Wednesday, August 3, 2011

WIP Wednesday: Plarn Tarnation



It's the first anniversary of Work-In-Progress Wednesday, hosted by TamisAmis!! Congratulations, Tami!

This WIP is probably the last variation on the Tarnation Rectangle Rug. From the beginning, I have wanted to try this pattern in plarn (PLastic yARN) made from cut-up grocery bags. It's working up very nicely, although this rug will not be machine-dryable, because plarn melts in the dryer.

Instructions for making plarn are here: How to Make Plarn.

For more WIP Wednesday posts on other blogs, check here.

8 comments:

  1. I have several, rather worn in spots t-shirt sheets, that I thought I would cut up for this project. When I say several I do mean several! at least 3 sets of queen size sheets and probably 2 or 3 sets of twin sheets. Is there a way you would suggest cutting the material?

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  2. Another rug and it looks so nice! Looking forward to seeing this done.

    Take care and enjoy the rest of your week.

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  3. Crystal: to cut t-shirt sheets, I would use the flat-spiral method. Basically you cut off the hems, elastic, seams, etc., and then start cutting a 1/2"-wide strip from the outside, spiraling your way into the middle. It's step no. 5 in the tarn-making post, here:

    http://amandashappyhearth.blogspot.com/2011/07/how-to-make-tarn-t-shirt-yarn.html

    BTW, the worn spots are probably usable for your tarn. Some of my shirts were fairly threadbare, and I just gave the tarn a tug to see if it was going to hold together--it always did in those spots.

    You can probably carpet your whole bedroom with that much tarn!

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  4. Kathleen: Thank you! It's actually made from our local monster grocery chain bags, which are white with red printing. I was planning to put a blue stripe in the middle, but I like the way the red is pooling so much that I might just make this a peppermint rug.

    Yup, I know what you mean! I was really worried that it would hurt too bad to make something like this. But I'm actually having less of a problem than usual. I do take lots of breaks, though, and hubbie and I have dramatically improved our diet. Have you seen my blog post on the subject? It's called, "Avoiding the Owie With Plarn," here:

    http://amandashappyhearth.blogspot.com/2010/09/avoiding-owie-with-plarn.html

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  5. I really love how the red is showing up in the pattern - it's almost marble like :)

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  6. I'm popping in to second Christina's comment. I really like the red.

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  7. What a cool way to reuse plastic bags! I look forward to seeing this as an FO. :)

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  8. Of course, because it's plarn, it only needs to hang outside a short while before it's dry. :)

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