rug making

More Yarns

Posted on by Josef Havelka

Yesterday I made my way to the United States after my night shift. I got some cheap gas, cheap milk and some cheap yarn. A lot of cheap yarn! It was on sale.

I bought 53 skeins of yarn. I knew I was going to buy that much, so I went prepared with a large clear garbage bag. When I rolled up to the cashier, she was rather surprised at how much yarn I was buying. Even better was the border crossing guard on my way home.

Coming back to Canada over land, they ask a lot of questions. You also need to declare what you are bringing across. He asked what I was bring back and the value of the goods.

“I have $265 coming back. I bought milk, cheese, some frozen food, and yarn.”

His response was perfect- “You can never have too much yarn.” Best part is that he didn’t even check to see exactly how much yarn I was bringing back.

Now to make some more rugs! Taking two weeks off has made me antsy and I need my creative juices flowing once more.

Stay tuned for the next set of rugs!

Second Rug Created By My Son

Posted on by Josef Havelka

My son wanted to make a rug for his speed skating coach since she was going to be leaving at the end of the season. He wanted to make something unique that he knew she would like. He found out her favorite anime film- “Princess Mononoke” and made a rug based on the mask the main character wears.

From start to finish, my son did all the work. He drew out the image, used the tufting gun to fill in the colours, and then did all the tedious trimming to finish it off. I guided him along in the process, offering advice, but he did all the work. He took a few weeks to get it done, where as I try and finish in a couple of days. However long the process- the results were impressive.

He gave the rug to his coach last night at the end of season dinner. He was really proud of the rug; his coach was happy and delighted that he had made it for her.

Perhaps my son will make more rugs as time goes on. For now, he’s really happy with what he has made. I’m proud of the hard work he put in to finalize the product.

Big Leaf Rug

Posted on by Josef Havelka

This week I made my largest rug yet. I was making it as a gift to some friends who are opening up their home to us over spring break. I asked what sort of rug they would like and some colour palettes.

They sent me a picture of the room they would like the rug in. Kind of a jungle them with various shades of green. So I took inspiration from the artwork on the wall as the colour scheme I would use.

I also asked if I could design the rug, which they seemed happy about. So I used a leaf from a plant at work as my inspiration to start. I photographed it and drew it out on the monks cloth. I chose to have a few slots cut out, but wanted more abstract design’s throughout.

At almost five feet long, this rug used quite a lot of yarn. I now have a dwindling supply of green yarns. It also weighs in at six and a half pounds! That’s a heavy boy. I’m really excited with how the rug turned out. I sent a picture to our friends and they also seem ecstatic about it. I cannot wait to bring it to them later this week.

Another rug off to a good home.

Before and After With Pride

Posted on by Josef Havelka

Making rugs has been a fun adventure these past 8 weeks. I have learned a lot and improved tremendously in the art. One of the things I am working hardest towards is the finishing touches and final results.

It’s amazing how a bit of trimming, cleaning and shaving can make all the difference in how a rug looks in order to get crisp edges, it starts with how close you stitch the yarn to each colour and change. Leaving a small gap can make it easier to show the transition since yarn has a tendency to spread a bit when cut.

Noticing the difference in the quality of how my rugs turn out is huge for me. Not everyone sees it as I am making the rugs. They look pretty good without the extra work. But I take great pride in making sure they have crisp edges and lines in order to look amazing. Especially when the rugs are going to a new home. I want my friends to be happy with what I have made for them.

Taking pride in one’s work is a quality I admire in others. Which is why I work so hard in all my ventures.

New Rug Designs

Posted on by Josef Havelka

This week I tufted more rugs. I have not made any of the same designs yet. I like that each rug I have made at this is a “One Off” and unique.

I enjoyed designing a couple of the rugs this time around. I did a sakura flower and a pot leaf. Both very different designs, and both fun to make.

I also made a couple of “wrist rugs” that can be placed on a desk in front of a keyboard. I designed matching Wall-E and Eve inspired rugs. The colour scheme and simplicity of just they eyes really works.

I also have a couple of other rugs that I made, but don’t want to show them off yet as they are gifts for a few friends. Once they are given away- I plan to share the images.

This hobby is a lot of fun. I am enjoying creating recognizable images in rug form. I hope that everyone else is enjoying seeing what I make. Remember to follow on my Instagram Tuftleupagus to see progress of what I make.

New Rug Designs

Posted on by Josef Havelka

This week I tufted more rugs. I have not made any of the same designs yet. I like that each rug I have made at this is a “One Off” and unique.

I enjoyed designing a couple of the rugs this time around. I did a sakura flower and a pot leaf. Both very different designs, and both fun to make.

I also made a couple of “wrist rugs” that can be placed on a desk in front of a keyboard. I designed matching Wall-E and Eve inspired rugs. The colour scheme and simplicity of just they eyes really works.

I also have a couple of other rugs that I made, but don’t want to show them off yet as they are gifts for a few friends. Once they are given away- I plan to share the images.

This hobby is a lot of fun. I am enjoying creating recognizable images in rug form. I hope that everyone else is enjoying seeing what I make. Remember to follow on my Instagram Tuftleupagus to see progress of what I make.

Keep on Spending

Posted on by Josef Havelka

I am really enjoying my hobby. So much so that I am spending more money than I am bringing in. But that’s okay, right? I mean it is just a hobby after all.

I keep buying monks cloth and yarn. Loads of yarn!!! I am stock piling a variety of colours just in case someone wants something different than what I have made this mid far. I have also purchased some new trimming scissors and am waiting for a second razor as I want one for the edging and one for making the rugs smooth.

I am even at a point where I want a second tufting gun. Mostly as a backup, but also to be able to teach others how to make rugs. Like family and friends. I think it would be a neat activity to do in a group environment.

So if I do get a second gun, my door and knowledge will be open for those who want to learn this fun hobby! Maybe I’ll teach classes at the local Maker Space.

Making More?

Posted on by Josef Havelka

I have enjoyed tufting- obviously since I can’t stop talking about it… But I was only able to make one rug at a time with my set up. So on Thursday I decided to make a larger frame.

This one is six feet wide and four and a half feet tall. This allows for my entire monks cloth sheet to fit without much waste.

On my previous frame, I made removable and adjustable legs. I moved them to my new frame. I also added a hook to hold my tufting gun when not in use. I also added a couple of dowels on the side for my yarn in hopes to make it easier to work with.

I was able to draw five large rugs and a couple of small pieces. Over the past few weeks I was able to complete one to two rugs every week. I hadn’t realized that working on a layout for the images was going to be so time consuming. I spent most of my day just getting this ready that the only colour of yarn I was able to finish with was the black yarn.

Tomorrow I will be spending more time rug making. Hopefully by Monday night, my rugs will be ready for the finishing touches and by next weekend they will be completed. I can’t wait to show off these designs.

Hobby For Work

Posted on by Josef Havelka

I’ve been doing tufting now for a little over a month. During this time I have gotten visibly better at it. My coworkers are genuinely surprised at my skills. Which is totally understandable- I usually keep work at work and my life outside of there is where the fun is.

But after seeing my work, two of my coworkers asked me to make rugs for them. Both very different designs. Both are something I wouldn’t have done on my own either. I looked up ideas online and got feedback prior to creating the rugs.

The first “commission rug” was requested to be a mushroom. The colours just POP in my opinion. This is going to be a gift for his wife since she loves mushrooms. Before doing the rug, we discussed what style to do and went with a cartoonish style- reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland. This one was fun to make because I was able to create it in a more whimsical style. When I finished it, I wasn’t sure what rug to make next. So I contacted another coworker who asked about a rug the other day.

This next rug was from Naruto. It was a Mangekyō Sharingan symbol. He asked for this specific design with black and red. As simple as this image looks, it was far more difficult to make than anticipated. I decided to draw a circle on the fabric and lined up the image to fit perfectly. The hardest part was sewing the curves. The monks cloth is set up horizontal and vertical. Making the turns takes longer and is slow going.

In the end, these two rugs are the most perfect ones I have made to date. I’m really happy that they are going to new homes. My house is getting full…

More Yarn!

Posted on by Josef Havelka

I was running low on black yarn, so I did a quick drive across the border to the USA to buy some more. Of course, I couldn’t just buy a few black skeins- I needed to get some other colours as well.

50 more skeins came home with me. I got home and organized all my yarn once more. I also did a quick tidy up of my work station and tools. It’s amazing how much dust and debris comes off the yarn when it’s worked. I need to keep my equipment in good working order.

So messy.

My days off from work have been filled with this new hobby. I have also spent a small fortune on it as well. But I am enjoying the process and the therapeutic nature of making rugs. I can’t stop coming up with designs and rugs. There are so many I want to make.

Of course, I’ve already completed another rug. This time it was for a coworker. He wants to give it to his wife for Valentine’s Day. Before I share the pictures of the progress, I don’t want to spoil the surprise in case his wife follows my instagram account as well. But tomorrow I will start a different set of rugs and share those.

I can’t believe how much I am enjoying this hobby. Sorry for inundating my blog with it. But it’s only a couple of days a week.

100!

Posted on by Josef Havelka

It excites me that my new Instagram account reach 100 followers in three weeks! No boys either. Real accounts, real people interacting with me there. Many of them fellow tufters. I have given them a follow back in order to learn from them and keep getting inspired.

Instagram is my go-to social media platform, so I enjoy the interactions I have there. From pictures to videos- that social media meets my requirements exactly. Quick stories, amazing artwork, and a kind community of support.

I have even received my first commission request that will be completed this weekend. However, I won’t be able to share the images or process until after Valentine’s Day, for obvious reasons. But I will be working on another piece to share this weekend.

So please, follow along to see my process and my advancement in my skills as an artist. Tuftleupagus

Crafting A Leaf

Posted on by Josef Havelka

Today I made another rug. Or rather-just like you do in Animal Crossing- I crafted a leaf (from the video game Animal Crossing).

The design is pretty simple. So drawing it out wasn’t too difficult. This is now the largest one I have made. It almost filled my 3’ frame. I enjoyed the simplicity of the design, but really worked hard to make it perfect.

Since I was low on black yarn, this design was a great option since it uses four different shades of green. Video game images are fun to tuft. Plus the recognizability of icons and characters makes for an enjoyable crafting experience.

Creating rugs has become a fantastic pastime for me over the past few weeks. I have found tufting to be therapeutic and calming. I listen to music that relates to the rug I tuft. It gets me in the zone. Making two rugs a week seems to be my average. I may slow it down a bit though. I can only have so many rugs in our house.

The next rug to be made will be created by our youngest teen. He has an idea and wants to get it out in the world. I can’t wait to see what he crafts. His first one was pretty good- read about it Here: Son of Tuftleupagus.

Poolside Rug

Posted on by Josef Havelka

Today I made a rug for my wife. She requested a rug to go outdoors for the summer. A rug that will be for her feet as she exits the pool. So I took what she asked for and made one specifically that would make her happy.

Ever since we moved into our home with a pool, my wife has loved pink flamingos. Naturally I had to make a flamingo rug with a palm tree. After weeks of tufting, I am finally able to make the “waterfall edges” between the yarn colours more defined. A tight cut allowing an obvious transition between each shape.

I love this hobby and have been enjoying the fanart I have created. I make one or two a week currently for myself and my family. It’s given me a good opportunity to learn this skill.After about a month, I’m finally feeling confident.

Perhaps it’s time to start selling some rugs. I can only have so many rugs in our home… I’ll probably start with commission sales and custom orders. If anyone wants to contact me- direct message my Instagram: Tuftleupagus. I’ll do my best to create something that you will enjoy.

Hope you like my rugs and watching my journey to get better.

Beauty Made

Posted on by Josef Havelka

The FAILURE I wrote about yesterday led me to try exponentially harder on my next rug. So much so that I put in around 12 hours labor to get it right. That’s a long time for a twenty eight inch round rug. But I wanted it to be perfect. And it almost is.

I traced out the image as I normally do. This time I labeled each and every color spot and worked tediously to fill them in; leaving enough space to do the black outline in the end. After each colour, I trimmed the yarn. It was easier to do it this way so that the final touches would be minimal and easier to complete.

I have wanted to do this specific image years ago, but in an different medium. I was originally going to paint it, then I was going to paint it on a window, I even thought about doing it in stained glass; but now I created it in rug form. Beauty and The Beast is my favorite Disney Princess Classic. I’ve always loved this film. Great music, good story, very vibrantly executed. A masterpiece in animation.

I’m very happy with how this rug turned out. As usual though, I can see every flaw and just want to continue trimming and cutting. But if I do that, nothing will remain of my rug. The beauty will be gone and only a beast would remain.

This Beauty is adorning our master bedroom in front of the doors to our Juliet deck. It adds a splash of color and I am totally in love with this piece and the placement.

Now I don’t know what to make. This was the pinnacle of my desires. Maybe I’ll take a week off and get back to basic images. Unless you all have a suggestion! I love this hobby!

Learning From My Mistake

Posted on by Josef Havelka

I attempted something new with my rug making. And it did not turn out. In fact it was such a failure that I lost part of my rug.

I wanted to do an abstract design. That part was fine. I enjoyed designing it and mixing colours to try and fit our home. The problem I ran into was I tried using burlap instead of monks cloth. Not easy to use.

I struggled a bit at the start since the burlap had no give. I thought I had gotten past that difficulty, even with some struggles. Just as I was finishing the rug, my gun went straight through the burlap. The tear was so bad that my circular rug was a failure with no chance of repair. So I glued the rug like I normally do and let it dry.

This afternoon, I cut the lower part off and finished trimming the pattern. I still like the design and may do some more like this in the future. However, burlap is a no-go ever again. That was the biggest headache I have had to deal with in my tufting hobby.

I only tried the burlap because I wanted to see if it would work. I wouldn’t even recommend burlap for those starting in tufting. Had I used burlap the first time around, I would have given up on tufting. But even with my big mishap- I’m still wanting to make more rugs.

Lesson learned- don’t use the wrong stuff.

Son Of Tuftleupagus

Posted on by Josef Havelka

Like father like son I guess.

I mentioned yesterday that I may start to have a battle over who gets to tuft next. It seems my son wanted to try his hand at it. So I walked him through everything- from setting up the cloth to threading the gun, as well as how to draw the image and pretty much everything that goes along with the art of rug making.

I helped him choose his first image. He wanted to try something a bit bigger and a different shape. So he made an 8 Ball. Honestly- that would’ve been something I would have made when I was his age. I was obsessed with billiards as a teenager. I may have to steal his rug one day.

He was very meticulous and cautious in sewing the rug. It looked far superior to my first rug. I think he has a natural talent in make these rugs. He was very careful in making sure it was lined up and straight each and every time he started the tufting gun.

After he finished stitching the rug, he added the glue to the back and let it dry overnight. The next day, he cut it off the cloth and we added a backing to it. He then trimmed it to his liking.

All-in-all he did a great job. I did help a bit with some of the finishing touches around the white part- he wanted it to be perfect and was afraid to ruin it. I’m looking forward to seeing his next project. I think he can do it from start to finish without me. I’m a very proud father.

Improving My Tufting Skills

Posted on by Josef Havelka

I have now made four rugs since starting my newest hobby- Tufting. Creating rugs based on our Fandoms has been fun so far. This week I made one with far more detail than my previous rugs.

I made Haku- the dragon from the anime: Spirited Away. This one had more colours, thinner segments and an attempt at blending that I hadn’t tried yet. I spent a couple of hours today trimming the image in order to make it pop more. I still have a long way to go, but I am enjoying this new hobby immensely.

Tuft working with yarn reminds me of Snuffleupagus from Sesame Street. So I finally created an Instagram account for my artwork: Tuftleupagus. (Tuftle-up-a-gus). I even had some fun making logos, but haven’t settled on any yet.

I think I’m obsessing too much with the 80’s lately. However, I am having fun with this hobby. No plans on making it lucrative yet. I still have a long way to go in the process of making these rugs. I’m also going to need to buy more yarn soon. My white and black are running low, plus there’s other aspects of the tufting work that I need to buy soon. Like more glue and backing for the rugs.

This is my first hobby that I have enjoyed since perler bead art almost a decade ago. That lasted for a few years mind you and I enjoyed what we made together as a family. I kind of see tufting going that route soon enough. With the potential to be a battle over who gets to make a rug.

Follow along with my rugs on my Instagram account. I’m going to keep working hard at getting better at these and hope to make a large scale rug one day.

Fandom Rug Making

Posted on by Josef Havelka

Over the last couple of days I finished another two rugs. Spending about four hours on each rug seems to be average. These next two had more intricate designs in them. Both fandoms are near and dear to me, which is why I chose to make these.

Akira has been my favorite anime since I first saw it as a teenager in the late 80’s. Something a bout the style, music, and pace of the film just captivated me. I own every iteration of it on video, I owned a shirt for almost thirty years from it, and the soundtrack has been in my playlist for ages. It seemed natural to want to do something from this film as my own personal rug.

The Powerpuff Girls was something that my wife and I connected over when we first started dating. Ever since then we have been enjoying finding items, gifts, trinkets, etc from the series. (Read more about our love of PPG Here)

I was able to put both on one framing this time. The Akira one will be going on my side of the bedroom opposite the The first one I completed for my wife. The Powerpuff Girls logo is going to my wife as a soft support for her wrists while she uses her work computer.

Both turned out pretty awesome. I completed the final touches on my Akira rug, and my wife wants to do the last bit on the Powerpuff Girls one. Now that I have a better understanding of how to tuft, I am looking forward to making more challenging pieces for myself. Next week, I already have an idea of my next one to make.

Any suggestions on what I should attempt next? Keep in mind that the size is under 36” square, so no area rugs at this time. But I do love my fandoms and anime. I have a feeling those will be the majority of what I make. Once I get good enough- I may just start to sell them.

First Rug Completed

Posted on by Josef Havelka

After a couple of weeks, my first rug was completed yesterday.

Now, it doesn’t take a couple of weeks to make a 16”x30” rug. But in that time I had to buy yarn, build a frame, order a power supply, figure out how to get an image projected from my iPhone, draw the image, tuft, glue, cut out, shave, shave some more, trim, shave again… in the end, the work required to do this rug took me about three to four hours.

A solid start. I learned what I need to do to be better. I also got a feel for the gun and the materials used. I’m hoping that my next few rugs will take about three to four hours but would have more details involved. The next rug I make is for me.

After a slow start on the rug My New Hobby turned out pretty good. I made it for my wife: Lee-Anne. She loves “L” from the anime “Death Note” and this was his symbol. Fitting since it’s the first letter of her name as well. Maybe after I make a few more rugs I will retry this one to perfect it. I know all the flaws I created and it will bother me for ages. But still, a solid first rug.

Day One of a New Hobby

Posted on by Josef Havelka

Today I finally saw some progress in My New Hobby- Tufting. After getting My Little Corner ready the other day, I have been frothing at the mouth to try making my first rug.

It started with a design. I wanted to try something elegant and easy. I chose “L“ for my wife. Besides it being the letter of her first name, it’s also from one of her favorite anime shows- “Death Note”. I took the image, reversed it, shone it from my projector onto the back of the fabric- where I traced it out with a sharpie.

Then came the fun part! Using the tufting gun. It was a neat process and once I got going, my confidence grew. I started with the outline of the letter, then filled it in.

It wasn’t necessary to keep the lines or yarn touching as it filled out pretty good. My wife gave a couple of tries as well. I think she may want to tuft in the future as it is a very satisfying sound and feeling.

The way the yarn comes out thick a full makes me happy. The rug is already feeling very soft and looking pretty. Obviously I hope to see some progress and get better at it.

After a couple of hours, I had made quite the mess and used two full things of yarn. I had to call it quits since it was getting late and I have work in the morning. There’s still a few more steps to go in the process before I can say I have made a rug. Like gluing the back to prevent the yarn from being pulled out. Or trimming the front so that everything is smooth and even looking. The final step is giving it to my wife to have.

Stay tuned for an update by the weekend on the final results.

New Hobby- Tufting

Posted on by Josef Havelka

I love doing a variety of crafts and art. I enjoy sharing my art as well- not to make money or exposure, but because I am proud of what I make. I am often inspired by others and enjoy jumping in to try new stuff.

Newest obsession for art? Tufting! The art of rug making. Naturally I had to spend some money to buy things that are needed for this hobby. Here are some of the items I got.

This is a tufting gun. It is a cut pile style of gun. It will puncture through the fabric and cut the yarn as I go.

This is the razor I will use to clean up the strands of yarn on the visible side. I will also use it for some added texture to the rugs.

Sheep shears! Pretty industrial feeling. These will be used for more of the heavy labor of trimming the rugs.

Those are just the power tools I needed. The next thing I needed was a frame. So I went and bought some 2×3 boards and went to work building it earlier today.

This is what I want to call my “Starter Frame” It has a three foot square area to work inside of. I added adjustable legs depending if I am sitting or standing to do the work. I added carpet tacks along the frame so that the barlap style material used for rugs can be stretched out and held in place while I work.

My wife and I went to the store and bought a lot of yarn in many different colours. This is the foundation of the rugs. Each spool was around $3. I’m not sure how much gets used, but I will find out soon enough.

Tomorrow I will make my first rug. Sort of. I’m going to be more or less just be learning how the machines react and some basics. Stay tuned for my progress. I’m excited about this new hobby.