wondering about rag rugs

[stirringleaf]

once when i was in high school , a class had a project of making a rag rug. i believe they simply braided the different bits of fabric and coiled them around , sewing the coil to itself., so it made one of those oval shaped rugs. they made a really big rug when it was all said and done, and it was colorful and nice looking. has anyone done this? i think i want to make one this summer. are there certain kinds of strong thread i should use? do i have to hem all the scraps, or just fold the hems in before braiding?

is it a bad idea that will only cause me headache? :LOL

thanks in advance!

[rubelin]

My aunts used to make these all the time. They mostly used woolen or polyester scraps from some ugly pantsuits, lol. I don't think they even bothered to finish the edges of the scraps, but you could just keep any raw edges tucked in as you braid. You can find carpet thread at most fabric stores; I think Coats & Clark makes some.

[earthcore]

My mom just made one of these for me this winter. She got the wool from ugly wool clothing at thrift shops, braided it folding in the rough edges and sewed it using regular sewing thread. . When I was little, she made a giant one that covered almost the entire floor in our dining room. The hardest part of the project, according to her, was finding the wool. She really had to scavenge.

[momto l&a]

I have a friend who makes these and sells them.

You need to sew the coils together with waxed thread.
There are peices of metal that go on each strip that fold the raw edges into the center (kinda like bias tape) and you braid the strips together.

Made out of wool and with the waxed thread they last a very long time.

My friend get old wool skirts and anything else that she can get some decent strips out of.

[Hibou]

I have one on the go, but I should tell you that I don't follow rules much! I use all kinds of different fabric- I just save the scraps from whatever I sew, cut it into strips, snip a little hole in each end of each strip to connect them (pass the fabric strip through the hole of the previous strip, then pass that same end through the other hole on the same strip) and then braid. Once the braid is long enough, I will stitch it together using bias tape (or you can use ribbons, laces, whatever is on hand). The old ladies from our museum's women's auxiliary showed me this method. They were using mostly old polyester scraps, and just tucking the ends in as they went, but you could also sew them.

[stirringleaf]

Hibou---so when you say you stitch it together with bias tape, do you mean you are simply weaving bias tape into the braid to hold th coil together?

and wow i didnt even think about type of fabric. wool would be really nice. i have a bunch of fabric i was hoping to use, cuz i just have too much fabric sitting here...so cotton would fall apart too fast? is that why its not used?


thanks everyone . its interesting to see all the methods people use. i wont be doing this till summer so if anyone has any more methods or tips, post 'em!

[Boobs]

I saw someone make a really cute one on HGTV out of bath towels. I want to try it before too long.

[Brisen]

Do you felt the wool?

[msrog]

bath towels and socks make a very fun rug, but it sure is messy cutting and working with the strips!

I can't imagine how much work must go into a braided rug. I prefer to crochet mine. I like to use thrift store finds: sheets, towels, SOCKS, tee shirts, skirts, etc. I have also lucked out and gotten some cotten fabric end bolts here and there, already cut into strips on a roll.

Here are some of my rugs: http://share.shutterfly.com/osi.jsp?i=EeAM2TRszcsWzDLg