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HOW TO MAKE A RUG WITH TASSELS FOR INDOORS AND OUTDOORS

How to make a rug with tassels is an easy DIY rug project that anyone can do. A simple no sewing fabric rug project that you can use inside or outdoors. This rug can be made as a small doormat rug or a larger area rug.

DIY drop cloth rug with rainbow colored tassels and layered with a yellow hello spring mat

Learning how to make a rug with tassels is pretty easy if you are using fabric as your base. In this project, I am using a canvas dropcloth to show you the easiest way to make a rug without sewing.

This post contains affiliate links, meaning I receive a commission if you purchase using the links below at no extra cost to you. All opinions are all my own.

How to Make a Rug with Tassels

With most projects, I encourage people to create a plan and then buy supplies first. For this project think about your space you plan to put your rug. My custom DIY rug is going on my porch for spring and it is acting as a layered rug.

Create a Plan for the Rug

So now that you have a room or porch selected go to my Pinterest and look for some inspiration. You are mainly looking at colors in your room and ideas on Pinterest.

For my porch, I wanted more on the bright side this year so I went with the rainbow. The interior of my home is more muted tones but I have fallen in love with rainbows lately and thought my front porch would be the perfect spot to pull that off.

Now if you are doing multiple colors on your tassels then pick out the main four colors of your room. What colors stand out to you the most? Then those are your tassel colors.

DIY Rug Supplies

Now you will need to gather all your supplies before you get started. Here is a list of the supplies you will need if you are doing a small rug like mine. If you are doing a larger rug then you will need more canvas drop cloth material and possibly more yarn. It all depends on how many tassels you plan to use.

How to Make a Tassel from Yarn

If you love knitting, hand sewing or making anything with your hands then you will love making yarn tassels. I found this activity to be most relaxing while sitting in front of the TV.

Begin by taking the end of your yarn and sitting inside the cover of the book. Next start wrapping the yarn around the book 50 times for the fullness of my tassels. If you want skinnier tassels then try 30 times.

How to make a tassel with yarn

Once you have turned the yarn around the book 50 times stop at the bottom of the book and snip the yarn.

How to make a tassel with yarn by cutting the yarn once you finish wrapping the book

Follow this step by cutting two pieces of the yarn. One piece is 8″ and the other piece is 24″ Put the longer piece of yarn to the side. We will come back to it shortly.

How to make a tassel with yarn by cutting two pieces of yarn one 8" and another 24"

Now thread the 8″ piece of yarn between the wrapped yarn on the book and the pages of the book.

How to make a tassel with yarn by threading the 8" yarn under the wrapped yarn on book

Once you have the yarn threaded squeeze the end of the wrapped yarn and then tie the yarn with three loops and pull as tight as possible.

How to make a tassel with yarn by pinching the yarn before tying the 8" piece of yarn.

I find it helpful to lift and tie down as I go. Once you have the first tie tight then tie once more to secure it.

How to make a tassel with yarn by tying the 8" piece of yarn into a knot.

Next slide the yarn off of the book and smooth it down with your hand.

How to make a tassel with yarn by removing the yarn from the book and smoothing it inside your hand.

Now it is time to grab the 24″ piece of yarn.

Take the 24 inch piece of yarn and make a loop on one end.

Sit the loop on the tassel towards the top with the end of the loop near the top of the tassel, so the actual loop is on the bottom and the ends are on the top of the tassel.

How to make a tassel with yarn by taking a 24" piece of yarn and looping one end and laying the loop upside down on the tassel towards the top.

Now start wrapping the longest end about a quarter of an inch down from the top of the tassel. Wrap about eight times and do not let the yarn overlap each other. But make sure it’s sitting right next to the other piece you just wrapped.

How to make a tassel with yarn by wrapping the 24" piece of yarn around the top of the tassel about 1/2" down.  Wrap 8 times.

Lastly, take the end of the yarn that you have been wrapping and run it through the loop that is at the bottom that you left hanging out. 

How to make a tassel with yarn by taking the end of the 24" piece of yarn and threading it through the loop that is sticking out at the top.

Then the shorter piece of yarn that is sticking out the top of where you just wrapped—pull that piece in the loop and it will start closing up at the bottom and it will hide the end of the yard.

How to make a tassel with yarn by pulling the other end of the 24" piece of yarn and watching the loop hide behind all the yarn you looped at the top.

Then snap the excess yarn at the top.

How to make a tassel with yarn by snipping the piece of yarn hanging out.

Can you see how this tassel is taking shape now? Next place the tassel in your hand with the end just peeking out where you thumb folds.

How to make a tassel with yarn by taking the tassel and trimming the end or bottom however long you want it.

Take your scissors and trim the tassel on the other side of your hand.

How to make a tassel with yarn by trimming the yarn.

This last part is really dependent on how long you want your tassels to be. So if you want them longer then pull the tassel out more so that it will be shorter when you cut it.

And guess what? You are all done. Yay!!!

Repeat these steps and make more tassels based off of your design plan. I have a total of eight tassels to make with two of each color. So for now make your tassels and then come back here to learn how to make a rug with fabric.

DIY Rug with Fabric

Okay, it is time to make your rug and this will go by much faster than the tassels. Another thought is that you do not have to have tassels on this rug. In fact, you can paint stripes on the drop cloth fabric rug or you can stencil a pretty design on a rug like this in my spring porch decorating ideas post.

See how many wonderful options you have to create your own rug design.

Now let's get to creating this rug and attaching the tassels. First, determine the size of your rug and add two inches to the height and width. My rug is 27″ x 39″ cut size.

Next cut a piece of dropcloth to those dimensions. One side note is that I like to bleach my drop cloth material. A great resource on how to bleach your drop cloth is Lisa's YouTube video at Farmhouse on Boone.

After you have cut your rug find which side you want to be the top. Turn that side down and grab the Super Weight heat n bond and a dry iron heated to cotton setting.

Next turn one end of your dropcloth over one inch and press it down.

How to make a drop cloth rug by turning the sides under 1" and pressing the canvas.

Then cut a piece of the hem tape the length of the drop cloth that you just turned down and place it inside the fold.

How to make a drop cloth rug by opening the folded canvas and measuring out a piece of no sew hem tape and cutting it to the length.

Press the iron on one end holding it down for 3 -5 seconds.

How to make a drop cloth rug by folding the canvas over the iron on hem tape and pressing the iron down for 3 to 5 seconds to close the hem

When you finish one spot move the iron down a little and press down for another 3-5 seconds. Keep doing this until you have finished the end of the dropcloth.

Next rotate the dropcloth and repeat the steps to make a no sew hem.

Attaching Tassels to a Rug

We have a rug and we have tassels so now we need to put them together to make a tassel rug.

Start by marking where you want your tassels to go. I divided up the width by the number of tassels to determine where I wanted the tassels to sit. I then made a mark with a pencil about an 1/4″ in from the edge.

Next, grab something sharp to weave into the threads of the drop cloth to make a hole. I used an old ice pick but you can use a large yarn needle or even a seam ripper.

Basically place the end of something sharp where you want your tassels to go and wiggle it in between the fibers trying not to break any of the threads. Once you are through the fabric and you will have to penetrate the hem tape to move the sharp object around until you make a big enough hole for the tassel yarn to go through.

How to make a drop cloth rug by marking where you want your tassels to go and then making a hole with a sharp object like an ice pick.

Next, grab your tassel and twist the end tight then thread it into the hole and pull it snug.

Attaching tassels to a drop cloth rug

Once your tassel through the drop cloth rug tie it behind the drop cloth into a knot and cut the ends.

Attaching tassels to a dropcloth rug by tying them into place

I decided to tie mine carefully but not cut the ends and tie it where I cannot remove them because I may want another look later. But it is completely up to you.

Layered Rugs

If you create a rug like mine and plan to layer your rugs then I have a whole post full of layered rug ideas that will inspire you.

Also, I found this Hello Spring mat at Joann Fabric but I have listed some other fun mats below to spark your creativity.

Conclusion

See how easy it is to create your own rug and it is a cheap rug DIY too. There are endless possibilities with these drop cloth rugs.

Front porch decorated for spring and a layered rug with a drop cloth rug with tassels

If you are planning to make a larger rug for your living room, dining room or bedroom buy a good quality rug mat to go under the rug. It will give it some cushion and help keep it in place.

How to make a tassel with yarn example of a light teal tassel.

Well, I hope you have enjoyed this DIY rug project and tassel tutorial. I would love to see some photos if you make a rug especially a larger one.

Happy Decorating!

how to make a rug with tassels

HOW TO MAKE A RUG WITH TASSELS

Yield: 1
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Active Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes

A simple, easy, inexpensive and beautiful tasseled rug to make for your home.

Instructions

    1. Grab supplies listed in the post

    2. Begin by making the tassels3. Wrap yarn around a small book 40 times

4. Cut the yarn when finished

5. Cut one piece of yarn 8" and another 24"

6. Take the 8" piece of yarn and thread it between the yarn and pages

7. Pinch the wrapped yarn and tie the 8" piece of yarn into a knot

8. Pull all the yarn off of the book

9. Smooth down the tassel in your hand

10. Take the 24" piece of yarn and make a loop at one end

11. Sit the loop towards the top of the tassel

12. Start wrapping the non-loop end around the top of the tassel about 1/2" from the top.

13. Loop 8 times making sure each loop does not cover the last one

14. Then take the long end of the yarn and thread it through the loop that it's sticking out of the top of where you were looping.

15. Pull the other end of the yarn to close up the loop under the wrapped yarns.

16. Snip excess yarn

17. Place tassel in your hand and cut the end to the desired length.

18. Now let's make the rug using drop cloth material

19. Cut the drop cloth to the length you desire. If you are layering rugs I recommend three inches around the edge of the top rug if it is a doormat.

20. Iron down one side of the rug 1"

21. Measure some heat n bond the width of what you just ironed down and cut.

22. Lay the heat n bond up against the fold and cover with the canvas drop cloth

23. Use an iron and press in one spot over the fold for 3 to 5 seconds on dry setting

24. Repeat this step until you have hemmed all the edges around the dropcloth.

25. It is time to add the tassels

26. Lay the tassels out where you want them and mark about 1/4" in on the canvas with a pencil

27. Use something sharp like an ice pick or a seam ripper and make a hole in the material.

28. Take the tassel and thread it into the hole and tie the end on the underside of the dropcloth materials.

29. Snip the yarn so it doesn't show when you lay the rug down

30. Lay the drop cloth rug on your porch or wherever you plan to use it and then lay another rug on top of it in the middle if you plan to layer your rugs.

Did you make this project?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Pinterest

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Wednesday 16th of September 2020

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Donna G.Sigler

Tuesday 11th of August 2020

I love your rug idea, I’m planning to make one for each of my grandchildren and great grandchildren to sit on when we’re outside having fun!! All I’ll have to do is shake the grass off and roll them up, and into a carrying bag to be stored at home! This will be so much fun!! I’ll have to make 11 rugs for my precious jewels to sit on!! Thank you, I can’t wait to get started and I’ll take pictures to share if you’d like!!

Linda McDonald

Thursday 13th of August 2020

This is such a fun idea! I love it! The drop cloth material is very durable and washes great. Do you sew? If you sew I would turn the hem under twice and sew it down. That way when you need to wash them the edges will not fray.

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