How to Upcycle Old Clothes into Rugs - DIY Braided Rug

It's a change in seasons and as you clean out your closet and your drawers of old clothes to make room for new ones, maybe you can also upcycle?

I am all about donating gently used clothing, but what if your's has seen better days?  Instead of adding them to the landfill, you can create your own braided rug.

Check out the video below:

Try to Use Similar Weighted Fabrics...

I have done this many times, and my all time favorite is to use old denim jeans.  But if you want a lighter rug, you can use old t-shirts, tops or anything. 

But I personally have found the braided rug looks it's best with similar weighted fabrics. 

Check Thrift Shops for Discarded Clothes

I found this to be a great source for fabrics.  When people donate to the thrift shops, only the better condition clothes make it to the floor for sale.  They quite often have bags of old clothes that end up in the landfill. 

How to Make a Denim Braided Rug

I bought a bag of old jeans for 5 bucks!  I washed them and then cut them up to make this rug:

How to Make a Recycled Jeans Braided Rug.

Follow the video (at top of page) on how to braid the fabric and attach new pieces.

How to Create Strips of Denim:

1.  Cut up the side seams to the crotch and cut the top part of the jeans off, leaving you two open legs.

2.  Cut strips about 2 inches wide.  

3.  To make this easier, you can create a cardboard template 1.5 to 2 inches wide in a long strip (tape cardboard together for a long piece),  or use a yard stick, and make the outline with a fabric marker.

4.  Cut the strips out using sharp scissors or electric scissors (totally saves your hands from cramping).

Obviously you need to have good sharp scissors, or electric scissors, which I used.  I got them online from Amazon.  Here is a link to 

Electric scissors made the whole process quicker, easier and fun.  Once you have the strips, then create the rug as in the video.

But this is where denim differs.  It is much heavier, and unless you have a specific denim need for your sewing machine, I personally found it much easier to sew the coils together as they formed using carpet or upholstery thread and needle by hand.




This is a much stronger thread, and I found it much easier to work with than trying to fit this thicker denim rug under the machine needle. It is not hard to do.

I simply began coiling it tightly as soon as I could and sewed it together.  As the braid grew I kept coiling it and sewing it by hand.

How to Make Your Braided Rug Safe?

If you are using the rugs for hardwood or tiled floors, then you need to make then "anti-slip".

I purchased this anit-slip fabric from Amazon and they really work.  They keep it in place.

It generally comes in a big rectangle and you can cut it into pieces to fit under your DIY braided rugs. This keeps them in place on any surface to make them safe.

I hope this has got you inspired to cut up those old clothes and create awesome and one of a kind unique braided rugs for your home or cottage.

Feel good knowing you totally upcycled or recycled your clothes!