The Improv Rug

The Friendship Rug Hookers. Back row, left to right: Lisa Collins, Pam Welch, Sharon Rouse, Caroline Meek, Rosemary Harney, Carol Heinman, Lacy Evans, Ellen Moore, Karol George, Mave Britton, Susan Thomas, Gloria Shone, Annie Wheatcraft, and Vicky Andrews. Front row, left to right: Maggie Friel, Shelagh Stark, Diane Doss, Becky Headley, and Lois Craigmyle. Absent: Fran Decker, Charlotte Pyles, Linda Ritterbusch, Theresa Stiltner, Tina Sullivan, and Linda Wood-Busby.

TEXT BY LISA P. COLLINS/PHOTOGRAPHY BY PAM WELCH

Have you ever started a rug-hooking project and, by the end, had an entirely different thing than what you set out to create? That’s what happened to the Friendship Rug Hookers of Frankfort, Kentucky.

About a year ago, Pam Welch, the Friendship Rug Hookers’ social-media and social-everything-else person, came up with the idea to do a group rug. After the rug was finished, one name would be drawn out of a hat at the annual holiday party in December 2025. The lucky person whose name was drawn would take home the prize extraordinaire: the group rug.

So it was that 21 women came up with an unplanned plan for the Improv Rug. The 21/2-by-5-foot rug would be hooked on a blank, natural-linen canvas with 100 percent wool strips. The rug hookers pooled the money to purchase the linen, which was the only expense, since all the wool came from their stashes. Caroline Meek made the trip to The Woolery in Frankfort to purchase the linen. The only instructions the rug hookers received were to conceive an idea that fit the theme, draw and color plan it, and hook their design into the rug. “Fluidity” and “botanical” were the theme words. Each person could keep the rug only one week so the momentum would not be lost. The Friendship Rug Hookers meet weekly, so for 21 weeks, they watched with delight as the rug developed.

First, Becky Headley added a wavy border, so the rug hookers had the choice of adding an image to the center of the rug or working in the border. Along with hit-or-miss bright colors, creatures and plants started to appear in the border. Later, “FRH” for Friendship Rug Hookers was added.

Then, the rug hookers took turns adding their touches. The first twist occurred when the “botanical” theme morphed into an “organic” theme after a snake appeared in the rug early on. All sorts of lovely little creatures followed, including ants, caterpillars, dragonflies, a ladybug, a butterfly, and a hummingbird. Soon, the rug hookers could see the critters were living in a wonderland of flowers, mushrooms, vines, bamboo, and a tree trunk. One week, a frog appeared, then a squirrel, a hedgehog, and more birds. There were bees and a beehive, a mouse, a spider in her web, and a sweet fern. Shelagh Stark’s creativity led her to gather ginkgo leaves and then drop them on the rug, hooking them in yellow and golden hues where they landed.

Then came filling in the back-ground and completing the border, both of which were not exempt from the creativity that was flowing through the Improv Rug. The rug hookers had to make a decision about colors for the background and considered light versus dark. A vote for dark won the day and, again, the rug hookers pooled their stashes, this time for the background wool. A coincidence that influenced the color choices was that the work of artist Charlie Harper was being exhibited at the Headley-Whitney Museum in nearby Lexington. Several rug hookers attended the exhibition. In admiration of Harper’s style, the rug hookers decided to use a wide variety of green wools for the background to achieve the look of a forest floor. There was a bit of hooker anxiety at this point: would the colors work? For another 21 weeks, the rug went home with the hookers a second time. And the colors did work—amazingly well!

Each week, the Friendship Rug Hookers were oohing and aahing over how their project was developing into an unforgettable hooked rug. December holiday luncheon drawing, here we come! Everyone hoped their name would be drawn for the rug.

Then, things took another, even more important, turn. Shelagh Stark, a bedrock of the Friendship Rug Hookers, who without fail made sure the group had its weekly fresh, hot coffee, served in a collection of shining ceramic demitasses with fresh milk. Shelagh Stark, who for many years, collected everyone’s “snip-its,” which she turned into beds for feral cats. Shelagh Stark, a friend to all and a talented rug hooker who made such beautiful rugs, announced she was moving from Frankfort, Kentucky, to Sault Ste Marie, Ontario, Canada.

This was a “happy for Shelagh/sad for the Friendship Rug Hookers” moment. For the Improv Rug, the announcement meant there would not be a drawing at the annual holiday party in December. Instead, the rug hookers voted secretly and unanimously to give the rug to Shelagh as a symbol of their friendship. Finishing the rug went into high gear so the rug hookers could present it to Shelagh at a potluck lunch in her honor several days before she left Frankfort in October for her new home.

The background complete, Vicky Andrews, who had been involved with the Improv Rug since the beginning of the project, brought it to the finale with a sturdy wool-yarn border that would serve Shelagh for many years to come. A label explaining the project was added to the back by Becky Headley, while preparations for the potluck went into full swing.

The day of the potluck rolled around too quickly. Becky, who has known Shelagh for many decades, stood to speak to the group. She expressed how much Shelagh has meant to the Friendship Rug Hookers and to herself. There were many tears in the room. Then, much to Shelagh’s delighted surprise, the Improv Rug, rolled up and tied with a ribbon, was presented to her. More tears, more smiles, and lots of hugs for Shelagh.

The Friendship Rug Hookers envision Shelagh in her new home, sipping a fresh cup of coffee in a lovely hand-made demitasse, her feet snuggly planted on the Improv Rug, gazing at all the wonderous little creatures surrounded by flora and fauna as the Friendship Rug Hookers send her their best wishes and love from Kentucky to Ontario.

Many thanks to Pam Welch for organizing the Improv Rug project, taking photos, providing much context to this article, and completing editing.