Crochet Stash Buster – Linen Stitch Scrap Rug
Use up all your yarn scraps with a Linen Stitch Scrap Rug! This crochet stash buster is thick, soft, and squishy, and designed to use up lots of yarn, very quickly, without weaving in a lot of ends. The stitch pattern is a simple 2 stitch repeat, so can easily be adjusted to any size.
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5 strands at a time
Using 5 strands of yarn at a time gives this rug its luscious, squishy softness. It’s also a real yarn eater! If you only change one strand at a time, and work over the ends before changing another strand, then the ends should be secure and won’t need to be woven in. See this tutorial for more details.
Remember, what makes this work is the number of strands in the bundle, which help hold that single end in place. If you use fewer strands, you may find yourself needing to weave in the ends.
So many uses
Since I first published this pattern, it’s been one of my most popular. Talented crocheters have come up with some beautiful color schemes, and have used the pattern in lots of different ways. There are pet beds, throw rugs, runners, bath mats, even a sofa cover! Check out the amazing variety of projects on Ravelry. What will you make?
Stash busting yarn choices
For my rug, I used mostly Red Heart Super Saver, with a few other yarns mixed in. I chose to stick to all worsted weight yarns, to keep a very uniform size. You absolutely can mix different weights of yarn, but try to keep the size of the total bundle of yarns as consistent as possible.
Different fibers can also be fun! Just remember that the bundle of fibers is what holds the ends in place without weaving in. If you choose yarns that are too slippery, you may need to weave in your ends.
Pattern continues below
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Materials:
- Yarn: 1500-1800 yds worsted weight yarn in a variety of colors.
- Hook: Size P (11.5 mm) hook or appropriate size for your yarns with 5 strands together
- Notions: Yarn needle
Project Level:
Easy – 2 stitch repeat using only chains and single crochets. The only challenging parts are working with 5 strands of yarn at once, and changing colors one at a time (see this Combining Scraps tutorial).
Size:
20 inches x 30 inches – Instructions include notes for adjusting size if desired.
Gauge:
8 st x 8 rows = 4 inches in linen stitch. After row 3 of pattern, your work should measure approximately 20 inches x 2 inches.
Exact gauge is not critical for this project, and in fact if you are working with scraps of different brands, your gauge may vary slightly. Choose a hook size that is comfortable to work with but still gives you a dense, somewhat stiff fabric – it should feel a little tight as you are working with it. The overall size can be adjusted as necessary by using more or fewer stitches/rows.
Abbreviations used:
(Pattern is written in US terms)
- ch = chain
- sc = single crochet
- sk = skip
- st(s) = stitch(es)
- sp = space
- ch sp = chain space
- WS = wrong side
- RS = right side
Recommended Resources:
Instructions:
With 5 strands of yarn held together, ch 41.
To adjust width of rug, add or remove chains as desired, using an odd number of chains.
Row 1 (WS): Sc in 2nd ch from hook, (ch 1, sk next ch, sc in next ch) across to last ch, sc in last ch.
Row 2: Ch 1, turn, sc in first st, (ch 1, sk next st, sc in next ch-1 sp) across to last st, sc in last st.
Change colors as needed, but only change one strand at a time. Work over the ends until they are completely gone before changing another color. See this Combining Scraps tutorial for more details.
Repeat last row 56 more times, or until desired length is reached, ending on a RS row.
Fasten off. Weave in remaining ends. Do not try to sew in the whole bundle of 5 yarns at once, or it will be very thick and noticeable. Instead, separate the 5 strands of yarn and sew them in one or two at a time.
I hope you enjoy the pattern. Special thanks to mbuchanan5, wilmalee, MixedKreations, lynne1, Megan Hampson & merryJ for testing it!
A downloadable pdf of this pattern is also available in my Craftsy store or on Ravelry, for a small fee. The fee for the pdf format is to offset the advertising revenue lost when you print or download the pattern rather than viewing it online.
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33 Comments
Darlene
Thank you for this super rug design idea using scrap yarn!!!!
Pia Thadani
You’re welcome, I’m glad you like it! 🙂
kim domingue
I really enjoyed the tutorial on combining yarns. I’ve done something similar but it was only with two or three strands at a time when making infinity cowls. As soon as I saw the linen stitch rug pattern, I smacked my forehead and said “Duh!”, lol! This will the next project on my hook. Thanks!
Pia Thadani
LOL I can’t wait to see it when it’s done! 🙂
Cindy
Super cool and I love that is all scrap yarns held together. I have bookmarked this on SU and hope to try it soon. I might use t-shirt yarn as alternative.
Robin
Beautiful colors. Can’t wait to try this. Looks like a great stash buster. Thanks for Sharing.
Peggy
This is perfect! I am guilty over and over again of finding a new pattern I’m excited about, and buying all new yarn for it. Therefore I have quite a stash – this will be great to make a dent in it – rugs for everyone! 🙂
Pia Thadani
woohoo!
Angie
This is beautiful! Can I ask a question…. does a rug like this hold up if you were to use it regularly? Could you vacuum it?
Pia Thadani
Thanks! Mine has gotten pretty well abused – it sits in front of my WIP shelf, so i walk (and kneel, and sit, and drop things) on it several times a day, and I sometimes lay on it when I’m reading. It’s held up really well so far. I’m pretty sure it gets vacuumed every 2 weeks, but I’m not the one who does it so can’t be positive.
Cara
I have now made two of these for the bottom of my dog’s kennels. Talk about using up a TON of scrap yarn! The babies love it, and I’ve made so much room for new projects! Great idea! Thanks.
Pia Thadani
yay! Time to go shopping again 😉
BonPress
Great idea to use for the doggies! I think I’ll make my first on for my dog’s crate!
Bonnie Burkhardt
I crocheted a temperature blanket using the moss stitch and I crocheted over the ends. Unfortunately, the ends started coming out on it.
Pia Thadani
Yep that will happen when using only one strand. The difference here is that the other 4 strands help to hold the end in place. That’s why it’s important not to change more than one strand at a time.
BonPress
I have a similar stitch I created for a big fluffy Afghan. Three strands worked together in a half-double crochet using a P hook. Three skeins of Red Heart super saver yarn usually three different colors. Pastel green, yellow, white for a baby blanket. Dark olive green, tan, and leaf green for a lap robe for a disabled veteran. Antique white, light and dark purples for a couple of gals who needed a little “thank you”. And most recently medium grey, cream, and tan to match the nursery colors for a co-worker’s baby!
I can’t wait to try five at once! It’s the next project one my list.
Nancy Spoolman
I am going to start this right away, even though I have three other projects sitting here to continue! I am laid up for a couple of weeks after having foot surgery, so need something else to do besides those I started. LOL I have bins of yarn to use!
Pia Thadani
You can never have too many WIPs! Hope your foot recovers well, and I can’t wait to see your rug 🙂
Susie Holcombe
I love this rug and am planning to start it. I was wondering if I should use fewer strands if I use a heavier yarn, Bulky 5, for parts of it. Would it matter if I use 3 or 4 and then go up to 5 if I add in lighter weights?
Pia Thadani
This may depend on the yarn you are using. The reason this works without weaving in ends is mainly because there are so many other strands to hold the ends in place. If you use fewer strands then you may find you need to weave in the ends.
Karen Pullen
Would you please tell me why you start on the wrong side for the first row? I’m obviously new to crocheting and have always though the right side of the chain is crocheted into. Thank you; this looks like fun!
Pia Thadani
Hi! 🙂 You can actually start on the wrong or right side, and it will be different for different patterns. In this case it really didn’t matter much, but on some patterns it will. There are lots of different reasons why you might need to, but it all boils down to the look and structure – for example you may need a wrong side row on the edge for seaming, or you may have a pattern stitch on row 2 that needs to be on the right side. If it matters, the pattern should specify which side is the right side.
Glenna Nabuda
I’m using a size 12 crochet hook and have done about four rows using five strands. Seems very bulky. Wondering if using four strands would make it lie a bit flatter. Would definitely welcome your input. I’m using similar colors to your rug because I love the colors and contrasts! Very cool.
Pia Thadani
The rug is very bulky and thick. You definitely could use four strands, though I wouldn’t go any lower than that. Any less than four strands, and you run the risk of ends coming out.
Lorri Adams
Currently making my first stash busting rug, using 5 strands of yarn. Its looking fabulous. Wondering if anyone has applied a backing to their rug for extra strength and support, and if so, what did you use.
Cheers
Lorri
Caroline
This is an excellent pattern! I have way too much sock yarn stashed and originally was having a go at the popular honeycomb blanket patter n, but it was taking way too long. I have started a 66” wide version of this pattern with an I hook. In one weekend I was able to burn through half a bin of my stash and complete about 24” of length for this blanket project! Fortunately I can still use the honeycomb puffs as cat toys lol!
Pia Thadani
Woohoo! Finally using up the odds and ends is SUCH a good feeling, isn’t it?
Sandra
Thank you for this wonderful idea to bust stashed of left over yarn. I will be knitting mine as my crochet skills are not very good. Also do you have any ideas for a stash busting cardigan?
Pia Thadani
Cool! I haven’t tried it in knitting so don’t know if the ends will work themselves in as well. Would love to hear how yours comes out. I don’t have a stash busting cardigan at the moment, but I’ll add it to my idea list for later!
Katherine S
Hello, and thank you for such a useful pattern!! I have a lot of fingering weight yarn and chunky yarn to use up. Can you tell me equivalents for holding together 5 strands of worsted, but with fingering or chunky weight yarn? I’ve tried googling the answer, but only come up with 2 strand equivalents which isn’t helpful. Thank you!!
Pia Thadani
You’re welcome 🙂 Ok so the actual thickness / gauge is not as important in this pattern as having a large number of threads. Having at least 4 or 5 strands and only changing one at a time is the key to not having to weave in ends. I don’t know what the exact conversion would be but you could make a bundle of worsted yarns and compare it with various combinations to figure out something similar. Or just make a size bundle you like, and use a hook that makes a fairly firm and tight fabric with your yarns.
If you’re combining both weights, you also want to keep your bundle size similar throughout. So like if you start with 2 bulky and 3 fingering, always replace fingering with fingering and bulky with bulky so you always have 2 bulky and 2 fingering throughout. You may notice a bit of extra bulk when changing the bulky yarn, but to counter this you could separate the plies of the bulky yarn and cut away half the plies on the overlapping ends, so that you’re not adding extra thickness.
Barbara
l I am the woman who has about 35 plastic totes of yarn. How did that happen? I buy bags of yarn at thrift shops and Goodwill. Usually very cheap, but only 1 or 2 skeins alike. Fine for making baby hats to donate to hospitals, but the amount has gotten out of hand. This pattern is perfect. Everybody is getting a rug for Christmas!
Pia Thadani
Yay! I’m sure everyone will love them 🙂