Friday, January 4, 2013

A Search for Crochet Rug Patterns

My Mom is a crocheter, but she has not used her hooks in a long time.  She has been talking about creating a crochet rag rug over the past few years, but hasn't come across the right pattern.  In honor of her birthday today, I wanted to do a search for free crochet rug patterns to help her out.  Happy Birthday, Mom!

As of December 2012, there are over 410 crochet rug patterns on Ravelry* (137 of them available for free).   I am sticking this search to the ones that are more of a rag rug variety and less lacy.
*You will need to create a free Ravelry.com account to view this link properly
  • Rag Rug Tutorial - An oval rag rug created out of old Tshirts.  Ther e are also instructions on how to cut the shirts up into strips.
  • Circular Crochet Rag Rug - A circular rag rug created out of rags. 
  • Semi-Circular Kitchen rug - Perfect for fitting up against a kitchen counter.  Created with bulky weight cotton yarn (or "double worsted" as described in the pattern.)
  • Quiet Moments Rug - A hexagonal rug that has some embellishments on it (which would be easy to leave out.)  Made out of yarn.  
  • Big Stitch Crocheted Alpaca Rugs - A circular rug created with very bulky yarn.  
  • How to Craft a Rug out of T-shirts - a circular rug made out of rags (tshirts)
  • Simple Tunisian Bath Mat - "This pattern assumes you have basic knowledge of Tunisian crochet."  I do not know what Tunisian crochet is, but to me it looks like this rectangle rug is created by going back and forth from one side to the other, rather than the inside out approach from many of the other rugs above.  You may need to create a free Ravelry.com account to download this pattern. 
  • Calico Rag Rug - It appears very circular towards the center, but has a slight octagonal shape to it.  Created out of DIY Fabric Yarn
  • Millennium Loop Rug - an oval rug created with yarn. 
  • Oval Rug - An oval shaped (as the title would suggest) rug created out of yarn.
  •  Pretty Little Rug - This is the first rug pattern that has a little more lace detail (eyelets.. If it were knit I would call them YO's, but I don't read crochet well yet.) 
  • Nine Side Kitchen Mat - Created with worsted weight yarn. 
  • Floor Decor: Striped Rug - Not crochet in the round, this striped rug is rectangular and "crocheted flat" (is that a term in crochet?  Would you say go back and forth?) 
  • Sock Yarn Rug - Crocheting a rug out of Sock yarn (fingering weight) would create a thinner finished product than many of the other rugs on this list.  This is a 10 sided rug.  You may need to create a free Ravelry.com account to download this pattern. 
  • Oval Rug - This oval rug isn't a round oval, but a polygon (an irregular octagon?) 
  • South Riding Kitchen Rug - A striped, rectangular rug.  The designer recommends adding area rug gripper to keep it from slipping, a recommendation that should be followed for all rugs on this list! You may need to create a free Ravelry.com account to download this pattern.  
  • Snow Bobbles Crocheted Bathmat - A rectangular bathmat created out of worsted cotton yarn that has a slightly different stitch pattern for the rest, popcorn-like.  You may need to create a free Ravelry.com account to download this pattern. 
  • Amazing Technicolor T-Shirt Yarn Rug - a circular shaped rug with an interesting spiked border. (For knitting I would say it is picot-like.)  Created out of t-shirts. 
  • Crochet Checkerboard Rug - a rectangular crochet checkerboard rug, crochet flat out of yarn. 
  • Bachelor's Button Rug - created out of multiple circular motifs. 
  • Quadra - a rectangular rug created in the round out of yarn. 
  • Round or Oval Rug - Using up scraps of yarn of multiple different weights. 
  • Diagonal Rug -  A rectangular rug with diagonal running stripes.  Crocheted out of yarn. 
  • Blue and White T-yarn Rug - a rectangular rug crocheted in the round out of tshirt yarn. 
  • Plastic Trash Yarn - an oval shaped rug created out of plastic yarn or "plarn" formed from plastic shopping bags. 
  • Shaker-Insired Rug - This round rug is created out of a spiral of a narrow striped piece.  You first crochet the long thin strip and then sew it together.  You will need to create a free Lion Brand Account to view this pattern. 
  • Checkers - This is a stunning pattern created out of black and white plastic bags.  You get a three color effect by creating narrower strips of black and white and holding them together.  This gives the rectangular mat an almost woven appearance.  
  •  Chevron Rug - crochet out of yarn with a wavy, chevron pattern. You may need to create a free Ravelry.com account to download this pattern. 

In most of these rugs, the material used to create them is really what gives them the character.  If you like the look of the rug in the pattern you select, I suggest you compare the stitch pattern to others with a similar overall shape to determine whether the texture you love is due to the stitch pattern or the yarn.  Happy crocheting!