My Great-Grandmother used to make these. Cut fabric (generally cotton) into 1" wide strips. Sew the strips together end to end so you will have a loooong strip. Make 3 of these long strips. Roll the sides together to hide the raw edges. You can iron them or just roll as you go. Gather the three strips at one end and clamp to a table or tie to a chair rung. Begin tightly braiding the strips. You will probably have to stop and roll up the braid as you go. Once you have a VERY long braid, you can start forming the rug. For a round rug, lay the end of your braid on a flat surface and begin coiling the braid around and around making concentric circles. Take a needle and thread and sew the sides together as you go. Continue until you run out of braid (you can always make more) or until the rug is as big around as you want. For an oval rug. Start with a straight braid about a foot or foot and a half long and then curl the braid around either side, tacking with the needle and thread as you go. This is a lot of work and really makes you appreciate what our ancestors had to do to keep the floor warm! Good luck. Linda

hey thanks ...i have been following abt this a lot on net as well ...but this one is the most detailed ...
thanks wil try it out and post the pics

Have you tried your hand at making Toothbrush Rugs? Last I looked, there were lots of sites online, some with information, others with info on where to purchase booklets. I bought my copy at the auntphilly web page. There's only one easy stitch to learn, it's the calculating where the extra stitches go that is challenging, but fun.

If you look on Herrschner's website, they have a tool in their catalog that will help cut the strips and then another that holds them so you can braid and make your own rugs. They also have booklets and I want to say the total would be like $20 for everything I want to get...I just haven't bought it yet!

Here is a link that might be useful: Herrschner's

I make braided rugs and it's actually pretty tricky to get them to lie flat. I have several books on the subject. I always use wool, rather than cotton. Making crocheted rag rugs is pretty simple and I know there are some videos out there. The toothbrush rug is simple also. Lockerhooking classes are offered by our local Michaels store.

I would first hit your local library and see what they have. It really depends upon hour current skills, materials, etc.

Here is a link that might be useful: Rugmaker's Homestead