Though the instructions are long, this is pretty darned
simple to do - the set-up just has to be particular...
Used acrylic baby blankets can often be purchased cheaply
at rummage stores. You can use different colors together, or
keep the mat all one color to go with a certain decor. You’re
going to cut them into strips to weave together - either
they should all be not-very-stretchy, or half (the weft,
what you weave with) can be stretchy but the rest (the warp,
what you weave in and out of) must not be...
You’ll also need to build a simple "loom"
(frame) of 1x3" slats - it should be 3" bigger at
the outer edge than the size you want your mat to be. Since
there must be an even number of 6d finishing nails (with
hardly any heads) to hold the warp and weft, and they must
all be evenly spaced (1" apart on the long warp sides,
1 1/2" apart on the shorter weft sides), we’ll use a
dimension of 23" by 33" (you can do the math to
figure out a different size if you wish!). The nails should
be driven just a1/2" into the board, right down the
centers of each slat (and you don’t need a nail at the
corners, but the spacing of 1" apart should begin there
as though there were nails there).
One other point: Ideally, your frame would be
dovetail-jointed at the corners so that it lies flat on the
table you’re going to work on - otherwise, you’ll have
to use longer nails on the sides that touch the table,
because the other sides will be raised up higher... get it?)
...Either way, this is a very simple loom to make with the
most basic of woodworking skills.
So... Cut the blankets lengthwise into 3" wide
strips. Sew a bunch of strips together at the ends to make a
nice long piece (keep all the selvages of the seams on one
side of the growing strip). If you want a multi-colored
effect, sew different colors together at random; or you
could alternate a couple of colors on the warp, a couple on
the weft. Fold the end of one of the non-stretchy (warp)
3" strips in half lengthwise (with seam selvages
inside) and knot the first end to the first nail on a short
side. Keeping it folded as you go (and not twisted up), loop
it around the first nail on the other side - zigzag back and
forth around opposite nails on each side until you can knot
it at the last nail. It’s important to keep the tension
firm as you go; sew on more fabric strips as needed to make
it to the end.
Now for the weft strip (which can be of the
stretchier type of fabric, if you like)... Knot one folded
end to the first nail on the long (weft) side and weave the
flat strip over and under the warp strips, keeping its
tension firm as you loop it around the side nails as before.
Keep pushing the strips snug up against what’s already
been woven as you go too. ...When you get to the end, it
looks like a rug!
Now to finish it off... Safety pin the corner knots to
the corners with large pins so they don’t slip when you
gently work the loops up and over the nails. (This is why
you don’t use nails with wide heads!) Untie the knots now,
and trim the ends of the strips to just an inch or so past
the side of the rug. Fold each strip under (twice, if you’ve
used a fabric that ravels - in which case, you’ll have
saved a couple of inches at the ends) and sew it flat
to the underside of the rug. ...You’re done!
