About six months ago, my mom’s favorite woven rug bit the dust. She was sad, and so I determined to make her a rug that had a similar feel under her feet. So, I went searching on Amazon and found this Rag Rugs crochet book. I had her pick one that she liked, and then I went about matching it to the colors of her bathroom: light blue and dark brown. She really likes chevron stripes, so I got a chevron stripe that mixed both colors and a solid light blue, and a solid dark brown fabric, all in cotton. From here, it was quite a process.
I had to decide how I was going to make the rug look, more ragged or clean cut. I chose ragged, which means ripping the fabric. I used a rotary and nicked the beginning of each strip of fabric at 2 1/4 inches, then ripped them all. From there, you have to sew them together. I used the same technique that I use when I am making a quilt binding and sewing strips together, so it went quickly, but it was still a lot of fabric. And it goes fast when you’re crocheting it.
Things I’ll say about the crocheting:
It wasn’t difficult in stitches or pattern; it was hard on my hands. If you have arthritis of any sort in your hands, you’ll find yourself needing to take more breaks than you might for a regular project. The fabric is just a tough thing to crochet with in the size of strips needed. Keeping the patterned fabric folded correctly so you can see the chevron stripes is trickier than expected, and means that you have to pay extra attention so the wrong side of the fabric doesn’t show on your rug too much. It can’t be avoided all together, but if you work to make sure you’re keeping the print visible as often as possible, it helps.
Things I’ll say about the pattern:
The pattern was very clear and easy to read and understand. It was helpful to have the diagram to piece the thing together after I’d created the granny square strips.
The fabric measurements were off by about a half a yard. If you buy this book, remember to buy a half a yard more (at least . . . I bought a yard because I didn’t know how far off the measurements were. It’s hard to tell when you’ve never worked with crocheting fabric before) than the book calls for. My rug was to the exact measurements and gauge specified in the book, so I know it wasn’t my crocheting; it is that the measurements for fabric needs are off.
Without further ado, the finished product!
The rug isn’t perfectly rectangular, and it has some ends that occasionally find their way unwoven out of the project, but my mom loves it, and rugs are supposed to be unique anyway, right? Overall, after I’ve forgotten the pain of having to create my own long yarn strips, I’ll probably make another one of these, just a different pattern.
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