BIO: Barb started hooking in 1987 with her good friend Bobbie True. They traveled to Kansas City once a week to take classes from the legendary Emma Lou Lais. Those were three great years.
After a move to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Barb found many people who liked her style of primitive rug hooking and so the grand adventure began. As time and wools evolved the adventure took on the excitement of all textured wools and using cuts # 8 and above. Her rugs all have a sense of fun and whimsy to them, while reflecting the personality of the rug hooker.
In addition to her great start with Emma Lou Lais, she has taken classes from Jule Marie Smith, Heather Ritchie, Kathy Morton, and other neat teachers along the way. Barb has been teaching for 30 years, across the country and at the Woolley Fox Rug Camp and in her Ligonier, Pennsylvania home.
Barb has coauthored two books with Emma Lou - Antique Colours for Primitive Rugs, and American Primitive Hooked Rugs. She has also written The Secrets of Primitive Hooked Rugs and American Folk Art Rug Hooking and wrote the rug hooking section of Warren Kimble American Folk Artist book, the introduction for Hooked Rug Storytelling: The Art of Heather Ritchie book, and has had her work featured in books published in Japan and England. Barb has written articles for Rug Hooking Magazine and the ATHA newsletter. She is a textile judge for Early American Life Magazine’s Traditional American Crafts and has been featured in articles in 2011 and 2013.
Her primitive Woolley Fox rug hooking patterns, more than 500, designed by Barb and other artists are now available through Katie Hartner.
Barb is the proud mother of two wonderful girls, Diane and Robin and the Oma of wonderful grandchildren: Abby, Nick, Jack, Molly, Monica and Jack.
Elaine Cathcart has worked together with Barb to create this workshop project. She has been hooking rugs for more than 28 years and is a very talented rug hooker. Her work has been featured in Jessie Turbayne’s books. Elaine has been a teaching assistant to Barb over the years and will assist with this workshop.