I saw this idea on how to make a shag rug out of old t-shirts on Pinterest, and I decided I had to make a rug or two for myself. I have been working on this project all week. I am very happy with how everything turned out, plus I got to recycle some old t-shirts that were taking up space in my closet.
This was a simple project, but it was time consuming. Below are the supplies you will need:
- Rug Gripper Pad 21″x42″ (I found some at Home Depot starting at $4.97)
- 4 large or x-large t-shirts
- Scissors
- Cut the t-shirts into 1″ wide and 5″ long strips (This is one of the time consuming parts because you will need several hundred strips or more depending on the size of your rug.)
- Start threading strips through the holes of the gripper pad. Thread one end of the strip through the first hole and the other end through the second hole. Take the next strip and thread one end through the last hole you just pulled the first strip through, then thread the other end of the strip through the third hole. Continue this pattern for the remainding holes.
As you can see, I only threaded every other row. You may choose this pattern or choose to thread each hole for a fuller look. It took me about two days to complete this rug, but the process was so much fun.
Here is the finished project:
I was bored a day later, so I made another rug with different colors.
Did you tie knots?
I tied some of strips but not all of them. I will tie the rest when I get ready to clean the rug so everything won’t fall off.
How do you clean it? Can you throw it in the washer?
I would hand wash it because I would be afraid the scraps would fall off. If you do decide to wash the rug, make sure the t-shirt scraps are secure and that you wash the rug on gentle cycle. I would also let the rug air dry instead of putting it in the dryer.