I want to make rag rugs

[bluebirdiemama]

But I cant find any instructions online that I actually understand. Maybe I need a visual ?? I dont know

[wombatclay]

What do you mean when you say "rag rug"? There are two rug styles that come to mind when I hear "rag rug" but they're fairly different from each other.

The first is a woven rug. You'd need a loom of some sort to make this type of rug. It's a "rag rug" because the material you use to weave the rug is recycled... basically "rags". You take the original fabric (we usually used old sheets), rip it into long strips about an inch wide, sew those strips end to end (so you have a veeeeeeery long, one inch wide, strip of fabric), warp your loom normally, and then weave using the long strips of fabric. This will give you the sort of multicolored country rag rug look. And they last forever. I have a few I wove 20+ years ago and they're still in pretty good shape.

The other style I think of is the braided rag rug. Again you start with fabric like old sheets, rip them into inch wide strips, and then braid these strips into a looooooong braid. The braid is then wrapped (like a spiral) around itself and sewn into place to create a large circular or oval rug. These also hold up well, don't require any fancy tools to make, and aren't difficult to produce (the 4yos at dd1's waldorf playschool make placemats using this technique). My mom used to make this style though when we had other things on the looms since she enjoyed the braiding process.

Anyway... I don't know if either of these styles are what you mean by rag rug. Do you have a picture of a finished rug? I know YouTube often has short videos of crafting so if you're more of a visual learner that may be a place to check.

good luck!

[orangefoot]

There is another kind of rag rug where you pull strips of fabric through hessian. I have made 2 rugs this way; one from fabric cut from t-shirts and the other from fabric cut from dh's worn out button up shirts.

You need a tool called a rag rugger or a latch hook to pull the strips through and it is very easy to do. You pack the strips in tightly so that you don't need to knot them or anything.

Here's a link to how to do it (there's awful music on there at the moment so you might want to turn the sound down!)

You can also tie strips of fabric to a mesh to make a fluffy rug and there's a youtube video of that here.

[duckpond]

My mom has made a couple of great rugs by ripping old sheets into thin strips, knotting the strips together and then knitting with really big needles.

[moondiapers]

http://vintagechica.typepad.com/the_...g_tutoria.html

[sapphire_chan]

I'm so glad I saw this, I've been meaning to get rid of my pjamas that are all old and baggy and this is just what I need to do with them.

And I *just* got a big crochet hook!

[llamalluv]

You can also make rag rugs with a toothbrush needle, which gives a different look than braided, hooked, knitted, or woven!

There are variations on toothbrush, as well: Bohemian braid, Swedish braid, and Naalbinding

http://www.netw.com/~rafter4/bohbrd.htm

[Incubator]

I started making a rag rug three weeks ago using this method.
I wanted something where I didn't have to buy anything to start (like, say a GIANT crochet hook that I could never use for anything else, perhaps?) I've been busy with other projects the past two weeks, but I like how it's coming along and I feel confident that I could pick it up again anytime and not be discouraged trying to figure out where I left off.