Use Those Old Towels to Braid a Rug for your Bathroom

Photo credit by Mrs Ginther

If you have ever braided hair you can braid a rug.  It is a simple process that can produce a unique and lovely addition to your home.  And it is a wonderful winter project if you are confined to the house because of the cold and welcome the warmth of a rug on your lap.  It can of course be done at any time of the year. 

It requires no special equipment but there are a few tools that you can pick up or put together yourself that might make the job a bit easier.   It would be difficult for me to describe the process without illustrations, so I would therefore like to direct you to some nice instructions, with diagrams at the following web site: http://www.craftown.com/instruction/rugs.htm

Here are some variations to the instruction given on that great site.

Materials:  The most common material used for Braided Rugs is 100% wool as it is very durable and has a nice stable flexibility for making those turns.  Unfortunately, this material is becoming more and more difficult to find for the home sewer and much too expensive these days. 

Most chain fabric stores do not seem to carry it any more.    You can of course, recycle old garments for the wool, but I would recommend starting with lighter weight wool (i.e. skirts, trousers) rather than coat wool because it is easier to work with.   You should be able to still buy woollen items from the op shops at a reasonable price.

Alternatively, using old denim is a great option, it is very durable, easy to work with and often plentiful.  These denim rugs are great for the children’s rooms or even a games room.  By browsing a thrift store, especially on those days when you can get a bag full of merchandise for a couple dollars, you can easily get enough jeans in various shades of blue to make a beautiful rug. 

Another great source of material for braided rugs is terry cloth, like some chewed up old towels that you have been considering throwing away.  Just cut the towels into strips and braid following the directions at the website.  I used a variety of different coloured old towels that we had and it made a beautiful pastel coloured bath mat that was thick and very comfortable on the bare feet.  This one resided in the bathroom and was delightful to step onto our of the bath or shower.

Tools:  As I mentioned at the beginning, you do not NEED any specific tools but a couple things do make it easier. 

First, you need something to secure one end of your fabric while you work.  There are specialty clamps you can buy for this purpose, however, I use a simple wood workers spring type clamp (the type you just squeeze like a pair of pruning shears).  You can [pick something like this up relatively cheaply from places like Bunnings, Mitre 10 or any hardware store.

Put your strips along the edge of a table and clamp them in place.  So not essential, but helpful. 

Starting & Ending Techniques: A technique which is not described in the article is for starting the rug so that it lays flat.  Braided rugs run the risk of “humping and bumping” in different places.  This can be caused by mismatched thicknesses or weight of material, so it is best to always use materials of a similar thickness. 

In starting a rug, there is also a tendency to bump up in the middle forming what is known in the hobby as the Mexican sombrero syndrome.    One way to avoid this is alter your braiding technique at the beginning. 

In a regular braid, you put the right over the middle, then the left over the middle, right over middle, and so on.  To start a round rug, you put the right over, then the right over again, followed by the left over.  Right over, right over, left over, and so on for about 8-10 repeats.  This gives a natural curling to the braid that helps it to lie flat. 

After you have done several concentric circles you can go to the traditional braiding pattern and continue this to the end.  If you are doing an oval rug, you do this alternative pattern when you are turning the first couple corners.  After this, the turn will be wide enough to handle the regular braid.  I hope that this makes sense.

To end a rug smoothly, as you are about to braid the last 6-7 inches of material, trim the fabric so that you get progressively thinner strips, which will make a progressively thinner braid, ending the rug more smoothly.

I hope that these directions and links have inspired you to give this age old recycling project a try. 

In conclusion, I would like to give you another resource. 

Here is another link to a site that gives instructions for braiding rugs.

http://www.colonialsense.com/How-To_Guides/Crafts/Braided_Rugs/Making_a_Braided_Rug.php

Happy Braiding!