Nora Chin thinks about rugs all of the time. “I fall asleep at night thinking about rugs [that] I want to make and new things I want to try,” she says. The lifelong Chicagoan was raised by artists. Spending her childhood figure skating and some of her early 20s skating professionally for Disney On Ice, she’s dipped her hands in various mediums after attending the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Working in photography, drawing, painting, and ceramics, she says that “humor is important to me in my work and I try to use it to tap into ideas of nostalgia and as a way to access more difficult or serious themes like the pain of growing up and millennial anxieties.” Ultimately, she landed on rug-making during the pandemic.

In the past few years, the 1970s aesthetic has made its comeback in fashion, typography, home decor, and music. Burnt oranges and mustard yellows are infiltrating our lives. With this comes the shag rug, a popular rug that gets its name from the deep pile of yarn and that gained prominence in the 70s. Originally inspired by Flokati rugs from ancient Greece, the shag rug isn’t just something that lies on the floor. Wall hangings—which are really just large rugs—also started to become popular in the 70s. Symbols like mushrooms, owls, flowers, and warm colors can be found on DIY vintage shag wall hangings. Shag wall carpeting even made its way to interior design when folks decided they wanted their walls to be a bit shaggy, too.

RUG-MAKING TECHNIQUES

Hand tuftingThis method uses a tufting gun creating a much faster and easier production of a rug. Makers stretch a foundation cloth on a frame and then use the gun to shoot loops of yarn from the back to the front.

Hand hooking This method is when a maker pulls yarn from the back to the front of a foundation cloth using a rug hook tool.

Flat weaving This type of rug-making process requires no foundation cloth as the maker makes the foundation and pattern at the same time with a loom machine. They are typically smoother in texture.

Hand knotting Persian, Tibetan, and Indian rugs typically use this labor-intensive technique. The method requires a loom and weaving weft where they warp strands and tie small knots one at a time. This is a much slower process for high-quality rugs.

Machine making In the modern era, machines are able to loom, weave, hook, and tuft. These automated loom machines are used in factory settings and can create intricate patterns with technology supplied by a computer.

Since the pandemic, Faletto’s rug work has changed. She explains that her COVID work takes a “detour into a joyful escape from reality.” She sees her rugs as a “ticket out of the pandemic for even a minute.” Her designs are colorful and loud. Zoi Zoi launched during the pandemic with their collection of work called “Clubhouse,” which focuses on nightlife and how it’s forever changed due to the pandemic.

Like any creative practice, rug-making is meditative. For these two artists, creating a physical object is absolutely essential during the massive changes happening in the world. For some TikTok followers, just watching the making of a rug is entrancing. Whether it’s by hand or with a gun, creating a drawing with yarn has taken storm during the pandemic. Whether it’s our yearning for domesticity, looking to make extra cash, or just being an artist, there’s no doubt that this new medium is here to stay.   v