Way back when I was going through my charm pack phase, I put together this little wall hanging. It hung in the same spot until we moved, but by then, I had a new plan for it. A friend had passed on a copy of Mary Janes Farm Magazine and in it were instructions for making homespun canvas floorcloths, perfect for my charm pack wall hanging thingy. Now I have a new rug by the front door.
The nice thing about this rug is that it’s flat, so it doesn’t get in the way of the door opening. It’s also sweepable and doesn’t hold dust, so doesn’t need to be vacuumed.
My ingredients? 2.5 bottles of Mod Podge to glue my 3 layers of fabric together and a fantastic new find: rug backing. Rug backing is painted on to the bottom to keep the floorcloth from sliding around. I can see all kinds of uses for this.
Instructions: Mary Janes Farm Aug-Sept 2010, p.74










great ‘floorcloth’ but do you by chance know where you got the basket by the door?
I love that basket too! I was at a friend’s house last week and she had two wire baskets in her pile of giveaways! Lucky me.
I’ll ask her where she got them.
could be old commercial freezer bins, OR, when I was a life guard, they were bins for swimmers to put their street clothes in.
The floor cloth is great and I wan to make one,…..but like you I too was drawn to the basket and then realized I have one that I purchased at a yardsale just because I loved it and haven’t found a purpose for it yet! Looks Iike I found one now!
That’s such a great idea (I’ve never seen one like it!) – what a beautiful bright welcome into your home
xxxCate
Thanks, Cate! I felt like the space needed some color, even if the fabric is 4 years old. Most of my friends wouldn’t know that.
That’s a great idea! It’s such a cheerful, colorful rug.
Very cute but I would step over it. Ha ha. So much for wiping my feet, right?
looks great! How much of the rig backing was needed? A little goes a long way?
A little does go a long way. The jar of rug backing is still full.
Beautiful floorcloth! I like it better than the more traditional ones. What did you use to cover the fabric, Mod Podge, to protect it? Maybe you’ll reveal a few more details on how you made this. Janes Farm magazine is not at my local library.
Thanks!
Looks fantastic! How do like the rug backing? I’ve made one floor mat for the kitchen & want to make more…but was wondering how well that product really works before buying. Thanks!
Jan, I like it! The only thing is it is a bit sticky (which it’s supposed to be) but when I walk on the rug it crackles. Sorta funny. When a friend came over today and stepped on it, she looked down because it crackled and told me how much she liked the rug so perhaps the crackling isn’t so bad after all.
Love the idea!! And I have so many little bits of textiles at home…
My next project are going to be puffs with old bits of fabric!
I think this would look great with scraps of fabric. Puffs sound fun!
I need to know how you made yours! I don’t have access to the magazine and I looked to see if it was on their website. Maybe just a few general hints??? I have some charm packs and my girls room would look so cute with a floor cloth like that for their reading nook!
Wow, that’s really pretty!!
One problem – it’s too pretty to step on it!
I searched for a matching basket, no luck. Thanks.
Is the rug backing washable? I was thinking if I decided not to modge podge the top…
Looks beautiful.
The instructions on the rug backing container say, “It stays on after repeated washings” and says it is machine washable. So I would say yes, but my own personal experience with washing store-bought rugs, well, you know – the rug backing come off after a few washings.
This rug is awesome! I’m gonna have to hunt down a copy of that magazine.
Oh I love the rug! So cheerful and welcoming, what a great idea!
I can’t tell you how much I love this. I need to make one immediately!
What a great solution!
Now that’s clever!! Love all the nice colors. And your Rug Backing’s a new one on this crafter.
Nice!
Rose
I HAVE TO MAKE THIS!
where do you find the Rug Backing at ?
I don’t remember where I purchased mine, but I purchased it online. If you search “rug backing” there are many places that sell it. Hope this helps!
I love this idea…I think I will use a vintage tablecoth instead!
This is a great idea….I think I would use a vintage tablecoth
Love the tablecloth idea as have a couple sitting around (textileaholic) and then it would be done, as opposed to having to make a little quilt first, lol. I am wondering about the three layers….canvas, batting, top? Did you put decoupage on each layer?
What an absolutely darling idea!
I think we would all love a little more instructions since it’s not so easy to get a hold of this magazine.
You said you had three layers of fabric – what types of fabric and what did you use as the base? Seems easy enough to figure out if I just knew that much. Beautiful rug! Thanks!
Victoria,
What I did was fuse my patchwork to a piece of fabric then add the decorative stitching. Then I laid that piece on top of a heavy canvas. I modpodged the top and let it dry, then flipped it over and modpodged the bottom and let it dry. Then my final step was to paint on the rug backing. For the rug in this picture the edges are raw, but there hasn’t been much fraying because the modpodge holds everything in place.
Hope this helps!
Linda
Thank you so much! I am definitely going to try this
Found your fun and pretty Mod Podge floor mat hunting through Pinterest.
Is it possible to email the basic directions?
I think I have a general idea of what to do but want to make sure.
Thank you!!!
Margie!
What I did was fuse my patchwork to a piece of fabric then add the decorative stitching. Then I laid that piece on top of a heavy canvas. I modpodged the top and let it dry, then flipped it over and modpodged the bottom and let it dry. Then my final step was to paint on the rug backing. For the rug in this picture the edges are raw, but there hasn’t been much fraying because the modpodge holds everything in place.
Hope this helps!
Hi! Great project! One question, you said you laid the patchwork fused pieced on top of a piece of canvas, did you sew those pieces together or fuse them? Got everything else! Thanks?
You think this concept would work with a bunch of old tshirts?