Welcome to my web site, WOOL, ETC.

My name is Michele Wise.  I am a retired high school teacher of 30 years and a certified McGown teacher.  I am active in ATHA Region XI, National ATHA  McGown Guild, TIGHR, and Green Mountain Guild.

I live in the  Pacific Northwest on Hood Canal with a beautiful view of the water and mountains, where I am enjoying my free time, learning more about myself and following my passions.  I  host two retreats north of Seattle each year at Goldbar, Washington.  I also help organize a Puget Sound Rug School at Federal Way, Washington, to be held each year in March.  I am the new director of Western Region McGown Teachers' Workshop held in Eugene, Oregon, in June of each year.

My passion is rug hooking but I dabble in many other fiber arts and teach them around the area.  (rug hooking, wool applique, needle felting, needle punch, wool dyeing), I like to find different ways to use rug hooking besides rugs, wall hangings and pillows.  I custom dye wool.  I design rugs and enjoy commission work. 

My work reflects my eclectic tastes.  My work is mostly realistic.  Many patterns are ones I have designed but I hook other patterns in addition.  As a teacher I want to foster a love of creating art with wool.  I believe my role is to nurture creativity and introduce new techniques and materials.  I am grateful to all my teachers, both formal and informal.  I conduct a class in borders and backgrounds.  I also have a class in hooking and upholstering furniture.  Another class is creating (hooking) a journal.  This journal can be a travel journal, art journal, self-discovery journal, etc.  I teach how to put the journals together as well as how to develop each page.  I also do a small class in creating hooked dolls.

There are patterns, kits and fun items for sale on my site as well as items I have made.

I have written articles for

  RUG HOOKING - NOV/DEC. 2010

  ATHA- ISSUE NO 177 J/J, 2009

 ATHA - ISSUE NO 181

  ATHA - ISSUE NOV. 2011

WOOL STREET JOURNAL VOL. 9 NO. 2 JULY 2010

  THE INTERNATIONAL GUILD OF HANDHOOKING RUGMAKERS NEWSLETTER 2010

 PUBLISHED RUGS IN THE FOLLOWING BOOKS:

PICTORIALS BY ANNE MARIE LITTENBURG

DESIGNING RUGS BY SUSAN FELLER

HOOKED RUGS TODAY BY AMY OXFORD

RAM TOUGH RUG CHOOSEN AS TOP TEN IN 2011 GREEN MOUNTAIN RUG SHOW IN VERMONT

CELEBRATIONS 2012

I will be teaching at Hooker HIll in Oakhurst, CA in July.

In October I will be teaching at the TIGHR Expo in Strathalbyn, Austrailia, and then traveling in the area for a couple months.

In August, 2012, I will be taking a class at Assummption Abbey in North Dakota, and then on the Sauder Village in Ohio.