TROY, Vt. (AP) - Carolyn Buttolph likes to like to makes things people can use. She hooks rugs, everything from pot holders to large rugs, and leads a class on rug hooking at the Vermont Quilters’ ...

With yards of fabric and a simple hooking tool, Mary Jo Lahners paints pictures with wool. When Lahners first looks at a hooked rug pattern, her eyes take in more than blue skies or green grass. She ...

In one hand, Beth Anne Smiley holds a thin strip of colorful wool under the linen, and in the other hand she holds a hook on top. With a deft motion, she pokes the hook into the linen, catching the ...

JoAnne Klimovich Harrop Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025 12:01 a.m. | Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025 12:01 a.m. Some people retire to play golf or travel. Fritz Mitnick left her job because she was hooked on another ...

For Nancy Greene, it’s almost a form of therapy. For Leanne Sitler, it’s an art form, but so much more. Both women are hookers. OK, get your mind out of the gutter. They’re rug hookers, and they’ve ...