I am obsessed with DIY rugs. It's incredibly difficult to make a rug that is durable, provides some cushioning, is cheap and easy to make, and looks good. This rope and pom pom rug gets the gold medal in each category.

It came from a Free People store display, and they recently had a giveaway at their blog where some lucky commenter won it. To quell the masses that didn't win, the display artist that originally created it put up a great tutorial so we can make our own!
(Images: Free People via The Wool Acorn)


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i cannot imagine how hard that would be to keep clean... that said, it would look great hung up.
I was thinking the same thing - gorgeous, but impossible to clean!
It would be totally easy to clean. Pick it up, shake it off. Damp towel on especially dirty parts.
I'm with the hard to clean crowd. I love this rug but can you imagine when the kids/dog/delivery person tracks mud all over those tiny, individual pom poms? Or spills juice on them? Or the cat throws up on them? See, this is why we can't have nice things!
Hard to clean, tripping hazard (because of thickness), slipping hazard (can't put one of those grippy things underneath b/c of the holes) and generally impractical because it wouldn't hold up for more than a year in my household of 3 kids & a dog but it really is gorgeous! It'd make a perfect table runner, though...as long as it was removed during meals!
This rug is gorgeous; too pretty to step on! I agree that it would be great on a wall or as a table runner.
that is as cool as all get-out!
...but after looking at the tutorial, this chick won't be diy-ing this project any time soon.
I'm going to make one just to show you guys how easy it would be to clean. I'll even take it one step further and say this rug would be easier to clean than other rugs. It's rope. It's yarn. That's what rugs are made of. Plus this one doesn't have a backing on it to trap dirt. Take it out back and beat it Victorian style. Or run a vacuum cleaner attachment over it. If you have a particularly dirty section, squirt your favorite cleaner on a rag and rub it. I'm just not buying the hard to clean thing on this one. Sooo easy. Worse comes to worse, you could pop out one of the circles and replace it.
So make it and put it in your guest room... it is one beautiful rug. Wow.
Katie, you always find the COOLEST things! I love this rug -- it's total eye candy and I bet it's total foot candy too. OOOH!
Amazing.
My dog would have such a good time disassembling that.
This is absolutely gorgeous! I'm inspired to make my own version. Reminds me of crochet patterns from the 60's.
KatieDoh-- have you looked into making this yet?! I am dying to try, but want to see your version first :)
man...no offense, but what a bunch of nay-sayers! This is SUPER GORGEOUS! I have five kids, a dog, live on a ski slope with many months of mud, and I'm making this ASAP! It's not all about utilitarian decor that our kids/husband/dog can't destroy. Otherwise we'd live in a cement house and use plastic utensils! Come ON!
THIS LOOKS TOTALLY AWESOME
and if i didnt make or buy everything that i thought my kids would dirty or wreck i''d live in a bare house!!!!
i dont get how they put the pom poms in there though???
was looking in detail at that rug... and there are no weaving threads in it.
this rug cant be made using the method stated???
I love,love,love this! How do Iget the pattern? Worrying hoe to clean this would be the least of my problems! Get an old rug beater!
I'm working on making my own - I'll let you know how it goes! I have three circles down - only about 50 dozen more to go! I made 12 templates and 3 circles in one night, FYI.
the free people article is calling it a wall hanging/tapestry by the way....