If you love home decor projects, this one is about as simple as it can get — looping strips of fabric through rug canvas. And voila — you have a comfy, plush bit of carpeting to cushion your tootsies. Whether you go big and make an area rug or you choose to make a small, throw rug/bath mat size, the project is pretty much foolproof and a great one to do while watching TV.

A visit to a craft or fabric store makes it easy to buy supplies — look for rug canvas sold by the precut piece or by the yard. Mesh openings should be about 1⁄4 inch for easy handling.

The rug pile is made from knit fabric, and if you want to upcycle T-shirts, this is the perfect project. Buy fabric by the yard, or slice up old T-shirts by cutting them crosswise into strips. The featured rug (18 inches square) took seven extra-large T-shirts.

What you need

Rug canvas in the desired size, plus 1 inch on each edge for hems

Cotton jersey fabric or T-shirts in desired colors (quantity depends on rug size)

Felt markers

Scissors or a rotary cutter and ruler

Hand-sewing needle and thread

Rug hook

Nonslip rug pad/liquid latex (optional)

Preparation

1. If you plan to wash the finished rug, prewash the fabric (or T-shirts) to avoid color transfer later. Dry the fabrics in the dryer.

2. To make a rug with a graphic design, draw on the canvas wrong side with felt markers to indicate the various color placements.

3. Slice the fabric (or shirts) into 1-by-5-inch strips. Pull on the strips so they roll slightly for easier looping.

Making the rug

4. Beginning in the center and working from the underside, poke the hook through a mesh square. Fold the fabric strip in half and catch the fold with the hook. Pull the looped end through the canvas to the underside about 1⁄4 inch.

5. Repeat this process through all of the canvas holes, changing colors as needed to create your design. For a less dense pile, skip every other row of canvas holes.

6. Work the loops to within 1 inch of the canvas edges.

7. From the rug underside, stitch loosely through the rows of loops to hold them in place.

Finishing

8. Turn under the unfinished canvas edges to form a hem and sew in place by hand to finish.

9. If your rug is going to be placed on a hard-surface floor, use a nonslip pad under it for safety or paint the underside with liquid latex.

— Reporter: gwizdesigns@aol.com