SammyD Kreations

JELLY ROLL RUG

Want to try sewing one?  

I came across a fabulous account on instagram Uniquely Mateo she makes the most AMAZING Jelly Roll Rugs.  I was so intrigued by the concept I thought I would give it a try, I mean she makes it look so easy what could go wrong...hahahahaha!

So I started gathering my supplies together....  I had purchased a fat quarter bundle of STITCH by Lori Holt which I had used to make a carry all bag for a sit and sew group I attend every fortnight.  I absolutely love this fabric and had so much leftover I wasn't sure what to do with it until I saw a Jelly Roll Rug being created.  As the rug will be for my sewing room the STITCH fabric is perfect. For the batting I just cut up a batting roll I had on hand into strips, although you can buy a batting roll made especially for Jelly Roll Rugs.

I did purchase the Clover fabric tube maker, which made creating the tube a breeze.

1. Jelly Roll - STITCH by Lori Holt 

2. Batting - Cotton/Bamboo Roll

3. Clover Fabric Tube Maker 

Before diving in I did do a little more research on how to make a Jelly Roll Rug, youtube is your friend!  I really wanted to know how long to make the middle strip of the rug as this will determine the shape of the rug.  Not really finding a definitive answer I just guessed and chose a 10in length. I did find a youtube by Uniquely Mateo and she had sooooo many hints and tips on how to get the perfect rug, I encourage you to watch it if you are seriously considering making a rug.

First up you need to make a tube of the fabric and batting, which is a bit like making a quilt binding.  This is where the fabric tube maker comes into its own.  There are two ways you can sew the tube together, along the open edge or down the middle of the tube... I choose down the middle.  Once the tube is sewn you have the option of plopping it all on the floor in a heap or rolling the tube into a ball or using some sort of winder.  The idea being to keep the fabric strip as straight and untwisted as possible while sewing.

Before I started sewing the rug, I did have a small issue I had to overcome.  As I don't have a sewing machine that sits down into the desk, I don’t have a flat surface to sew on.  So I got a bit creative by using a corner shelf from a kitchen cupboard I removed during renovations, with timber chocks underneath, I managed to create a table level with my sewing machine bed.

 Let the sewing begin….  I’m not going to lie the centre is hard to sew!  Trying to curve the fabric tube around the starting strip is not easy, but once you get past that you can then sit back and watch your rug grow.

I was going to use just one colour thread for the whole rug but after sewing the brown centre part I didn’t really like the look, so switched over to changing my top thread to a colour that coordinated with the different colours in the tube as they came up. 

I love the look of the matching thread!

Making this has been a lot of fun and I can see me making more… I’m pretty sure my pups could do with a rug each for under their feeding bowls, oh and I think a runner in the hallway would look nice, maybe a rug for each room….hahahahaha that will keep me busy for a while!  

 So if you decide to make a rug, I hope you have as much fun as I have making one.

  

Have a fabulous day!