Introduction to Rag Rugs - Creative Recycling

Making is good for you, and exploring crafts can be relaxing and therapeutic. This book offers projects to recycle old clothes and textiles into unique, decorative, and useful items for your home or as hand-made gifts. The techniques are traditional and simple, and you can improvise as you work. Hooking is the best technique for pictorial detail, and different techniques can be combined for original wall art. Warning: this craft can be addictive!

Format: Paperback / softback
Publication date: 22 October 2021
Publisher: Pen & Sword Books Ltd

Crafting is not only a fun and creative activity, but it can also be incredibly therapeutic. By repurposing old clothes and textiles, you can create unique and decorative projects that are both practical and visually appealing. In this book, we will explore a variety of projects that are accessible to anyone who is inspired to recycle their worn clothes and textiles into something new.

Our forbears were resourceful in their efforts to recycle their worn clothes. If they lived near a mill, they often made mats out of dark suiting or mill waste. These mats served multiple purposes, including providing warmth on cold floors and acting as draft excluders across doors. However, today, we have a vast array of colors and textures to choose from when crafting with rags. You can experiment with painting, hooking, and various other techniques to transform dull fabrics into beautiful works of art.

One of the most exciting aspects of crafting with rags is the ability to create one-of-a-kind items for your home or as hand-made gifts. The techniques outlined in this book are traditional and simple, yet they can produce stunning results. Simple designs work best, and you can even improvise as you work. If a fabric runs out, simply use another, and you'll discover that organic design can be just as beautiful as planned.

Hooking is a particularly effective technique for adding pictorial detail to your projects. You can combine different techniques to create original wall art that is sure to impress. Historically, rugs were made by several people sitting around a horizontal frame, with children cutting pieces of rag and prodding them into the hessian (burlap) backing. While there is a prodded project in this book for purists, you can also achieve the same effect without a frame by progging, which can be done on a table or thigh (carefully).

Warning: Crafting with rags can be addictive! Once you start, you may find yourself constantly searching for new materials and ideas to create with. So, grab your scissors, thread, and paintbrushes, and get started on your next crafting adventure. You'll be amazed at what you can create with old clothes and textiles.

Weight: 494g
Dimension: 215 x 276 x 13 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781526780607