Rag Rugs Tour
1. Tambour
2. Shirred 
3. Standing wool

4. Knitted
5. Flat Wrap
6. Amish Knot

7. Chain Braids
8. Broomstick & String Crochet
9. Crocheted

10. Fabric Tapestry
11. Anchored Loop
12. Hooked, Poked, Prodded, Bodkin

13. Needleworked
14. Toothbrush rugs
15. Braided rugs

16. Knotted & strung shags
17. Loom woven
18. Patched (penny rugs) & sewn shags
19. Frame made rugs
20. Wagon wheel & frame braids 
21. Odds 'n ends

In this category are some items, which while not true "rag rugs" are related to them and rugs which combine different rag rug techniques.

FLOOR CLOTHS 
Painted floor cloths have been around for a long time, and are enjoying something of a revival. In their simplest form they are a sealed and painted piece of heavy cloth-- canvas, duck or any other sturdy cloth-- used on the floor for decoration or to protect a soft wood floor. Oral traditions include the use of worn sails from sailing ships and the canvas tops of covered wagons as the basic material. 

There are several ways to create floor cloths today-- see the article "Creating a Floor Cloth, Four Ways".

A WOOL BED "RUGG" 
This is an interesting and fun technique which joins heavy wool squares together to form a coverlet. While related to patched rugs, these were not often used on floors, but they are more quickly done and adaptable to a number of uses including stadium blankets, lap robes, afghans and Christmas tree skirts as well as bed coverings. 

I have not been able to trace any record of this technique before the 1930's, but one correspondent relates that her great-grandmother had made them prior to that time, and that it was she who insisted that the name be spelled with two g's. The spelling is similar to the term found in old household inventories "bedd rugge", but the indications from the early 19th century are that the term was most often applied to large hooked coverlets, not these squares. So, while the origins of this technique remain a bit of a mystery, it is nevertheless a worthwhile technique for preserving here. (Besides the work on these projects goes very quickly and is light take-along work.) For instructions, see the article "Making a Wool Bed Rugg or Christmas Tree Skirt." 

COMBINATION RUGS 
This is really an extensive group of rugs, and reflects the creativity of rug makers trying out different combinations. The object of listing these combinations is to spark the same try-it-out spirit in today's rug makers. Here is a modest list of some of the combinations that have been used to make unique rag rugs: 

Knitting, framed and/or outlined with braids, or with braids between rounds of knitting 
Knitted rugs with a patched border (most often 'tongues') 
Frame woven rugs with a patched border (most often 'tongues') 
Hooked rugs, framed with braids 
Hooked rugs with a prodded border 
Hooked rugs with a tambour border or tambour work as a part of the design
Patched rugs with a braided border, or a light braid sewn around design elements in the rug 
Loom woven rugs with rows of knotted shag inserted 
Shirred and standing wool rugs with the techniques intermixed 
Sewn shags combined with prodding on a burlap base. 
Anchored loop rugs with tambour borders or intermixed in the rug. 

COMBINATION CROCHETED & BRAIDED RUG
Received my order yesterday wow that's all I can say I am thrilled with all the books and equipment I ordered i know i will be soon ordering more!!!! I do have a question: I have a photo out of magazine published within past year that shows an amish crocheted and braided rug it is round with strips of crocheted and braiding in between strips of crocheted. have you any info on this type of rug i sure would like to get a pattern. Thank you again, Penny (: (: (:

Hi Penny, I'm so glad you're enjoying your order-- it is always wonderful to hear from people who are excited about keeping traditional rugs alive.

About the rug you saw in a magazine.... It wasn't unusual to see braids combined with other techniques in rugs. Crocheting and knitting were often done in bands, with a braid inserted between them. (in the knit book, see the 'bullseye' construction-- between each band, and around the outer edge a strip of braiding was sewn) The crocheted construction is similar, with bands of back-and-forth crocheting. Braids were often used too, as borders around lighter rugs (like patched, hooked, anchored loop, etc.) to give them a firmer edge, and to frame the design. And braids were used in Amish knot and shirred rugs to add a different texture, as an artistic touch. There has been a lot of creativity in traditional rug making!

We haven't done much with patterns for combination rugs-- too busy just trying to get the techniques themselves documented. If you still have the photo, and can scan it & send it, I can probably give you basic instructions as to how to recreate it (and of course, share the directions on the web with other folks who might be interested in trying out different combinations. )