Braided Rug

To begin, gather a pile of fabric scraps. Cut these scraps and rags - on either the lengthwise or crosswise grain - into the longest strips possible. These bands should be 2 inches wide and (ideally) 3 to 5-feet long (tear the strips - when you can - to save time, and sew short pieces together to get the right lengths).

Next, fold each strip's raw edges into the center, and then refold along the middle of the strips to hide those turned-under edges. If you do have a sewing machine, stitch the folds closed as you go to make a permanent crease. If you don't own a machine, just baste or iron the folds in place.

Sort the strips - by color - into bags or boxes. You don't have to fuss too much over the design, but even a hit-or-miss pattern will look sharper if a particular color (usually a dark one) is saved for the outer border. A 2-by-3-foot rug, then, will need 1 foot of center braid, while a 3-by-5-foot rug will require 2 feet (a round rug, as you'll see, only needs a few inches of center braid).