# Rugs from Blue Jeans



## creek scavenger

I was wondering if anyone had a good idea for making rugs from old blue jeans...


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## GrannyG

I have some links pinned on blue jean items....there were some rugs...
http://pinterest.com/itsybitsyfarm/blue-jean-loves/

http://gillianhamilton.blogspot.com/2011/03/who-said-grannys-dont-look-good-in.html

http://www.allfreecrafts.com/sewing/denim-rug.shtml


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## bluefish

I make braided and 'toothbrush' style rugs out of old jeans. 

If you click on the link in my sig, I have a toothbrush rug from blue jeans and a small braided rug from other colored jeans. I think I have a couple other pics of some older ones as well, somewhere.


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## kudzuvine

I crochet my rugs. I cut jeans into about 3/4" strips and use the largest needle I think is made (plastic). I attach each end and roll into ball and start single crochet. I'm not good at ovals or circles, so mine are rectangle. Very sturdy.....Janet


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## sapphira

I made one braided blue jean rug and it is the heaviest rug ever. Bout broke the washer. s


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## creek scavenger

Thanks for all the information!!


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## Taylor R.

I've been working on a braided circular rug, but crocheting is brilliant! I think I'll start one as soon as I find that elusive giant hook. I don't use it often and therefore often forget where I stuck it.


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## romysbaskets

Ok so I have been thinking about either making a quilt with this big bag of old jeans or.... Now I also considered rugs....ok so I found this very helpful diagram and want to share this. You get one long strip by making these strategic easy cuts and don't have to waste any of your valuable time tying long pieces together! I really liked seeing this and it was a great way to share a good idea...

You start by cutting along the seam to get a flat piece like this one. Then you use a yard stick and something to mark on your fabric with, I would use dots and then...this would take a lot less time to cut out then tying short strips.


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## romysbaskets

creek scavenger said:


> I was wondering if anyone had a good idea for making rugs from old blue jeans...


You can Weave these strips or you can crochet them....I just posted a picture of a diagram to show you how to cut out your strips.


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## BoldViolet

GrannyG said:


> I have some links pinned on blue jean items....there were some rugs...
> http://pinterest.com/itsybitsyfarm/blue-jean-loves/
> 
> http://gillianhamilton.blogspot.com/2011/03/who-said-grannys-dont-look-good-in.html
> 
> http://www.allfreecrafts.com/sewing/denim-rug.shtml



That bottom link pinged my anti-virus program, just so everyone is aware.


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## Taylor R.

My husband keeps handing me old pairs of jeans with holes all over them for my rug-making! I'm going to make him learn how to use the sewing machine so he can sew all those short pieces together himself.

What is it with men and keeping jeans until their important bits are hanging out of them!?


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## paradise planta

Here is a link to make your own rug loom: http://www.ask.com/question/how-to-build-a-rug-loom. While searching, I also found a BlogSpot that teaches you how to make a rug - and hers is so great I'm going to have to try and talk hubby into making me one - right after he finishes building my triangle loom! Here's her site: http://thecountryfarmhome.blogspot.com/2012/01/rag-rugs-delta-folk-art.html. Hope this helps!


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## backwoods

I would think you could possibly make a "hooked" rug with jeans also if you used a large enough mesh background piece for it.

Also found this idea: http://www.ehow.com/how_12099335_make-very-easy-tied-denim-shag-rug.html


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## backwoods

http://pinterest.com/thecfarm/rag-rugs/
Lots of interesting rugs to look at here.

And MY favorite way to make rugs...hand hooked primitive rugs on burlap backing. You do not have to use "wool" for these,
though it makes a really nice rug.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFkqnT8Czng[/ame]


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## YounGrey

backwoods said:


> http://pinterest.com/thecfarm/rag-rugs/
> Lots of interesting rugs to look at here.
> 
> And MY favorite way to make rugs...hand hooked primitive rugs on burlap backing. You do not have to use "wool" for these,
> though it makes a really nice rug.
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFkqnT8Czng


Great video, I may have to try this. Do you have a picture of one you have made? How long did it take you start to finish?


Homesteading Recipes:

http://homesteadingrecipes.blogspot.com/?m=0

From my farm to yours...


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## jlz634

Vintage rug looms can be found on eBay, Craigslist, used loom lists online, usually fairly reasonable. Learning to weave rag rugs is not difficult, there are weaving classes on Craftsy if you're not near a guild or someone who could help. I knew a rag rug weaver who also made denim rugs, he cut the strips 3/4". Much thicker than that and it becomes difficult to beat the denim weft strips in. "The Rag Rug Handbook" by Janet Meany and Paula Pfaff is very useful. Yes, I'm a weaver. ~jlz


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## Garnet

TFS links and pics and ideas. I liked the strip cutting diagram.


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## backwoods

YounGrey said:


> Great video, I may have to try this. Do you have a picture of one you have made? How long did it take you start to finish?
> 
> 
> Homesteading Recipes:
> 
> http://homesteadingrecipes.blogspot.com/?m=0
> 
> From my farm to yours...


Don't have any pics, sorry. I gave them as gifts, except for one and it's buried in the bottom of my cedar chest because its wool, and we have a terrible moth problem here. They aren't a "week end" project, I will say that. But its like knitting a sweater or crocheting a blanket, its kind of zen like, and not something you start to "hurry" and be finished usually.


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## Osiris

Twining is another way to make rag rugs. You can use blue jeans, curtains, sheets, tablecloths. It's really easy. But thicker materials tend to be more sturdy in a rag rug. 
I made a loom AND a rug in less than a week. Yeah, the winter made me crazy!
Now I'm restoring a Weavers Delight loom. LOL, I don't know anything about weaving!
Guess I should say that the hardest part is stripping the material, cleaning all the frays and rolling it into balls for supply. The weaving took about 4 hours.


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## GreenMother

I just finished a twined rug using old blue jeans! It came out great, and will probably out live me. I'm now obsessed with twining rugs ...


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## Lisa in WA

I have a whole bunch of place mats I bought on ebay from a lady who made them from old jeans. She made rugs too. I WISH I could find her again...those place mats could be washed and dried and have lasted for over 15 years. And they are beautiful still (even though the fringe is mostly worn off). Like blue jeans and oriental rugs, they just aged beautifully.


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## Osiris

No need to find the lady that did them! Make some yourself. REAL easy. But there are people who sell the looms too.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/173908...ing_else_mid&gclid=CJWZotKBn70CFclDMgodSBMAlA

...all you really have to do is look closely and you can see how to make these looms. I used dowel pins instead of nails. But you do need that metal bar along the sides to keep it from pulling in. Once you start you'll be hooked. My daughter scoffed at me until she tried it. Now she's making a rug!


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## Osiris

Cranked another one out. I finally put the loom on a stand so I could flip it.....Think I'm thru twining for this season. 
The products of a too-long winter. ShopGoodWill really has some good deals on material. Now it's on to warping the big loom. 

The garden is tilled, beans and potatoes are in but it's not getting very warm yet. Hopefully this is the beginning. Most seeds haven't sprouted.


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## Kasota

Osiris - is your loom adjustable on the side to make it taller or shorter? It looks like it is...


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## SimplyErin

kudzuvine said:


> I crochet my rugs. I cut jeans into about 3/4" strips and use the largest needle I think is made (plastic). I attach each end and roll into ball and start single crochet. I'm not good at ovals or circles, so mine are rectangle. Very sturdy.....Janet


I have been making how to videos on how to crochet oval rag rugs. You may have already seen the videos or viewed the pictures I posted. Oval rugs are what I do best and prefer so, if you would like to see some close up videos: check out on YouTube Rag Rugs by Erin Episode 1, 2 and 3. Episode 4 will be out soon and I will show how to keep the rounded edge looking good. (Episode 1 has 4 parts.)

I also wrote a reply on finishing rag rugs thread to another woman that was having issues keeping her round edges look nice. You could look at that too.

Happy crocheting!


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## Osiris

Kasota said:


> Osiris - is your loom adjustable on the side to make it taller or shorter? It looks like it is...



No it just flips. I use an adjustable 'shower chair' to sit on. I just raise and lower "ME"! ;-)


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## Forcast

Osiris said:


> Cranked another one out. I finally put the loom on a stand so I could flip it.....Think I'm thru twining for this season.
> The products of a too-long winter. ShopGoodWill really has some good deals on material. Now it's on to warping the big loom.
> 
> The garden is tilled, beans and potatoes are in but it's not getting very warm yet. Hopefully this is the beginning. Most seeds haven't sprouted.


******************
Could you show and tell how to make that loom! I have been looking on line but the people are so stupid I cant stand to watch the thing.


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## Rosepath

For anyone near enough (southwest Indiana) there's a rug loom for sale for $250, it's been restored and my friend wove rugs on it, and is now downsizing to only one loom, so this one is for sale. It's probably a Union loom or one very similar, been awhile since I've seen it. If interested, pm me and I'll send along her contact info.
BTW, if you start weaving rag rugs, people will stop you on the street (or at the co-op) and give you stacks of old jeans - makes them feel better to see them recycled. One young couple gave me a very large plastic tote crammed full of jeans, I'm still using them to weave rugs, a few jeans go a long way


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## FarmChix

I just spent waaaaay too much time looking at that Pinterest page! Talk about some creative ideas!!!


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## Osiris

Forcast said:


> ******************
> Could you show and tell how to make that loom! I have been looking on line but the people are so stupid I cant stand to watch the thing.


Well, I just guesstimated everything. Nothing is written in stone. I wanted a rug about 24 inches wide and about 48 inches long. You could make one 30 wide if you want. You just want a few extra inches of wood on the sides of the frame. 
I cut two short pieces (top and bottom) and two long (sides). I 'lap jointed' them together (which means cutting half the wood away on each joint so they lay on one another flush). I used 3/4 dowel rod to secure them and a couple of carriage bolts w/ wing nuts. 

I used a divider to mark 2 inch points on the top and bottom, drilled and reamed for 3/8 wooden dowels. cut and glued the dowels in. Along each vertical side, I put 3 eyebolts (top/middle/bottom) Then I cut some metal rod (with an extra 3-4 inches) and bent over the tops. I usde 5/16, but you could use 1/4 or even 5/32 if you want. As long as it's strong enough to hold the sides from bowing. Just make sure the rod goes thru the bottom eye bolt and you have something on the top to 'grab' to pull it out when you're done. I used a torch to bend the rod. No biggie. 

The measurements are not critical, it's the consistency of the dowel spacing and the metal rods on the sides to hold the weft from bowing in. 

If you look at a number of pictures of 'twining loom' online, you'll see the principal is all the same, just the materials vary. 
https://www.google.com/search?q=twi...F8SOyAS0lYJY&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAg&biw=1280&bih=897

Some folks use nails. I prefer wooden dowels. I want the material to 
slide off' when it's done. If you lay it out right, you can make it adaptable for 3 different sizes: Say: 24 wide, 18 wide and 12 wide as well as 48 long, 36 long and 24 long. Took me about 3 hours and made it from scrap laying around. Just draw something up and go for it...... it's basically a picture frame with pins sticking out! ;-)


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## bluefish

I wanted to try this but didn't want to go all out in case I didn't like it, so I used what was laying around. Which means I am almost done with a 4 1/2' by 2 3/4' rug. It's kinda big.  This particular frame was meant to be something, don't know what, but it was out in the scrap lumber pile so I grabbed. I put screws in every inch since I'm using denim. For the metal rods I found some old step in steel electric fence posts and knocked off the triangular thing at the bottom. They are only 4' long, but I just worked the rug on one end for about 1 foot and then flipped the frame and slid the rod down to the other end. Actually works very well, considering.

All this just to say that it's easy to make a 'rough' loom if you just want to try the idea. I now have several ideas that I want to incorporate in a nicer loom that I probably wouldn't have thought of without some actual experience first.

I would start smaller though.


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## christinarobert

So cool! Thanks a lot for sharing here. I also want to try it once. 




--------------------------------
Christina
Unique Indian wedding cards- A gateway to perfectly planned marriage!


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## christinarobert

Great!! Thanks a lot for sharing these lovely ideas to make rugs from old jeans.



--------------------------------
Christina
Unique Indian wedding cards- A gateway to perfectly planned marriage!


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