February, 1909 
ple. Everywhere 
they met with in- 
credulity, while only 
a few took them 
seriously. 
By dint of much 
coaxing and tact 
they were allowed 
to poke about in 
garrets and _ sheds, 
and all sorts of 
treasures were re- 
vealed as a reward 
of their enterprise. One was found in a pile of rubbish in 
the corner of a garret, and only an artist could have realized 
its beauty under the coat of dust and dirt that concealed its 
soft mellow colors. A small rug had been made by a child 
who had designed it and dyed the materials from her 
mother’s dye pot. When the woman found that they would 
really like to buy the rug, she 
went into roars of laughter at 
the very idea of its being any 
value, and could hardly be 
persuaded to name a price for 
it. However, she finally men- 
tioned forty cents, which she 
was quite sure was too much 
to ask for it. It proved, how- 
ever, one of the most beautiful 
rugs in the collection. It is 
hooked through an old home- 
spun blanket and had been 
made by the mother of the 
woman who sold the rug, so 
that it is, in all probability, 
seventy-five or a hundred years 
old. It seems strange that 
sentiment should not have 
proved strong enough to make 
the woman cling to a piece of 
work made by her mother in 
her childhood. 
Pulled rugs were made by 
the women of the family dur- 
ing the long winter evenings 
from cast off clothing,.such as 
undershirts, stockings, flannel 
petticoats and old blankets. 
All of this clothing was homespun and woven by hand, and 
is, therefore, very soft in texture. When these were dyed 
in the old blue and madder dye pots and colored with other 
dyes, made from roots and berries found on the farm, the 
very beautiful, soft colors, together with their texture, gave 
them an old-world appearance that is quite charming. In- 
stead of being pulled through burlap they were pulled 
through partly worn 
hand-woven _ blank- 
ets so that they are 
very soft, which 
makes them particu- 
larly desirable for 
bath rugs. In those 
days designs could 
not be bought from 
the country store, 
and each worker 
made her own, the 
result being charm- 
ing, individual pat- 
terns. 
A frequent design for old pulled rugs 
An old rug of real beauty 
Designed, woven and pulled by a child nearly a hundred years ago 
AIT ERTeAN HOMES AND GARDENS 51 
Among the later 
rugs _ occasionally 
may be found a 
pretty design. An 
illustration shows a 
favorite pattern 
bought ready 
stamped, but it is 
made of old hand- 
woven and _ home- 
dyed materials, and 
seems to belong to 
the old set. Many 
designs were evolved from oilcloth, and quaint little squares 
were one of the most popular patterns among the rugs. Some- 
times the entire kitchen floor is covered with one large rug, 
while smaller ones will be found in the outer kitchens. 
At one farmhouse was found what proved to be the gem 
of the collection. It was covered with dirt, as it had been 
used for the men to wipe their 
feet on when they came from 
the stables before entering the 
house. When it had been 
thoroughly cleaned and _ its 
beautiful colors revealed, 
though a good deal worn, it 
proved worthy of a place of 
honor on the wall. Unfortu- 
nately moths recently attacked 
it, eating large holes out of the 
woolen blanket foundation. 
thus spoiling its value as a rug. 
These old-fashioned rugs 
were especially valued as a 
means of using up old cloth- 
ing, and at the same time pro- 
viding a durable and warm 
floor covering—many of them 
lasting from twenty to thirty 
years. As they possessed such 
lasting qualities there was ex- 
cellent reason why the pulled- 
rug industry should not be al- 
lowed to die out when the 
cheap machine-made articles 
became the rage. 
The revolutionized pulled 
rug is made from new flannel 
of the very best quality and dyed in colors as beautiful as it is 
possible to make them. ‘The designs taken from Indian 
motifs are simply and carefully planned and are worked up 
in many rich, strong colorings. The method of making the 
new rug is, however, almost the same as that of the old- 
fashioned pulled rug. ‘The design is first stenciled on to 
burlap and is then placed in the frame made for the pur- 
pose. As only a por- 
tion of the rug can 
be done at one time, 
one corner will be 
fastened into the 
frame, and it is then 
moved as it is com- 
pleted. The flannel 
is pulled through 
the open mesh of 
the burlap in a 
series of loops. This 
may be done with 
either a coarse cro- 
chet hook or a little 
