Doris Norman, Talented Canadian Creator of Phenomenal Rugs

The Tree of Life, 28" x 46", #7-cut wool on burlap. 1930s Garrett Brothers Bluenose design hooked by Doris Norman, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, 2009. Pattern sold by Rags to Rugs in Pictou, Nova Scotia.

Doris Norman is not only a skilled artisan and creator of inspiring and beautiful rugs, but she is also a talented, accredited Pearl McGown and Rug Hooking Guild of Nova Scotia (RHGNS) teacher who has helped countless people pick up a hook and find themselves in their creations.

Doris, who was born in New Brunswick, Canada, and lives in Fredericton, the capital city of that province, teaches rug hooking across the United States and Canada. She specializes in Celtic art, William Morris, Jacobean, realistic and primitive pictorials, Mayan/Peruvian art, stained glass hooking, and dyeing techniques. Her interest in the art all stems from her first rug hooking memory: “When I was a child in Black’s Harbour [New Brunswick], I remember seeing my grandmother Bradford’s rugs on the floor in the upstairs hall in her house.”

This article is from the January/February 2014 issue. For more information on our issues, check out our issues page.