DIY: Bear Skin Rug (College Dorm Edition!)

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We move my little sister into her college apartment tomorrow! She recruited me to do the interior design, so for the past couple weeks I've been busy gathering and creating decor for her room. Last night I stayed up entirely too late working on this faux bear skin rug. Who wants a plain old square, when you can add something a little quirky to the space? This rug was simple to make, and I'll show you how to make your own!

Items you will need:

- 2-4 yards of faux fur fabric (I purchased mine at Jo-Ann Fabrics with a coupon)
- Masking tape or chalk
- Scissors
- Hot glue gun



To begin, lay the fabric out right-side up. Fold the fabric in half hot-dog style, so you can still see the entire length. The fabric should be right-sides together, with the wrong side facing up. We will cut through boths sides of the fabric so the design will be symetrical. 



From here, decide what shape you map out onto the fabric before cutting. I browsed the web for awhile looking at different skin rugs to decide what shape I wanted. For bear skins, there are muted, stubby patterns that lack heads, and the real ones are large with full limbs and heads. I drew out a pattern that would meet in the middle. You can use the shape I created below. I folded the paper, again, hot-dog style and drew out one-half of the design.



Next, use the masking tape or chalk to mimic the shape above. This will make the cutting easier. Keep two things in mind: 1. It's easier to cut off a little now and little more later, rather than cutting too much at first and ruining the rug. 2. Make the design at least a half-inch larger than you want the finished produce to be, as we will hem the sides at the end.



Then cut around the tape or chalk, making sure to cut through both sides of fabric, and making sure NOT to cut along the centerline.



Open up the rug, and lay it wrong side up. Inspect the shape, and trim where needed. Also, you should remove any loose "fur" from all edges.



Finally, use the hot glue gun to fold over a half-inch all the way around the rug. This will help lessen future shedding and make the ride-side have a finished look.



Lastly, flip it over and enjoy! I think my sister is going to love this. I'm contemplating stealing it for my own apartment.This rug turned out great. They never said it was ALWAYS hip to be a square, right?