Description:
The traditional and homey craft of Proddy mat making originated in Northern England/Southern Scotland, where it is thought to be an early precursor of rug hooking. Simpler and faster than hooking, this technique makes the thickest, shaggiest, softest pile; extremely plush, sturdy, and long wearing. Proddy consumes TONS of wool, so is perfect for using scraps and leftovers from your stash, even the coat weight wools that are too thick for hooking.
In the most traditional Proddy mats, short, rectangular pieces of wool are poked through the backing (from the back- as in punch needle) to form a thick, shaggy surface on the front. But when the little rectangles are trimmed with scissors to make petal shapes, they can be used to create 3-dimensional flower blossoms—very useful to enhance and embellish hooked rugs!
Join us for a whole day of fun and exploration of Proddy techniques. Select one of Janet’s “Perfect for Proddy” projects, or design a mat of your own—in advance or during class using her simple folk art templates for tracing - so easy! You could spend the day making a series of Proddy Blossoms, or even bring in a rug in progress which you would like to enhance with 3-D effects. Janet will contact you in advance to answer questions and plan for your wants, needs, and wishes.
A wide variety of beautiful hand dyed wools will be available for purchase in class, as well as some “bargain bundles” of as-is textures, plaids and solids. The tools we will use are handmade Proddy “sticks” and “pokies”, which you can purchase, borrow, or bring your own. Fifteen different Proddy Blossom kits will be available, blank linen in various sizes, as well as packets of novelty yarns and trims suitable for embellishment. If we need to engineer another type of flower form, we can problem-solve together on the spot! Everything will be demonstrated with historic commentary, and each student will leave with handouts and written instructions.
Look over the Proddy section of Jane’s website, you will see multiple examples of Proddy patterns and kits. As always, in Janet’s classes, you are welcome to bring your own materials, self-drawn patterns, tools, and ideas—or challenge Janet to come up with a custom pattern just for you. The goal of our one-day experience is to leave with a great start on a new project in your desired size, color plan, and Proddy technique, thereby learning another wonderful way to use beautiful wool!