Easy rag yarn.

It would see I have a one track mind lately. Actually, I have a lot going on and having a simple craft to cling to when life gets overwhelming has been a real blessing. Summer is tough, because the attic studio gets too hot to work in even with the a/c on full blast, and unfortunately, creative activities are my chance to r-center myself, so it can get a little hairy around here when I am art/craft deprived. Thus my new obsession with rag crochet was born.

I promised that I would update you on rag baskets, and well, I really haven't had much luck. Made with rags or t-shirt yarn they are just too floppy to be called baskets. I have done a bit of research, and I think that the crochet baskets I like are all done with cotton twine or rope. In the meantime, I did manage to make this:

It is basically a slip cover for a cheap IKEA wastebasket. I got it to stand up by taking it in by a few stitches around the top. Here's a look at the top.

This works because nothing gross goes into this bin, just paper for recycling. I could see it as a bin for dumping toys too.

On the other hand, I have gotten really good at making rag yard. A lot of tutorials call for ripping strips, then attaching them.

I find it annoying. When you are using sheets, there is an easier way. Sheets usually have two selvage edges and two sewn edges.

If you rip selvage to selvage, sometime the first and last strips are uneven. Also, you will rip right thought the selvage and end up with a bunch of strips that must be attached to each other. BUT if you cut through the sewn edge then rip, the rip will stop when it hits the seam at the other end.

However, if you leave that much material as you turn the corner, you will end up with weird tangy things poking out of your rug.so the solution is to trim the sewn edge before you start ripping. Do this by cutting the entire way so that the margin between the sewing and the new end of the fabric is between a half to a quarter of an inch. If you rip in this direction, there is no guarantee that it will go straight.

You will end up with two strips that need to be joined to the rest, but that is way better than a whole pile. And , since you are ripping parallel to the selvage, your strips will remain even top to bottom all the way across. See?

Now just roll it up and you are ready to go. This is the yield from a double sized sheet.

And this Is the yield from that ball of yarn. (I will be adding to it.) It is approximately 1 foot by 3 feet. In other words, you can get three square feet from one double sized sheet. This took less than one nap time to work up.

Happy crafting!

Jen

 

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