but we had to admit it was hard not to butt in! It was suggested you Must Put Latex or Thinned Glue on the Back to keep it together! Exclamation Mark! We politely didn't say anything and at least there was a bit of interest.
She did use a latch-hook with the latch sticky-taped shut, which isn't a bad idea and they are easily found in op shops. 
But I wanted to say how much Cheaper and Easier it is to work on hessian. And they don't fall apart. And come inside and look at ours!

Here I am working on the footy rug.

Anne with her newest proddy, started for the show (I think).

This one was behind a cabinet and in shadow. I really like it! 

Robyne's Newest Proggy Rug Is Ready To Go

The linen, ready to go. I'd been struggling over whether to do it as another proggy/peggy/clippy rug, or hook it, with my exotic fabrics... silks and the like... but I'm getting low on some silks and decided to use my many and sometimes hand-dyed woollen blankets. Plus, proggy suits a bedside setting, for your morning toes. Done!
The whole point is to use up my stash, too, and wool I got plenty!

It's around 74 x 140cm, maybe a smidge smaller.

Here is the inspiration (Peruvian wall hanging), although I'm not using these types of colours. I was thinking more along the lines of this amazing Kimono.

Fleur-de-lis Proggy Rug

I'm really enjoying doing this rug. It's slow work, takes tons and tons of cloth, is terribly messy, gives me a sore neck and is the funnest!

It will need some trimming later, obviously.

I bought the frame via Miriam Miller at Narrawilly Rugs. It sits on a couple of old trestle legs in my sewing room so I can pop in and do some every day. I signed up for a '10 minute a day pledge' on Rug Hooking Daily, which is good because you invariably do way more.

I started out doing the progs too close together, but it doesn't matter at all. You can't tell.

Here is my sketch (which I've deviated from considerably) and its inspiration.