Patchwork Rug

If you've ever been in a rug store, you know that area rugs are often quite expensive. For the Davenport's mission-style living room, Rebecca found an inexpensive and remarkably easy solution — a patchwork rug.

Materials:

An oversized, durable quilting needle, twine or hemp cord, Six, Nine or 12 (depending on how big a rug you desire) bath mats in a variety of colors of your choice.

1) At a discount store purchase six, nine or 12 small bath mats. You can choose any number of colors (or just one) depending on the pattern you would like to create. The more bath mats you purchase, the larger your rug will be.

2) Lay out your bath mats in a pattern that suits your tastes.

3) Thread your large needle with a long length of twine or hemp and tie a large, secure knot on the end.

4) To hide all your knots (and any mistakes), sew from the underside of the rugs, through the top. Using any stitch you like, hand-sew your bath mats together. To ensure that the bath mats will line up tightly, sew in one section in one direction at a time. Once you have individual strips of bath mats connected, sew the strips together. As the sewing may take a bit of time, it's a great project to do with a friend.

5) Make sure that all knots are secure, and cut any stray strings. Now you have a custom-made patchwork rug that you can proudly say you made yourself.