While we were in Ohio, I wove a set of Jelly Roll Placemats.  I was only intending to warp the loom, weave a little bit, and then bring the warped loom to Cumberland Gap.  But I had so much fun weaving the placemats that I finished them before we left Ohio.

I found the instructions for the Jelly Roll Placemats in the Schacht newsletter.  I have a Schacht loom so they send patterns and other articles of interest specifically for their looms.  Jelly Rolls are colorful rolls of cloth specifically coordinated for quilting.  There are 40 strips that are 44″ inches long and 2.5″ wide.  Usually a roll will have eight to ten different fabric patterns, but in colors that all go together.  I picked up two of these strips in blues when Joanns was going out of business.  Then I ordered some more from Amazon.  I also ordered two stick shuttles and then Tom copied them and made me two more.

I have a little experience with rag rugs, having learned to weave at Pipe Spring when we spent the summer weaving rag rugs.  I know that it is a pain to cut or tear the cloth into strips.  By using the Jelly Rolls, I was already ahead with some of the cutting done.  I read the instructions for the Jelly Roll Placemats and decided to make some modifications.

I warped the loom with 8/4 cotton at 12 ends per inch, making the placemats 16 inches wide.  I was able to use white and gray yarn that I already had.  Then I started cutting strips.  And cutting and cutting and cutting.  I would cut 20 strips a day into 0.625″ strips.  So each strip got cut into four.  Then I sewed eight strips together, resulting in one long strip almost 10 yards long.  I sewed that many together because that is the amount that would fit on one stick shuttle.

All of this was very tedious and made me wish I hadn’t started the project.  But, once I started weaving, I fell in love with them.

The original pattern said that I could get four placemats from one Jelly Roll.  I got five from each Jelly Roll and ended up with ten placemats from two Jelly Rolls.  I had time to get them off the loom, knot the fringe, and wash the placemats before we left.  I did not have time to trim the fringe.  The (mostly) finished placemats are 13.5 inches by 17 inches, making a generous, thick placemat.  Because I was really careful about keeping the right side of the fabric facing me, the placemats also look different on each side, so they are reversible.

I brought one placemat with me to show at Cumberland Gap as a sample of rag rug weaving.  The others are at home, waiting for me to finish trimming the fringe.

Weaving the Jelly Roll Placemats was a lot of fun.  Cutting the strips and sewing them together – not so much.  But worth it after seeing the finished project.  I wonder how my family would feel about Jelly Roll Placemat Christmas presents?

What do you do that may seem tedious but ends up being worth it in the end?