Upcycled Rug Making with Debra Wade

Calling back to the roots of this heritage craft, you’ll learn how to repurpose old t-shirts into beautiful rugs of your own design. You’ll get started with some plaited braids we’ve already made before Debra shows you a nifty trick for cutting your t-shirts into a single continuous strip. You’ll learn how to turn & taper braids, handstitch & lace the coil & develop your technique from disks to more complex motifs like hearts or owls.

In fact, once you have the principle of this traditional technique, you can apply it to any shape & size, from coasters to floor mats. The joy of using old t-shirts is the ready-worn nature of the fabrics & they are easy to machine wash.

Plenty of t-shirts will be provided for you to work with & we encourage you to bring your own old, clean t-shirts for repurposing. To cut the continuous strip, it’s best if they are still whole, and made from 100% cotton.

All materials & equipment for this workshop will be provided. We will be cutting with scissors - you are welcome to bring your own rotary cutter & mat if you prefer. Some experience of cutting & handsewing is required.

Debra Wade is a designer-maker who creates to commission in re-claimed materials & whose award-winning work is in magazines, international textile fairs & on TV. Currently a Stitch Festival tutor at Alexandra Palace & Islington Design Centre, she loves to share her skills in many textile crafts, art, and re-claimed jewellery. Debra recently led a community project to create 100 giant remembrance poppies by re-using footballs, old records, frying pans, knitting, bottles, plant pots, hub caps, vinyl flooring & more.