Fan-tastic: Dyed Chevron Rug

By Kate Riley August 17, 2010

Greetings friends, announcement announcement !  There’s a new weekly series around these parts called “Fan-tastic Feature”.   That’s where one of YOU gets to be in the spotlight with one of your original articles or creations! 

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Hear ye, hear ye, now accepting submissions for your most fantabulous most fan-tastic projects !  Got a spectacular before and after?  A pretty table or mantelscape ?  A spruced up space?  A nifty gardening tip?  A scrumptious recipe worthy of showcasing?   A suuuuuper cute holiday craft?  A tour of your local town that would make us want to visit?  Well, why don’t you email me with your submission! 

If you read this blog, you know I love to write about many things beyond DIY projects.  I adore a decadent dessert, I’m always looking for new places to visit, and I can never get enough of a great before and after.   One of the things I’ve learned about blogging over the last year is that there is a lot of talent out there and I’d like to be one of the several sites to showcase it. 

Here are the requirements:  originality, creativity, & high quality, high resolution photographs and a clear tutorial and/or interesting article.  Your project, craft, space, or recipe cannot have been featured on any larger sites (Design*Sponge, Apartment Therapy, etc.).  I’m looking for the fresh, fabulous, and the inspiring to be featured once a week!

So let’s kick it off with Sarah’s ingenious idea ~  a hand dyed Chevron rug.  This is something I never would have dared to do, and yet, after seeing Sarah’s tutorial, it seems very simple.

Sarah’s Hand Dyed Chevron Rug

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Sarah writes:

“I had been coveting chevron rugs in a major way, but could not find one in my price range.  When I looked online to see what other people were doing for alternatives, all I could find were tutorials for painting the rugs.  Paint wouldn’t work for me, but then inspiration struck – if the rugs are fabric couldn’t you just dye it?  The answer?  YES!!

Supplies:  1. RIT liquid dye; 2. Squirt bottle; 3. Rug 4.  4. LOTS of rags; 5. Cardstock or cardboard to make stencil (or pre-made stencil); 6. painters tape

chevron 4Step 1: After you’ve purchased your rug and selected your dye color, put a small amount of dye in a squirt bottle and add water.  Be sure to test the saturation first on a rag until you get the desired hue. 

Step 2: Using the card stock or cardboard make your stencil

Step 3: Using the painters tape and stencil begin taping off the pattern onto your rug.  Be sure to tape the rug binding as well.   Be sure to take into account the space taken up by the tape and measure accordingly.

   

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Step 4: Begin dying your rug by squirting the dye mixture directly on the carpet using the rags to cover the parts you don’t want colored, then blot for even coverage.

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The wonderful thing about this is that the carpet feels and looks like it came this way.   Extra bonus: it dries fast and if you have a light colored rug some diluted bleach can erase any mistakes.  With stencils you can create any design in any color.”  

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Fantastic job Sarah!  Way to get creative !  Who would have thought you could get such a clear pattern with dye?  I just love learning something new.  You can hop over to visit Sarah’s blog right here

What about you, are you a fan of the Chevron pattern?   Would you try this technique at home?  Do share.

 

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43 comments

  1. Kate this is a fab idea! The chevron pattern is wonderful. Does Sarah or any for that matter have a good source for inexpensive high quality solid area rugs?

    Love the new feature!

    Karena
    Art by Karena

  2. It looks great and it’s a great idea, but what’s to keep the dye from smearing onto other areas of the rug and your feet? I’ve never used Rit dyes, but every other dye I’ve used has to be set and washed to remove the excess.

  3. Great tutorial! I had been wondering how to dye a rug, and I am glad Sarah was able to come up with such an easy explanation for it.

  4. I am amazed! I would never have tried that. But it looks so good and now she has a great, personalized carpet that’s perfect for her space. I may have to try that! Lisa~

  5. What a wonderful idea! Well, two wonderful ideas–your FANtastic Feature series and this cool chevron rug! I would never have thought of dying a rug, but it makes perfect sense. I love the thought of a fairly simple technique that takes a plain-jane rug from so-so to so cool. Thank you for spotlighting Sarah–what a thrill it must be for her, and what a shot in the arm for her blog!

  6. I’ve been dreaming of new floor rugs for a while now! (it’s always the last on the list for some reason!) This looks like such a fun project! AMAZING, Sarah! Thanks for sharing, Kate!

    XO,
    K

  7. This is seriously FABULOUS!!!! I never would have thought to do this!!! It’s stunning! Great work, girl!!!
    ~Terrell @ FrouFrouDecor~

  8. What an amazing transformation! I have an area in my living room that I need a rug for. I’m thinking I may have to do this project :) Kate, I’m loving the new series, wonderful idea.

  9. I just painted stripes on a seagrass rug the other day… its always very reassuring that there are people out there as “crazy” as myself ;)… wonderful idea!

  10. i would totally try this but i am a cluts! my lines wouldn’t be as clean as sarah’s. she did such a great job! thx for sharing.

  11. Now, that is something I have not seen before! What a creative idea, Sarah! And it looks fairly easy — if I could only get the pattern straight…

    Just checking in between vacations. I knew I would be in for a treat!

    ox, Mon

  12. That is a great DIY — but I have to ask. What was the rug made of? Is it wool or synthetic materials as I would think that would affect the dye absorption rate. But any case, I am now on the look out for 2nd hand rugs to make into my own masterpiece!

  13. It looks ace. I’ve seen painted rugs before though not dyed so thanks for sharing Kate. I love your Feature idea.
    Kristine

  14. I like this. I just saw this rug on Apartment Therapy too! I wish I would have done this pattern when I painted my rug.

  15. OMGosh, so simple with great results. I agree with Victoria, this is a “must-try” project.
    Thanks!

  16. I am completely in love with the chevron pattern. This is such a great idea that can be used with so many patterns and it looks so professional. No one would like it was a DIY project.

  17. love love love this new series! I always like hearing about your projects but then I wonder at the back of my mind if you have super-human talents that make you such a great DIYer :) Seeing stuff from other people gives me hope that maybe anybody can try out a fun diy project!

  18. I love the chevron pattern–definitely one of my favorites! I am drawn to anything with that pattern. I am surprised how good this turned out. I have seen hand painted rugs like this before, and in my opinion they don’t look that great. But I actually like this one. It seems like the rug would still be soft and cushy where the dye is. I’d love to try this out–something I never would have thought of. Thanks for the inspiration.

  19. You post inspired me to dye a piece of carpet I was using for a cat tree black. I love the look of it, but it’s been drying for over a day and when I touch it it feels dry but leaves black on my hands. I sprayed it with scotch guard and tomorrow I’ll give it another coat. I took a sample patch and rinsed it to see if maybe I could wash the excess out, but it just took almost all of the dye out. Do you have any suggestions?

    Thank you :)

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