Braided Mat
From the rag bag in every pioneer home came scraps of cloth that were re-used for many purposes, including rag rugs. You can make your own braided mats from old t-shirts! Make them in different sizes to use as a coaster for a teapot or a coffee mug, or to decorate a dollhouse.
Materials:
- A needle and thread
- Scissors
- Three old t-shirts (one light-coloured, one medium, and one dark)
- Two large safety pins
Directions:
- Begin by cutting off and discarding the bottom hem of each t-shirt. Then cut across each shirt, making 2.5 cm-wide rings from the bottom up. Snip each ring to make a long strip.
- Gather one strip of each colour and sew them together at one end. Then attach this end to something sturdy, like an armchair with a safety pin. (Or ask a friend to hold the end for you.)
- Start braiding, keeping the braid as straight as possible.
- When you have braided almost to the end, secure the braid with another safety pin and sew on three new strips. Continue braiding.
- When you have a long enough braid for your project, fasten the end with a safety pin again.
- Now you're ready to sew the braid into a coil. Thread the needle and knot one end. Working on a table or similar surface, lay the braid flat. Hold the start of the braid with one hand and begin to wind the rest around it. Sew a couple of stitches where the edges meet to hold this in place. Continue winding and sewing, keeping the braid as flat as possible, until you have a finished coil shape.
- Remove the safety pin. Fold the loose end of the braid under and sew it down neatly to the outside edge of the mat.
Pioneer Christmas Crafts, text © 1999 by Heather Patterson and Joanna Rice. Photographs by Wally Randall and illustrations by Susan Gardos are copyright © 1999 by Scholastic Canada Ltd.
