Materials and Supplies for Wagon Wheel Rug

There are four main sections of the rug requiring different lengths of cloth: the main spokes, the fan strips, the inner hub, and the warp.

You need 6 strips cut 2 1/4" x 50" using preferably a solid color. If you buy material for them, a 36" x 20" piece of cloth could be cut into 16 strips each 2 1/4" wide, all sewn together, and then cut into 50" lengths. A 45" x 15" piece of cloth could be cut into 20 strips each 2 1/4" wide and sewn together and cut into 50" lengths. If you sew the strips together first, sew them together on a slant rather than straight across. Once you have the lengths cut, do a double fold on the strips turning both edges toward the center and then folding again so that you have strips about 1" wide.

There are 12 "fans" in the rug design, each containing 9 strips of cloth of decreasing length. Since the rug cannot be made to exact measurements, the following are approximate lengths. A different color or pattern of cloth for each strip will give the rug a unique design each time. Since there are 12 fans, you need 12 strips of each strip listed.

Strip 1: 1 1/2" x 45" A 36" x 23" piece can be cut into 24 strips each 1 1/2" wide, sewn together, and cut into 45" lengths. A 45" x 18" piece can be cut into 30 strips and sewn together.

Strip 2: 1 1/2" x 42" A 36" x 21" can be cut into 24 strips, sewn together, and cut into 42" lengths. A 45" x 17" piece can be cut into 30 strips, sewn together, and cut into 42" lengths.

Strip 3: 1 1/2" x 39" A 36" x 20" piece of cloth can be cut into 24 strips, sewn together, and cut into 39" lengths. A 45" x 16" can be cut into 30 strips, sewn together and cut.

Strip 4: 1 1/2" x 36" A 36" x 18" piece can be cut into 24 strips, sewn together and cut into 36" lengths. A 45" x 15" piece can be cut into 30 strips, sewn together, and cut.

Strip 5: 1 1/2" x 33" A 36" x 17" piece can be cut into 24 strips, sewn together, and cut into 33" lengths. A 45" x 14" piece can be cut into 30 strips, sewn together, and cut.

Strip 6: 1 1/2" x 30" A 36" x 15" piece of cloth can be cut into 24 strips, sewn together, and cut into 30" lengths. A 45" x 12" can be cut into 30 strips, sewn together, and cut.

Strip 7: 1 1/2" x 27" A 36" x 14" piece of cloth can be cut into 24 strips, sewn together, and cut into 27" lengths. A 45" x 11" can be cut into 30 strips, sewn together, and cut.

Strip 8: 1 1/2" x 24" A 36" x 12" piece of cloth can be cut into 24 strips, sewn together, and cut into 24" lengths. A 45" X 10" piece can be cut into 30 strips, sewn together, and cut.

Strip 9: 1 1/2" x 21" A 36" x 11" piece of cloth can be cut into 24 strips, sewn together, and cut into 21" lengths. A 45" x 9" piece can be cut into 30 strips, sewn together, and cut.

For each fan strip, and remember that there are 9 for each fan, double fold the edges under and sew into 1/2" - 3/4" strips. Remember that if you use different colors and patterns for each strip a unique design will result.

The inner hub is made of one strip of cloth 1 1/2" x 48" that IS NOT SEWN. It will be hand folded. It also needs to be one color, if possible.

The warp is the long piece of material that weaves the spokes and the fan strips together. The warp, rather than starting with a very long piece, is more easily handled in 36" strips each 1 1/2" wide. The number of 36" strips will vary slightly depending on the type of cloth used and how tightly it's woven, but to start out, cut at least 5 strips 1 1/2" x 36". More can be easily provided later. The warp will be hand folded and NOT sewn.

• A regular width hula hoop----not the small size
  
• Or a bicycle tire
  
• Needle and thread to match the hub fabric and the warp
  
• Pins
  
• Scissors