From Rags to Riches..

Perhaps it is the state of the economy or perhaps it is just a way for me to justify the mounds of "stuff" that is stored away in my house but I cannot simply discard something without trying to find a use for it. Years ago, everything was saved to be reused, made over or handed down. Nothing was wasted..nothing was just tossed away. Now, we live in a "throwaway" society. If a person grows tired of something, it is merely thrown in the trash with the thought that another can be purchased if necessary. What a waste. Lately though, there has been a trend for "comfort" items..things remembered from the past that bring solace to our minds. A lot of "comfort" items are merely things that our parents and grandparents made or used in their daily lives.

I was pondering this thought as I was creating a rag rug the other day. I spent quite a bit of time cutting the strips of fabric and then crocheting these strips into a lilypad shaped rug. Most rag rugs from the past were not crocheted but stitched or woven together. I decided that crocheting would work up quicker and easier for what I had in mind. The fabric used for rag rugs comes from any item that is no longer usable as it was originally intended. Clothing items, bed linens, table cloths or curtains..it does not matter..all can be used to make a rug. What makes it even better..it is ok if the fabric is worn, torn or slightly stained! When cutting the strips for the rug, it is easy to work around damaged spots. My rug was made from a jersey knit bed sheet. I did crochet a polyester yarn in with the strips simply to tone down the bright lime green color of the sheet and to give a little more texture to the rug. The entire rug was done in a double crochet stitch and is about three feet in diameter.

After completing the rug, I used remnant yarn to create a waterlily and a cute little snail toy. The waterlily is crocheted around chenille stems (pipe cleaners) to give it a little structure. This I did not attach to the rug as it would definitely have caused a tripping hazard. There are ribbons attached to the back so it can be tied to a window curtain or doorknob as a decoration. The snail was an afterthought and it, too, was created using remnant yarn from other projects.

It was fun to work on a project of this type..something that might have just as easily been made in a different era. I do hope that the recipient of this gift gets as much pleasure from using it as I did from making it.