Crafts: Rag rugs

Barbara
by Barbara
I asked about a form of reversable rag rug my mom used to make. The strips were about 3/4" to 1" wide and were accordioned onto a needle and string. She then, somehow, placed the accordioned strips side-by-side and fastened them together around the string rather than stitching the sides of the strips together. Does anyone know what this type of rag rug is called and, after the strips are accordioned on the needle and string, how does one actually make a rug out of it??? I've tried but just can't seem to get it to work with what little I remember about the procedure (over 30 years ago). HELP!!!
Barbara
  2 answers
  • Sia@South 47th Sia@South 47th on Aug 07, 2013
    Hi @Barbara, do you by chance have a picture of some sort? I think that might be really helpful so everyone here can help you. xoxo
    • Barbara Barbara on Aug 08, 2013
      @Sia@South 47th Hi Sia@South 47th. No, I don't have a pic. However, after placing my inquiry on Hometalk I stumbled across a book by Diana Blake Gray titled "Traditional Shirred & Standing Wool Rugs." Chapter 7 is about "Sewn Center-shirring" and appears to be exactly what I was looking for! This tells about strips of fabric (usually wool) that are (in my words) accordioned onto the needle and string with the needle going through the center of each folded piece. However, in chapter 14 it tells about "Mono-shirring" in which one takes a whole wool blanket and accordion-folds it bit by bit, without cutting it, until one has done the entire blanket and end up with a shirred rug. Sounds VERY time consuming but perhaps easier in the long run than doing individual strips of fabric and having to sew them together. In either case you end up with a rug about 3/4" - 1" thick, depending upon the height of the folds.
  • Deborah Anthony Deborah Anthony on Mar 28, 2017

    I just saw one here on Hometalk, was a hoola hoop frame used like a loom sort of, a round rug made from t shirt strips. First, you tie string across the hoola hoop, then weave in and out, over and under, the t shirt strands around until you get the entire rug made, tying off as you go... looked pretty easy, and if you want a large rug I imagine you could keep weaving after you disconnect from the hoop, you know? I'm using the Hometalk search and nothing comes up which is weird. lol