Weaving a giant potholder

I thought I'd share this mat I made a few years ago.  Well, the mat isn't much to look at, but some of you might be interested in the method of the making.

Remember weaving pot holders from cotton loops on a small peg loom when you were a kid?  Frankly, I don't.  But I had at least seen them before, so when I read about this idea in one of the Tightwad Gazette books I had to try it out.   What you do is this:  Make yourself a big loom from some scrap lumber or a big picture frame or some stretcher bars.  Use finishing nails to make the "pegs" about an inch apart along all sides.  Now for the genius - the loops.  Take some old t-shirts and cut them into one or two inch strips horizontally from the bottom up to the armpits. Loops! Actually, you may want to cut your loops before you build your loom so you know how big your loom needs to be.  Then you  just weave it the same way you would a potholder, only bigger.  Make more than one and hook them together in a row or a square!  This is definitely a craft I'm going to try again some day.  Unfortunately I'll have to make a new loom since the one I used for this got left behind after our last move.

Comments

[Sister Diane]

Ah - this is brilliant! You could do trivets and placemats and even a nice, sturdy bag this way. Love the idea of T-shirt loops!