How to make a recycled denim rug from old jeans. Learn how to crochet a rectangle shaped denim rag rug.
WHy MAke a denim rug?![]()
I have this denim rug in my living room, It really could be used anywhere in the home. It is tough enough to withstand the traffic in a doorway while also being thick and cushy enough to earn a place on the bedside floor. To me, indigo colored denim goes with anything, I think of it as a neutral color for clothing and for home accessories. The area rug is machine washable and machine dryable so you could use it in your kitchen or bathroom without fear of it getting dirty. (Although it would look unique and stylish, I would not use a denim rug in the bathroom. I would fear that the rug would take too long to dry and may mold. If you were to hang it up after you finished showering in order to give this rug some time to dry , that would be best). Denim is widely available and easy to find. Denim is also durable. A rug made with old jeans can last you for years and years.
WHY RECYCLED MATERIALS?![]()
There are two main reasons that I use as many recycled materials as possible in my craft projects.
The first reason is because it is easier on the environment to do so. I have so many items coming through my home on a daily basis. I am often amazed by the amount of trash and recycling my family produces each day. And that amount is in addition to things we throw away less frequently. Things like worn out furniture or clothing. I worry about the environmental impact that my family may have so I strive to be less wasteful. By keeping our worn-out clothes from the trash can, I am saving space in the landfill. Because I'm making home décor items with materials I already own, I am not purchasing those new items or the fabric to make them in stores. It's hard to imagine I will ever again throw away fabric only to go purchase more at the store or buy a new rug when I can so easily make one. The second reason I try to make items with recycled materials is money. Buying area rugs or buying any kind of home accessory is expensive. There are so many other things I would rather spend my money on. Even homemade is no bargain. Anyone who has ever shopped for fabrics, especially decorator fabrics knows how expensive that can be. It is often more expensive to make something with new fabric than it would be to purchase the item factory made. Making home accessories for free or very inexpensively with recycled materials allows me to have things that I would not otherwise be able to afford. Without recycled materials I would not have a cozy home with cushiony area rugs all over or unique baskets to help organize or interesting throw pillows on all the furniture. Using recycled materials allows me to afford the home I want. Where to get old jeans to make recycled denim yarn![]()
. The recycled denim yarn is made by cutting fabric strips from unwanted or worn out denim clothing. You will need a lot of jeans if you are trying to make a large rug.
One pair of jeans weighs about one pound before you cut off all the hardware and seams. I usually am able to crochet about one square foot of fabric from one pair of jeans. That is just an average, jeans come in all different sizes and styles. A larger pair with no embellishment will yield the most yarn. A child size pair with embroidery and holes in the knee will yield the least. The square foot yield per pair of jeans is just a guideline I keep in the back of my head to help me estimate how many pieces of old denim clothing I will need to find to recycle for a project There are several places where I get denim for my projects for free or at very low cost. The first place to look are your own closets and those of your family members. Pull any items that you have outgrown and are not good enough to sell or give away. Pull items that have holes you know you will not be able to repair. Don't forget about shirts or skirts and any other item made from denim. You can use those too. Another good source of free material can be family and friends. Tell everyone you know that you are making a rag rug and would be grateful for donations of worn out denim clothing. I have been surprised by how happy people are to give me their old clothes. I think they are glad to not have to throw them away. People feel good knowing that their items will continue to be useful long past the time that they may have sent them to the landfill.
What I wish I had known before beginning my first recycled denim projectMaking fabric yarn from denim can take a lot of time. Cutting strips while avoiding seams and other hardware as well as worn spots and holes can be tedious. Buying denim by the yard would resolve a lot of that hassle, but it is quite expensive and then you are no longer making a recycled or environmentally friendly item. If using one color of denim from yardage, you do not get the kind of variation in color that you have when you use multiple pairs of old jeans to make a project. Because you are cutting around so many seams and so much hardware, the fabric strips can be quite short. There will be frequent joining of new strips as you work up your project. I join as I go, but sewing the strips together into a continuous piece of "yarn" before you start can save a lot of time once you begin crocheting. Cutting up old denim clothing is very messy. You will have small particles of fabric in the air and landing everywhere. You may want to wear a mask so you don't breathe in the fabric dust. You may want to prepare your strips outside or in an area that is easy to thoroughly vacuum when you finish. denim strips that are cut too thin (narrower than 3/4 of an inch wide tend to break when worked with 100% cotton denim looks best (in my opinion) but can be difficult to crochet. Denim that is mixed with some spandex to have some stretch is softer in the hands, less likely to break, and more forgiving of mistakes. I usually end up using a mixture of both 100% cotton and stretch denim because I am using found clothing to make my strips. I try to use whatever I am able to find If you are purchasing jeans from the thrift store to make your fabric yarn, start your search in the largest sizes. The bigger, the better. You get a lot more workable fabric from a size 40 than you do from a size 26. Boot cut or straight leg styles are better than skinny jeans when it comes to making long, evenly sized fabric yarn strips Joining fabric strips to make recycled denim yarn
There are many methods for joining all the strips of fabric into a yarn. Some people will do all their joining before they begin and will work from big prepared balls of yarn. Others will only join their strips as they need to. Joining as you go gives more control over color placement, but can interrupt your crochet rhythm, I will usually do a combination. joining some before and some during, as needed.
With a thick fabric like denim, I sew my fabric strips together to make my yarn. All the other methods I have tried just leave too large of a lump under the rug. .
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AuthorMy name is kc. I share ideas for craft projects that are environmentally healthy and accessible to people no matter what their budget. I get excited about upcycling {remaking old items into new). I also love to crochet and cook and am teaching myself how to use my new sewing machine. I write about all those topics, sharing things I make for my home and my family, and myself. If you have questions or suggestions about any of my posts, please leave a comment and I will happily respond. Thank you for visiting. Archives
January 2021
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