The Rag Rug
If you’re wondering how you can nurture your creative side in an environmentally friendly manner, by recycling material, then here’s how. The following steps will show you how to construct your own ‘rag rug’. So gather your long lost bits of material and clothes that haven’t seen the light of day for eons and get ready.
For those getting nervous at the thought of sewing, this guide follows the simple ‘over and under’ method that will have even the most impractical person succeeding. The result will be a handsome looking bit of reused material that you’ll not only be proud of, but you could use as a pot holder, place matt or rug of some sort.
Step 1:
Cut your fabric up into strips 1-3 inches wide and remove any seams. The strips can be any length. If you’re unsure, try starting with strips about 3 feet in length.
Step 2:
Tie two of the strips together in a simple loose knot like so. Don’t make them too tight, as you’ll need to thread through material through these at a later stage. Note, your weaving will also look better here if your pieces are slightly uneven in length.
Step 3:
Arrange your strips so they alternate in colour, and grab the far right strip and start weaving over and under the other strips, working from right to left. Note: Don’t weave too tightly, just enough for the braid to hold its shape.
Step 4:
When you’ve got your braid about half the length you want it, it’s time to turn a corner, shaping as you go. When you’re weaving, turn a strip to the right and tuck it into the edge of the original braid. You may not get to tuck every braid in if you want to keep flat while turning. You may have to skip a couple.
Step 5:
Work your way back down to the starting knot just following the original pattern you stared with (if you want stripes, tuck it in its own colour as you come around and down).
Step 6:
Once you get back to the original knot, and have worked your way round in a lovely curve, you’re ready to add a strip. You can do this by joining each colour together and putting them through the starting knot while keeping the pattern. Then continue braiding, although this time it’s under, over, under over.
Step 7:
Braid all the way down and then back up the other side to the original knot. Repeat, and keep adding strips until you have just the right size rag rug you’re looking for (you’ll likely need more than 8 strips).
Step 8:
Once you’ve got the width you want in the middle of the rag rug, it’s time work down until your strips start diminishing, until finally you have none. Continue until you run out of strands, and wallah! Your neglected rags are put to good use, and you now have a rag rug you can show off to you friends.
For further rag rug tips checkout the Little House in the Suburbs website.
