a braided rug how-to, update on a yellow sweater, and pictures of course
So, recently, I got this cute looking book called, a Prairie Girl's Guide to Life.
On the inside it tells you how to milk a cow, sew curtains for your bedroom, dress a chicken, make ice cream, brew the perfect pot of tea, knit a shawl, darn a sock, etcetera etcetera. Needless to say, it was just my cup of tea (non intended pun).
One of the other things it told you how to do, was make a braided rug. Okay, maybe not every home has a decor best suited for a rag rug, but it does seem like something everyone, at least, every girl, should know how to do. So I'll tell you. I'll even show you.
Pull out you basket, bag or whatever or old t shirts, sweat pants, old clothes that you put into your rag bag for car washing and the like. I used 8 fair sized t-shirts, a small pair of sweat pants, and two medium sized sweaters for a four foot diameter round rug. Don't use really thick articles of clothing for this-for one thing it's too hard to cut, for another, too hard to sew.
Cut each shirt or whatever in such away so you have one large flat piece of fabric laid out (you may want to cut the sleeves off) and begin cutting. You want nice long strips, but if you end up with shorter ones, keep them to use anyway. Make each strip three inches wide.
When you've done this to the desired number of shirts/clothes, toss them into a pile until your colors come out nice and random.
Taking different colors, take three strips, and sew them securely to each other end to end. Do this two more times so you have three yard longish strips. Tie these three strips together at one end and loop them onto a door knob or the leg of a heavy chair and start braiding, or, if you're confident and adept, just braid it in your lap. As you go, keep stitching on more strips, and keep braiding. Do this until there are no more strips left.
Take the end of your rope, and, using a flat surface like the floor, another rug, or a large table, curl a small length of rope around the end, once. Taking needle and thread that's been doubled, sew the middle 'knot' in place. A little at a time, use a whip stitch to sew the rug to itself.
Inotherwords, you take your needle that's been threaded. You pull it upwards through the loop of the braid that's on the outside closest to you. Then you put the needle downwards into the loop of the braid lying adjacent to it. You work like this-in a circular pattern. You turn the rug a little as you go as you slowing sew the rope onto your circle to make it bigger.
When you've used up your rope, tuck in the end of the rope underneath your rug and sew it into place.
An oval rug is made by sewing the rope onto a twelve in length of rope instead of a 'knot' to begin with.
This does take a while, a couple of days for me. But it is very satisfying, and I'm pretty sure your cat will like it if nothing else.
Note: You will see some thread showing, that's just the way it is-so make sure you use one that blends with your rags.
And without further ado, the finished product.
I also have an update on the easter sweater for my niece-not much progress, but I've gotten a hold, however tenuous, on the cable pattern.
I had some sprouting garlic cloves, so I planted those. They're coming up nicely.
My roma tomatos have also come up. Still no sign of the bell peppers. I think my packet of seeds was too old. :(
I've also been experimenting with bread making techniques, especially with the concepts of cold overnight rise for a better texture and deeper flavor, and with steam, by throwing icecubes into a preheated skillet in the oven when I put the bread loaves in to bake. Both of these things have improved the breads by a lot.
That's it for now. Warning: next post may include a picture of a snowman with a mohawk.
On the inside it tells you how to milk a cow, sew curtains for your bedroom, dress a chicken, make ice cream, brew the perfect pot of tea, knit a shawl, darn a sock, etcetera etcetera. Needless to say, it was just my cup of tea (non intended pun).
One of the other things it told you how to do, was make a braided rug. Okay, maybe not every home has a decor best suited for a rag rug, but it does seem like something everyone, at least, every girl, should know how to do. So I'll tell you. I'll even show you.
Pull out you basket, bag or whatever or old t shirts, sweat pants, old clothes that you put into your rag bag for car washing and the like. I used 8 fair sized t-shirts, a small pair of sweat pants, and two medium sized sweaters for a four foot diameter round rug. Don't use really thick articles of clothing for this-for one thing it's too hard to cut, for another, too hard to sew.
Cut each shirt or whatever in such away so you have one large flat piece of fabric laid out (you may want to cut the sleeves off) and begin cutting. You want nice long strips, but if you end up with shorter ones, keep them to use anyway. Make each strip three inches wide.
When you've done this to the desired number of shirts/clothes, toss them into a pile until your colors come out nice and random.
Taking different colors, take three strips, and sew them securely to each other end to end. Do this two more times so you have three yard longish strips. Tie these three strips together at one end and loop them onto a door knob or the leg of a heavy chair and start braiding, or, if you're confident and adept, just braid it in your lap. As you go, keep stitching on more strips, and keep braiding. Do this until there are no more strips left.
Take the end of your rope, and, using a flat surface like the floor, another rug, or a large table, curl a small length of rope around the end, once. Taking needle and thread that's been doubled, sew the middle 'knot' in place. A little at a time, use a whip stitch to sew the rug to itself.
Inotherwords, you take your needle that's been threaded. You pull it upwards through the loop of the braid that's on the outside closest to you. Then you put the needle downwards into the loop of the braid lying adjacent to it. You work like this-in a circular pattern. You turn the rug a little as you go as you slowing sew the rope onto your circle to make it bigger.
When you've used up your rope, tuck in the end of the rope underneath your rug and sew it into place.
An oval rug is made by sewing the rope onto a twelve in length of rope instead of a 'knot' to begin with.
This does take a while, a couple of days for me. But it is very satisfying, and I'm pretty sure your cat will like it if nothing else.
Note: You will see some thread showing, that's just the way it is-so make sure you use one that blends with your rags.
And without further ado, the finished product.
I also have an update on the easter sweater for my niece-not much progress, but I've gotten a hold, however tenuous, on the cable pattern.
I had some sprouting garlic cloves, so I planted those. They're coming up nicely.
My roma tomatos have also come up. Still no sign of the bell peppers. I think my packet of seeds was too old. :(
I've also been experimenting with bread making techniques, especially with the concepts of cold overnight rise for a better texture and deeper flavor, and with steam, by throwing icecubes into a preheated skillet in the oven when I put the bread loaves in to bake. Both of these things have improved the breads by a lot.
That's it for now. Warning: next post may include a picture of a snowman with a mohawk.