Fruits of the Earth

To create Fruits of the Earth, I used hand-dyed wool fabric in several different skin-tone formulas to help me build the face and create the highlights and low lights. I used wool yarn and fabric for the hair, as I feel the yarn gives the look of strands of hair. I used mercerized cotton to give the sleeves of the dress the appearance of drawn-in folds as in Alphonse Mucha’s art, since this pattern has an art- nouveau style.

The face is the feature I love the most, because after making sure my pattern was correct in the face, I realized I was looking at my youngest granddaughter, Elliot, and used photos of her in full light to help me hook the facial features, especially the eyes. I also used photos of the ears of my older granddaughter, Alivia, to help me get them to look realistic.

When I started this pattern, I thought the face would present the biggest challenge, but it turned out to be the blonde hair. Since it was Elliot’s face looking at me, I decided to give the rug Elliot’s blonde hair instead of the red hair I had planned originally, as I was red-haired when I was young, and red hair seemed to have more hues to use to make the hair look realistic. In creating the shadows, which were very dark next to the light-colored wool and yarn used for the top hair, it was hard to maintain realism and create perspective simultaneously. I just kept trying to remember which locks were on top and which were behind and underneath, even if it sometimes looked odd.

I wanted to display this rug like Alphonse Mucha’s posters on the brick walls in Paris. However, I also need to travel with the rug to shows and classes. My friend Libbey suggested that I use the extra backing to lace the rug onto foam core board, making the rug into a poster to hang on the brick wall and remove as need be.

Fruits of the Earth, 22″ x 36″, #3-, 4-, and 6-cut hand-dyed wool, wool yarn, and mercerized cotton thread on linen. Designed by Jane McGown Flynn and hooked by Marianne Relka, Scottsbluff, Nebraska, 2024.

Marianne Relka
SCOTTSBLUFF, NEBRASKA

Marianne started rug hooking in 2014, taking a class on traditional rug hooking at a fiber fair in her area. The class was taught by Libbey Lundgren and just what she wanted! She has been hooking with Libbey and several others ever since. She also belongs to the Midwest Rug Hookers and Woolwrights Rug Hooking Guild, as well as and Wanda Kerr’s The Welcome Mat. She is a retired dental assistant and currently a gopher for the farm, grandma, and rug hooker—the best jobs ever!