82-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, October 30, 1993
Rug Weaver Finds Time To Preserve Dyi
GAIL STROCK
Mifflin Co. Correspondent
BELLEVILLE (Mifflin Co.)
It’s a old-fashioned handicraft
that’s easy to leant, inexpensive,
and in demand. So why is it a
dying art? Because it requires one
more ingredient most people now
days, unfortunately, are short of
time.
Mrs. Verna Renno of Belleville,
Mifflin County, takes that last
important ingredient and puts it to
good use braiding rugs out of wool
or knit remnants. By making as
mahy as 18 to 20 braided rugs
each year, Renno is carrying on
the craft her mother, grandmother,
and her husband’s mother used to
do to add warmth and color to the
wood floors in their homes.
. “It’s a wonder what you can do
with material,” she says, sitting in
her spacious, finished-off base
ment surrounded by boxes and
boxes of cloth material. “It’s a
good way to use worn out clo
thing. People know I do this and
give me material from rumage
sales and yard sales to make them
a rug.”
Her average rugs measure three
feet by five feet and take her about
two weeks. The biggest she’s
made was four feet by eight feet,
but she says the rugs get awfully
heavy at that size.
Braided rugs can be made out of
wool or knit. She prefers knit
Shades of green, brown and beige form this four by five
woven rug.
Using a large needle with a blunt end, Renno goes
through the braids being careful not to catch any material to
lace the rug together. All stitches are hidden both front and
because it is cleaner to work with.
Wool produces a lot of lint. Both
both are easy to clean. Mrs. Renno
suggests spraying both wool and
knit rugs with a rug shampoo and
using a sponge in warm water to
take off the shampoo. Never put
them in the washing machine, she
suggests. It’s hard on them and
they may come apart.
In selecting material, Renno
chooses bold colors like red,
green, and black. She likes to keep
one color consistent throughout,
such as black, and tries to keep the
color scheme, such as different
shades of green, the same through
out. She also chooses plain mater
ial, but sometimes uses a very
small print or plaid. “If I don’t like
the color of the knit, I just use the
wrong side (of the material),” she
adds. When braiding, she uses one
dark color with two light ones.
The rug she’s working on how is
various shades of blue with a con
stant black.
Renno starts by cutting the
material into strips one and one
half inches wide and as long as
possible. Because wool is a hea
vier material, the strips can’t- be
cut as wide or the finished braid,
which should be a half inch
across, would be too wide. Renno
keeps half-inch scraps close by for
thinner materials that might need a
filler strip tucked inside to add
bulk.
If the strips are short, she cuts
the ends on the diagonal and sews
the strips together on the sewing
machine to make longer strips that
make braiding go faster.
To start a rug at the center,
Renno takes three strips or plaits
and puts their ends together, cuts
off both comers to make a V
shapc, sews these together, and
then flips one plait over the raw
edge to make a finished V-shaped
end. Before braiding, each plait
needs to be folded to cover raw
edges. Fold each strip'so the raw
edges meet in the center, then fold
in half again forming a long thick
strand.
Renno braids a couple of yards
to start, keeping the braids tight,
then measures it. She believes
charging one dollar a yard is the
fairest way to come up with a
price. It takes about SI yards to
make a 32 inch by 48 inch rug.
After braiding a while, Renno
takes the first 20 inches, although
it depends on the size of the rug,
and starts stitching the braids
together to form the rug’s oval
shape. She uses a sturdy black
thread from a harness shop if the
rug’s continuous color is black.
For tans and greens, she uses a
beige thread.
Renno passes a “stubby” nosed
needle through the braid, being
careful not to catch any material in
the process, then does the same
with the braid beside it By doing
it this way, all stitches ate hidden,
front and back. Renno says it is
important to keep the rug
stretched out flat when lacing it
together, and to not pull the stitch
es too tight, otherwise the rug will
bulge. Because the thread she uses
slips. Rennp knots the ends before
knotting a new thread on to con
tinue stitching. She hides the knots
within the folds of the braids.
When the rug is completely
woven and stitched, taper off the
final braid and end with the darker
color. Then simply lace it to the
rug to secure it
Mrs. Renno began her craft
after her husband Erie “retired*
after 30 years as pastor of the
Locust Grove Mennonite Church.
He has spent the past 10 years
ministering at Valley View Haven
retirement home. They have three
daughters.
“I always ask the children and
grandchildren what they want for
their wedding a braided rug or
a comfort. They always say a
braided rug.”
Renno knows how easily one
can find material for a rug and
hopes this will encourage others to
learn the craft. One woman,
Renno says, bought the beautiful
deep red and black wool from the
Woolrich outlet and had her make
six rugs. Her nephew, a school
teacher in Michigan, gave her 30
of the school’s old knit uniforms..
With only two colors, Renno won
dered how the rugs would look,
but she wove four circles of a
blue/blue/gray scheme then four
circles' of a blue/gray/gray
scheme, adding that they turned
out just fine. She also told her
nephew the rugs would out wear
him!
Verna Renno of Belleville carries on a dwindling tradition
—braiding rugs. By sharing tricks of the trade such as con
necting lengths diagonally and folding them properly to
plait, she hopes to inspire others to learn rug braiding.
Mrs. Renno measures the braids and charges by the
yard.
Craft