Class Report
Rags to Rugs
Teacher: Amanda Leslie (left)
Facilitator: Sami Simon
What was the weirdest thing you learned?
Sami: How many different styles of weaving there are! I thought it was all just the standard “over and under” approach. I learned about standard weaves, twills, and satines (oh my!).
What did you learn that you can put into practice immediately?
Sami: I found the whole class to be pretty practical. Turning scrap fabric like old T-shirts into something useable like a rug is a nice way to DIY your life. I’m going to cover my house in homemade rugs now!
If this class were a TV show, what channel would it be on?
Sami: If HGTV had a sister network for 20-somethings in the city with nose rings, it would be on there.
How did the teacher get interested in this subject?
Amanda: I teach knitting and sewing summer camp. One of the projects we do with the kids is little cardboard-loom-wove pouches. I wanted to take that idea and blow it up to make rugs. And use stuff from SCRAP DC to reuse and recycle!
What do people tend to wrongly assume about this subject before learning about it?
Amanda: That it’s hard and you can only do it on one of those huge wooden looms. Weaving can be cheap and fast too!
If a space alien visited this class and could understand English, what would they sumise about humanity?
Amanda: That we are a very hands-on type of life form. That we try to do things that could otherwise be done on machines, but doing it by hand makes it more special and important.
What can people read/watch for more information on this topic?
Amanda: There are lots of videos on YouTube where people demonstrate this kind of work. Here’s an example.