Studio Series: Women's Work

Women's Work © Karen Thiessen, 2013

A few years ago I flirted with rug hooking. Aside from the burlap, most of the fabric and all the white buttons come from my husband's shirts. The iron silhouette and bottom are representations of my mom's childhood toy iron. When I was about eight years old, my grandma invited me into her sewing room and allowed me to go through her button tin and take whatever tickled my fancy. According to my mom, the red and green buttons come from dresses that grandma made for her when she was a young girl. I haven't hooked rugs in a long time, but looking at this piece reminds me how fun it was to make.

Women's Work is 24 cm wide by 18 cm high.