Late last year I adventured into the craft of rag rugs. I intended to use the rag rugs I made as part an installation for my degree show, however the project since then has completely changed so the rag rugs have been abandoned. I did however learn this fantastic new craft, and I can't wait till I've got the time to play around with it a little more!
My rag rugs are made from hessian & canvas. I hand screen printed the canvas with a pattern that ran through the Unglefor project.
The process of making a rag rug was pretty tedious, especially as I decided to do it by hand (if you do want to seriously take up this craft, invest in a rag-rug tool), but the results were beautiful! The process was relatively simple too, cut the fabric into 10-15cm long strips of about 3-4cm in width and then just thread it through the hessian. There are of course several other methods of rag-rug creation, including braiding, but for me this gave the best result and the most tactile surface (at the time, I was attempting to make it resemble a forest floor).
When I do begin working with rag rugs again, I'd love to create rugs out of old clothing, and I'd especially be interested in using rag rugs as a more decorative rather than practical craft. I might even try and make rag rugs cool! Fun stuff!
Here's some great links to rag rugs:
http://www.ragartstudios.com/, beautifully crafted colourful rugs, relaly demonstrates the potential in this craft.
Rag rug instructions showcasing a certain method of rag rug construction.
http://www.debbiesiniska.co.uk/ British artist working primarily with recycled materials in her rug making.
