Founder, Lisa Meecham of Woolly Good Rug Hooking, is an accomplished artist in multiple media including furniture and fibre – re-purposing and upcycling are regularly deployed in her work to create functional pieces of art. For her, rug hooking is a deep connection to creativity, non-verbal expression, and positive mental health. Challenged by inter-generational trauma, and complex PTSD, the road to wellness is a sometimes a bumpy one. Artistic pursuits and rug hooking in particular are a productively tactile mindfulness exercise in self-compassion. A sixth-generation ancestor of Nova Scotia Blacks, this is a “Home for Good” passion project to help others along their mental health journeys.
Rug hooking has moved very quickly from chore of necessity – to craft – to now high and fine art. Founding the Woolly Good Rug Hooking Festival in 2020 and bringing it to Upper Island Cove in 2021 creates an Atlantic Canadian dedicated space for rug hooking to be celebrated by all in situ – paying homage to her mentor and friend, Elizabeth Walker of St. John’s – who, in 2015 asked to accompany her to her first Newfoundland “rug camp”.
