How to Sew a Rug Out of Upholstery Fabric

Do you love rugs but find it at the bottom of your budget priorities? This is where I’ve found myself. When my wonderful aunt gave me some leftover upholstery fabric in a very neutral color, I decided to try to sew a rug. Join me as I figure this out!

The Fabric

This image shows beige fabric folded and lying on a wooden floor.

The fabric is a good quality neutral tan with textural stripes woven into it. The dimensions of the fabric are 60 inches by 130 inches. After a little searching, I found this one, if you would like to buy something similar.

If you like making super useful items for your home, or even as a gift for a friend, check out this post!

Supplies Needed for This Project

Strong upholstery fabric, of a size large enough to be the size you want when doubled
Matching thread
Sewing machine
Rug backing strips- this one is a good option

Fabric Measurements

You can make your rug whatever size you want. If you have a length of fabric in your stash, you can use that. Or, if there is a specific area in your home that needs a rug, you can measure your space and buy fabric.

Whichever you choose, you just need a double layer of fabric.

First Step for My Rug

I thought about it for a few minutes and finally decided to cut my fabric in half instead of sewing it together folded. So, I lined up the edges carefully and cut it in half along the width. This meant my double layer of fabric was now 60″ by 65″. I admit that this is an unusual size for a rug, basically a square, but this size is fine for the one side of my living room space.

This image shows the beige fabric lying on a painted table being cut with orange scissors.

Time to Sew the Rug

The next thing I did was to press in a hem of about 1″ along each side of my rug on both layers and pinned it. I used a scrap of fabric as a pressing cloth. My fabric was partially synthetic, and I didn’t want it melting onto my iron. Unless you are certain that your fabric is 100 percent natural, I advise you to use a pressing cloth to protect your iron from melting fabric.

This image shows the beige upholstery fabric lying on a grey fabric covered ironing board with a hem folded over and pins holding it.

I sewed a straight stitch all along each layer of fabric. The fabric was bulky, and I didn’t want it shifting around, so I took this extra step.

This image shows a hand holding the fabric in order for the reader to see the sewn edge.

After that step, I topstitched the two hemmed layers together around the rug.

This image shows a hand guiding the fabric through a sewing machine as it is being sewn.

Applying Rug Backing

Rug Tape is a rubber-based rug backing that I found at my hardware store. There are many different brands that sell similar products, but this one worked really well and ended up holding securely to the back of my rug.

This image shows the rug tape that is being applied to the back of the handmade rug to keep it from slipping on the floor.

First, I cut the strips to fit the length of my rug, using sharp scissors. I made sure that I kept a 1/2-inch bare edge around the perimeter, which is what the instructions advised. One roll was enough for five strips on the back of my rug.

This image shows the rug tape lying on the rug, laid out to figure out the placement.

Next, I slowly peeled off the plastic strip that covers the sticky part of the rug tape.

This image shows a woman's hands pulling the backing strip from the back of the rug tape in order to adhere the rug tape.

As I pulled off the backing, I pressed the tape firmly into place on my rug.

This image shows the woman's hands sticking the rug tape to the back of the handmade rug.

Make Sure the Rug Tape is Secure

I stepped on the rug tape to ensure it was secure. This seemed to work very efficiently!

This image shows a woman's foot pressing down the rug tape to ensure its firmly adhered to the back.

Your Rug is Finished!

You can stop here and have a basic simple rug, or you can proceed and decorate it!

Ideas To Decorate Your Rug

You can sew a fringe trim along two of the edges for a traditional rug style.
Paint stripes onto it.
Sew fabric patches onto it. (before the rug tape is added)
Paint stencil designs onto your rug- which is what I’m going to do!

How to Stencil Your Hand Made Rug- Prepping

Gather Your Supplies:

Stencil- I bought mine at Hobby Lobby but here is a similar one
Acrylic paint- here is the kind I used- I bought three, but only used one for this project.
3/4-inch stencil brush
Paper plate or bowl
A ruler
Rags

This image shows a blue and white floral surface and on it is resting a light pink rose stencil, a stencil brush, and bottles of white acrylic paint.

I had never stenciled before, so I wasn’t sure how this would turn out!

Before I began the stenciling process, I cut off this individual rose and set aside, because I didn’t want it to get in the way, since I wasn’t using that portion.

This image shows the stencil lying on the upholstery fabric and part of it has been cut off because it wasn't going to be used.

First, I decided how I wanted to place my stencil. I finally decided I wanted a border all the way around, 3 inches from the edge. So, I lined up my ruler so I could put my stencil in place.

This image shows a ruler measuring three inches from the edge and the stencil is placed that distance to prepare to paint the rug.

After that, I squeezed my paint into a paper bowl. I had a large rag ready in case I needed to wipe my hands during the stenciling process.

This image shows a hand holding an open bottle of the paint and it is pouring into a paper bowl.

Stenciling Begins

I dabbed my paintbrush into the paint and began to tap it onto the stencil, holding my brush vertically. Paint covered the entire open design of the stencil.

This image shows a hand holding the stencil paintbrush and filling in the open areas with paint and holding the paintbrush vertically while tapping the paintbrush onto the fabric.

This image shows the stencil half-filled in with white paint.

I really wasn’t sure how much paint to use, since this was my first time stenciling.

Below is a picture of a stencil early in the painting process.

This image shows the result of the painting when the stencil is removed. It is a white border of roses and vine.

After painting in the stencil, I moved the ruler, picked up the stencil, and moved it over. Then I repeated the process all the way around the rug. At the corners, I made sure to intersect the painting about 3 inches in from the corners.

This image shows that the stencil was moved to a new spot and where the stencil meets at a corner of the rug.

Finishing Up Painting My Handmade Rug

When I painted the first two sides of my rug, my paint usage was a little heavy. By the time I got my groove, I concluded that I had been using too much paint.

This image shows another part of the rug where there was less paint used and it looks much better.

This picture above shows the rose pattern much more clearly, since I had a lot less paint on my paintbrush. So, that is my recommendation for you. I think it looks pretty to see some spots where the paint looks distressed.

This image shows the rug finished and it is a view from across the room.

This is an image of the rug, finished and the furniture has been placed onto the rug.

Overall, I really like my hand made rug, and I think the stenciling finished it off really well. The rug tape has been holding up exceptionally well and the rug is sturdy even though it is sewn out of upholstery fabric!

Here is another great project to make a very utilitarian object in your home beautiful!

What do you think? Would you attempt this project? How would you decorate a handmade rug for yourself? Please start a conversation in the comments below, I would love to hear your thoughts!