Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Crocheted Rug from Recycled T-Shirts

Do you remember when I told you a family had given us tons of clothing and told us to use what we could and donate the rest? Well, there were a bunch of stained t-shirts in there. (It's so hard to keep them unstained, so I'm not complaining.) I thought I'd have to throw them away, but then I ran across this idea ...

Basically, you cut jersey knit clothing into 3/4" strips, pull it to make it curl, and then crochet with it (with a "Q" hook). You know I'm all about making something useful from what would usually go in the trash. And if it's pretty, all the better!

So here is my first star-shaped crocheted rug from stained t-shirts:



It's not tiny. In fact, it measures roughly 34" from point to point. And to give you some reference for how big it is, check out how it compares to my 4-year-old daughter:



And here's another picture from a different angle:



This was so fun and easy to make! You know what? It's even fun to cut the t-shirts apart and "make" the string. :)

You can also make dishcloths with this "string", but I have small hands and much prefer a thinner dishcloth.

And in case you're interested in trying it out, here is the rug that inspired me. You can find detailed instructions (including pictures) on how to cut up the t-shirts and make the "yarn" here. And lastly, the pattern for the star rug can be found here.

I'll post more as I get them done!

5 comments:

angie said...

simply amazing! Do you plan to use this rug on the floor or as a table topper?

Christa said...

This is definitely a floor rug. It's quite thick and cushy and feels wonderful underfoot!

Esther Asbury said...

That is really neat. Not sure if it would hurt my hands too much to do that, but I'd sure like to give it a try (once I collect enough "stained" tee-shirts!).

Anonymous said...

Thanks Sophia for sharing the links. I think this would be a fun project and a frugal gift idea.

Christa said...

You're more than welcome! I love passing along great ideas like this. And you know what? They do make wonderfully frugal gifts. My teenaged nieces on my husband's side are each getting one for their bedrooms this year. I made them to match. :)

 
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