Pulling the wool

Lyle Drier has heard all the jokes about her 'hooking" hobby, the "happy hooker" and so on.

But as one meanders through her Waukesha home and sees her rugs and wall hangings, pillows and purses - one creation more beautiful than the next on her walls, floors and furniture - the ha-ha's turn to oohs and aahs.

Many of Lyle's works are not what people think of when they think of a hooked rug - pretty, colorful patterns on an oval or rectangle. Instead, they are more like paintings made of wool. There is the hooked wall hanging depicting Parfrey's Glen near Baraboo, where the shadowed rocks and rushing water are evident. Or the hanging of fungi - that's as in lots of fungus - that she recently completed. It's gorgeous, richly hued and dimensional. "I loved the many colors and shapes of the different kinds of fungus," said Lyle, who often uses nature as her inspiration.

A stroll through Lyle's home, which she shares with Dennis, her husband of almost 40 years, reveals much about Lyle. The vertical boards on the stairway depict some of her favorite things, such as whales, birds, Christmas and snowflakes, as does a wall hanging of bugs and rugs, friends and family aptly named "My World." There is a half-moon rug of her neighbor's cat and a hooked creation of the front door of their home. All the things she loves, places she's been, all that has meaning in her life are on a wall or on the floor - or perhaps tucked under a bed or in a closet because there simply isn't room for them elsewhere.

Starting with a Star

Besides her rug-hooking hobby, Lyle and Dennis have been antique dealers for 38 years and own a shop in Wales, so there are many interesting antique pieces throughout the home. There are also a number of very intricate, counted cross-stitch creations on the walls, representative of another favorite pastime until she became, well, hooked.

It was in 1970, the year Lyle and Dennis were married after she earned a degree in textile design from UW-Madison, when Lyle opened a Woman's Day magazine and saw an article on hooked rugs. "With our house full of antiques, I thought hooked rugs would make a perfect complement for the floors," said Lyle. "My first rug was a large Texas Star pattern done in found wool (wool clothing recycled), which is still on the floor in our entry hall."

Close to 150 pieces later, and still counting, Lyle has become an expert. She has won ribbons, including Best of Show, at the Wisconsin State Fair, as well as in shows throughout the Midwest. Her rugs have been selected eight times to be winners or honorable mentions in Celebration, an annual publication of Rug Hooking magazine, which features a juried exhibit of the best hand-hooked rugs.

Speedy fingers

It's quite amazing that Lyle is so productive ("My guild kids me that I'm a fast hooker") with her antique business and many other interests. "I love all textiles and have done weaving, spinning, knitting and counted cross stitch. I have to say rug hooking has taken over. I would rather be doing that than anything else. I love the creativity and color," said Lyle.

Lyle also is a teacher naturalist at Retzer Nature Center, just a short distance from her home. "I love nature and many of my rugs reflect that in their designs," said Lyle. One of her creations, which took her nearly two years to complete, hangs at Retzer.

It's not unusual for Lyle to be working on several projects at once, as was the case with the Retzer piece. But for Lyle, a day without hooking is like a day without sunshine. "Except for the days I attend (Cream City Rug Hookers) Guild I usually hook for several hours in the evening. I spend time on some days creating and transferring designs to the backing and some time dying wool. I also attend workshops where I may work on a project for three to four days straight."

Inspiration all around

Lyle's works of art are in many places, as many have been given as gifts to friends and family. She's also donated pieces to silent auctions for various charities, such as Apple Fest at Retzer and Harvest Ball for Stillwaters Cancer Support Group.

The tools of a rug hooker's trade are simple and portable. "The basics are a wood handle hook and a frame. A tool that cuts wool fabric into strips is also very helpful," said Lyle. "Traditional rug hooking uses wool fabric cut into strips which are hooked through an even weave backing, such as linen or monks cloth. Many older rugs were done on burlap backing."

Lyle often gets suggestions from Dennis as she's working. He even helped her finish the background on a huge counted cross-stitch piece that hangs in their living room. There is one aspect of her hobby that he isn't too keen on. "It is that it is a very messy art, little pieces of wool everywhere," said Lyle.

Ideas are everywhere for Lyle, too, but sometimes it takes a while to figure out where to start. "Some times the idea just hangs around in my head for a long time before I actually think it is ready," she explained. "Then one day a light goes on, I put it down on paper and away I go."

And, before long, all those little strips of wool magically arrange themselves into a lovely work of art in the capable and imaginative hands of Lyle Drier.

Cream City Rug Hookers

Rug hookers in the area can join a group of dedicated craftspersons in the Cream City Rug Hookers Guild, which meets the second and fourth Wednesday of the month in Waukesha and Wauwatosa. The group has over 50 members and demonstrates rug hooking at Hawk's Inn in Delafield and at the Sheep and Wool Festival in Jefferson. The group generally puts on a rug show every couple of years at places such as the Kneeland-Walker House in Wauwatosa, Hawk's Inn in Delafield, and The Cedarburg Quilt and Textile Museum.

For more information about the group, contact Rosann Yelton, club president at rjyelton@charter.net.