Antique Vine/Satoko Uno

Antique Vine, 29" x 45", punched with Karakul rug yarn. Designed by The Ruggery, punched by Satoko Uno, Tokyo, Japan, 2018.

In 2017, I came to Washington, D.C., with my family when my husband was relocated for his job. I was teaching patchwork quilting before coming to America, and I was also interested in hooking. While I was researching rug hooking, I discovered rug punching.

There are hooking classes in Japan, but punching classes are rare there. I thought I would like to learn punching and maybe spread it in Japan.

I found Amy Oxford’s punch school online, but her class on punching was full. I was pleased to find Kathy Donovan on Amy Oxford’s website. I asked Kathy if she could teach me punching. It would be a challenge, because I can hardly speak English!