Noodlings

Hooked Braided Mat, 11” X 21”, #7-cut wool on linen, inspired by a braided rug, designed and hooked by Anita White, Overland Park, Kansas, 2007. “I found it helpful to make an actual braid with my wool strips,” Anita said, “so that I could see the angle and color sequence." Today, I'm reaching back into the archives of articles I wrote for Rug Hooking Magazine, which has now become We Like Rug Hooking, a wholly digital publication. I was a regular contributor from 2009 to 20

After many years of hooking in smaller cuts and with brighter colors, I suddenly had a hankering to make a rug that looks as old as the hills. This idea started with an antique frame. Well, it really started way back in March of 2009 with Janice Lee. Of course, many of us started hooking because we loved antique rugs and wanted to mimic that look. After I had learned to hook in September of 2008, I eagerly drove to Valley, Nebraska, every single Friday afternoon to hook at

A small sampling of Anita White's Long Lovelies. Back in March of 2026, I learned of an opportunity to teach a mini-class. At that moment, I happened to be admiring Anita White's "Long Lovelies," those beautiful strips of wandering color. I thought that maybe a rug hooker could use those brilliantly dyed pieces to mimic dazzling butterfly wings. Hence, the "Dream Butterfly" mini-class, where we would discuss why we find REAL butterflies so beautiful (their symmetry and dazz