Using Fabric Strips, Create a DIY Rag Rug

June 22, 2022

Do you have a stock pile of fabric scraps from previous sewing projects that you're not sure what to do with? This DIY rag rug out of scraps from our DIY letter pillow, DIY harvest apron, and DIY zipper phone purse.

Rug made from rags

A rag rug is an excellent way to repurpose fabric scraps. It makes no difference how long each piece is or how many different patterns and colors you employ. You don't even need to be an expert sewer.

The supplies listed below to make a 36-inch-wide rag rug.

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Supplies:

Fabric swatches
Bonnie 6mm 100 yard craft cord – this one does not absorb water and will not become moldy if you wash your rug.
Jute cord, 4 ply (or wider)
Machine for sewing
3 white cotton reels
Scissors

This project will require a significant amount of fabric. If you only have a few strips of a particular pattern or color, space them out carefully because you will use far more than you think.

100 yards of cord wrapped in fabric strips were used to make this rag rug. I finished it off with two rounds of jute cord to hide all the fabric ends. If you have a wider cord and jute that can fit under your sewing machine foot, use it because the project will be completed faster. Unfortunately, my basic sewing machine could only handle 6mm cord, and the jute cord was also leftover from a previous project.

Instructions:

Select a wide zigzag stitch on your sewing machine. Before you begin sewing the rug, test it on a scrap piece of fabric. Assemble your sewing machine on a large table. As the rug grows in size, you must keep it as flat as possible. I elevated it with books to the height of where I was sewing.

Make strips out of all of your fabric. My strips were 1 to 1.5 inches wide and varied in length depending on how much fabric I had left in my scrap bin.

Wind the fabric on an angle around the cord, then curl it into a snail shell pattern, sewing the pieces together as you go.

Don't worry if your stitches aren't perfect; with all of the frayed ends and color and pattern changes, you won't notice it once it's on the floor.

When adding a new fabric strip, fold the ends over each other.

Fold the pieces over the cord while holding them together, and then continue wrapping and sewing.

Repeat this pattern, changing the patterns and colors as you go. Remember to space out any fabric strips that you don't have a lot of.

Remember to keep the rug elevated and flat while sewing. As you can see in the photo below, I stacked books underneath.

When your cord runs out, you will finish the project with jute cord. This will conceal any stray fabric ends. Sew it in the same manner as the rest of the rug, but don't wrap fabric strips around it. Because the scraps I had on hand were only 4 ply and I wanted a wider border, I did two rounds of jute cord.

There is no need to cut any frayed ends of fabric; simply cut any large cotton pieces. This rug was made from three cotton reels, two of which were partially used.