Raggety Rugs – Shaggy Rugs – Recycling Fabric (CH0322)

I made these some while ago while being quite homeless and waiting for a new abode. All materials for these raggety, shaggy rugs were obtained very cheaply from the local co-op shop.

I am not going into overly long details as the pictures pretty much tell the whole story and these shaggy rugs from re-cycled fabrics are quite easy to make.

Raggety Shaggy Rugs from Recycled Fabrics (CH0322)

These recycled materials, including the grid rug canvas, were from the op-op shop. When recycling, I try not to have to buy things. That would kind of defeat the purpose. However, I was homeless. And what was worse, I was separated from my precious hoarded stock and useful tools. So this project was something I could try with minimal tools and materials.

recycle materials for shaggy rugs

I didn’t learn during the making of my first rug (the black and red rug) but let me give you this tip now: whether you are cutting your strips or tearing them (if fabric allows), it is best to do this preparatory step out doors whenever possible.

working outdoors for my second rug

As you can see from my next two photos, when I cut my fabrics indoors, I ended up with a lot of clean up to do. Some fabrics shed more “fabric dust” than others. And they can be very fine. I even had to work with a face mask during the process. The following photos don’t even show the extent of the “fabric dust” that accumulated. They were also on every flat surface in the room, at every level. 🙁

Cut your fabric strips to suitable lengths. Mine were about ½ to ¾ inch wide and about six inches long. This is a very forgiving craft – approximation is good enough.

Cut fabric strips

Starting knotting each strip to the canvas. Remember to leave a border to be bound when the rug is completed. I tend to work from an edge, and work inwards. I don’t know if that is the right way, but that is the way I did it. And it worked out quite fine.

Knot strips to canvas

Carry on with your knotting.

Tip:
You don’t have to knot your strips. If your strips are long enough, you can fold them in half, pull them through holes in the rug canvas, and loop the folded end over the loose ends, and tighten. (Sorry I don’t have photos to show you right now.) This is mostly done with a latch hook. And since I didn’t have any specialized tools with me, knotting was the easiest way to go. Tip: Even if you are just knotting, a crochet hook could also come in handy to more easily pull each strip through.

That’s about all the simple technique you need! If you cannot lay your hands on rug grid canvas (which are fairly expensive), you can also use hessian. I may show this in one of my later shaggy rugs projects. However with the grid canvas, the work is much neater – especially the back.

As my rug grid canvas came from the op-op show, you might have noticed that the edges of part of the canvas was a bit torn and not straight. Binding the edges of your shaggy rug always gives a better and more satisfactory finish. And this is doubly true in my case here.

So this was one of the ways I kept myself happy and occupied during my homeless phase. And also, warm!!! 😀

Completed Shappy Rugs (CH0322)

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