Thursday, January 6, 2011

Next Get Together - Learn Toothbrush Rag Rugs

We’re looking at January 15th as our next get together at my house. Let’s start around 10’ish. Toothbrush Rag Rugs don't take long to understand. The challenge is starting. The stitches are repetitive. Don't worry, you'll get it.

We’ll make “needles” made from Popsicle sticks unless you want to go online and buy one. Just Google Toothbrush Needles and you will find some. They cost somewhere around $4-7. You’ll need to bring your own cloth. I used some old sheets I ripped up into strips (kids helped – it was fun). You can use anything: old t-shirts, dress shirts, blue jeans, silks, leather (don’t ask me how), any material. Hit sales or the 2nd Hand Stores. How wide? Well, I measured with my first 2 fingers. For me that’s about 1½”. A 2” strip will get you a 7/8” stitch. A 1” strip will get you a 5/8” stitch: roughly ½ ratio.

We’ll use Amish knots to connect the strips so you won't need to join the lengths with anything. If you want to put slits in the ends you can – you don’t have to. To do so, just fold over the end about a thumb width. Snip a bit lengthwise down the center so there is a slit. Depending on the thickness of the fabric, I do two ends at once and then wind them onto a ball to manage them better. My cat loves this craft. If you don’t want to do this, we can do it here. Some people like to do prep work, some don’t. I’m about ½ and ½. My kids helped quite a bit so I did more prep work, faster.

This is a kind of nalbinding. It passes the time. I’m making one for my dad’s birthday right now.

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