Many a year ago I made my Dad a crocheted rag rug. I thought it was pretty awful, I told him to put it in the outhouse! Fast forward to last year and I found that same rug in the sauna, he still had it and it was still in one piece!
So back to today, I have all of these clothes out at the cabin that are well-worn by Dad. Not really worth giving away and besides, I’m such a sentimental sap I would rather keep them. So I decided to make a rug out of his sweatshirts, he had so many of them!
Three sweatshirts worth braided and stitched together, working on the next set of three now.
I love the look of a braided rug. And this one is so thick and comfy to stand on! The only drawback is that they take a long time to create. I’ve got several hours and trips out to the cabin invested in this rug already and I’m only half done at this point.
I decided that I didn’t want to wait for a rug and opted for a woven rag rug made from T-shirts like this one that Dad has had for 20 years or so…
A blast from the past!
And I made a simple loom from a piece of plywood I found out in the shed and some paneling nails…
My simple loom, laying out a pattern with T-shirt loops.
Then I went to work wrapping and weaving, and in about 3 hours time I was ready to finish the ends….
Crocheting the edge of the rag rug.
And then I had a finished rug for my little kitchen floor!
All done! 6 T-shirts worth in this rag rug.
Now if I can just get my braided rug finished….
Alaska on my mind... 
7 Comments
Your Uncle Ray & I slept in the sauna the year we visited your Dad. It was fairly newly built and smelled pretty new. We have many good memories of that trip. Your rugs are pretty good looking I’m glad you can make them for his place. Always nice to have rugs under your feet and memories in your heart!
The sauna makes a good guest house when needed! 🙂
I can not believe he still had that shirt. Thought I was the only one that keeps stuff that long. Nice looking rugs. Glad things are going good for you.
I took that pix just for you Pete! I thought you’d like to know that he still had it. Now it is a permanent part of the cabin.
Thank you. I still have many great memories from that trip. That was my last true vacation. I hope to get to go back to Alaska someday.
The rugs look great! I like the idea of a woven one. Can you tell me more about how you made the loom? That’s something I have to try someday. When you did the braided one, did you cut the t-shirt into one long strip or several. How did you secure the braided one? I haven’t crocheted a rug in forever. You’ve inspired me to try again…
Noel, I just measured out and marked a line the size of the loom I wanted, then I put the nails in every 1/2 inch. I cut the t-shirt into one long piece. The braided one is secured with some nylon cord woven into the braid loops from the back.