friendly reminder: bring your own fabric to the 19th Century Parlorcraft Circle: Rag Rugs tomorrow, Saturday, September 29

[Rachel Klingberg]

Friendly reminder: tomorrow is our Parlorcraft Circle! If you plan to attend, please bring YOUR OWN FABRIC SCRAPS. For a round coiled rug, old tee-shirts work best. For a braided-in oval rug (as pictured) cotton or wool works best. Do not bring synthetics or blends. Make sure all your fabric scraps are 100% natural fiber and all of the same weight. So all cotton jersey tee shirts, or all cotton bedsheets, or all cotton flannel old shirts, or all wool suiting, or... I think you get the picture! 

Also please note the event ends at 4:00 p.m., not 5:00 p.m. If you arrive late, you will miss the instruction, but we'll have a handout tutorial for you to take home. 

Hope to see some of you tomorrow! 

19th Century Parlorcraft Circle: Rag Rugs

Saturday, September 29

2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Jefferson Market Library, Third Floor

425 Avenue of the Americas

New York, NY 10011

Join the New York Nineteenth Century Society Parlorcraft Circle as we explore the humble rag rug, the kind that still line the floors of many a New England farmhouse. Fabric became more affordable in the mid-19th century, and imported cotton replaced homespun linen, but thrifty housewives still saved scraps, no matter how small. These scraps were woven, knitted, crocheted, hooked, or braided into the ubiquitous rag rugs. Such rugs are so long-lasting and durable that many 19th-century examples survive today. They were also economical, and in the days when only the wealthy could afford a Persian rug or loomed tapestry rug, rag rugs were an attractive alternative to bare floors. 

There are at least 100 different methods of making a traditional rag rug, but we will focus on the easiest and most commonplace method of braiding and coiling. You’ll learn the technique and go home with, if not a whole rug, at least a coaster than you can continue to work into a rug. Please bring an old tee-shirt, or several, that you don’t mind destroying to create a rug. We will have extras on hand but to ensure that everyone has enough fabric, please do bring your own. 

Moderated by Rachel Klingberg and Morgana Toglia, we heartily invite you to craft and design to your heart’s content!

If you have a special craft or skill from history that you would like to share, please let us know: let...@nyncs.org

>> Add to your own event calendar: http://nyncs.org/event/parlorcraft-circle-rag-rugs/

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